Parker Jack Knife Safety Bakelite Red

[MarcoA64]

Just received this pen
Curious fact? It is shorter than the original 30s Kaweco Sport too :-)
Lenght capped: 78 mm
Cap lenght: 41 mm
It boast the lucky curve gizmo on the section that sits in the barrel

All the photos I found on line show it as a 'normal' size pen for the time, maybe I have bought the Baby model. Still, cool to know that this eye dropper is 100+ years old. The section is soaking in water at the moment.

ADDED 12th August

I've written with it a few pages, it definitely needs posting. It is a flexible nib, althoug I don't know how to write flexy :-)
The only drawback I find, at present, is that it is very scratchy, this induces a lot of feedback.
I've checked the tines and they were a bit misaligned, so I tried to reduce the gap, but do not want to push my luck too much and risk breaking the nib.

[MarcoA64]

Here some photos of this little beauty, in my opinion :-)
Bakelite barrels were introduced in 1914, three different colours: two shade of red, green and pink

JKS closed.jpeg

JKS uncapped.jpg

This is definitely red :-)
JKS red bakelite barrel.jpeg

It boasted a Lucky Curve feed system already
JKS lucky curve positioning.jpg

Comparison, fourty years later, with a 50' Piston filler Kaweco Sport
JKS and KS.jpeg

Enjoy

[Robalone]

Marco….scratchy is quite easy to fix. Get some Mylar smoothing sheets and basically just write on them !
Start gently and work up til it then writes smoothly on the paper of your choice.

Or you can do like 'roundy roundy circles ……either way this will most likely smooth any sharp edges down .
You can get horribly sharp nibs smooth as butter this way ….as long as the tipping isn’t damaged !

And looking down the end of the nib with a loupe you can bend the tines straight gently ….if your pointy nosed pliers can get a gentle grip in the tine that needs to go up or down . Nibs are generally not freakishly fragile. Just be sure the actual tipping isn’t touching itself when you bend the tine

Unless you don’t feel confident…in which case perhaps get someone who knows how to do it on the case 😊. Cheers.

[MarcoA64]

Rob, can I use Micro-Mesh cloth instead? 8000-12000?
The tipping is still present. I'll try with pointy nosed pliers first and see what happens
Thank you

[Robalone]

Marco. I wouldn’t use the cloth . The Mylar sheets are stiffer and almost slippery…and stay flat. So they won’t catch the tipping.

Good luck , be careful 👍🏻

IMG_7142.jpg
These are on David Nishimuras site https://www.vintagepens.com/catill_tools_supplies.shtml

They aren’t all that expensive.

[MarcoA64]

I sent it to John Sorowka for a checkup and he said that the nib is better left as is, it is old and has been 'abused' in the past. He tweaked it and it writes a bit better but I'm going to look for a 'newer' nib at the London pen show tomorrow. Hope to be lucky 👍🏻

[Deb]

A gorgeous old pen, Marco, and well worth the effort of sourcing a "new" nib.

[MarcoA64]

unfortunately, no luck. The interesting bit is that nobody knows this pen existed too. I've been told that 'the barrel is not correct', 'this can't be a Lucky Curve', 'it should be a button filler' 'never been an eye dropper' and other amenities 🙄
My quest continues 😊