Vacumatic nomenclature - help needed

**Fouez** · October 15th, 2014, 07:34 PM

I'm fairly new to fountain pens in general, and to vintage pens in particular. I found the Parker Vacumatics to be gorgeous pens and will love to buy a specimen as my very first vintage pen. I'm starting to read about them and found the various models/versions/names very confusing. I know that my command of the english language is limited but still...

This is the best piece of knowledge I found on the subject:
http://www.vintagepens.com/Parker_Vacumatics.shtml

Is there anything else I should know?

I'm not looking for the most valuable pen - this is not an investment.
I'm looking for a beautiful object that I will enjoy on a daily basis - something that looks good and writes well.

Any area or version I should avoid?

**Laura N** · October 15th, 2014, 08:57 PM

Good, classic choice!

There is a nice overview of the Vac on Richard Binder's website. My browser doesn't let me link to the specific page, for some reason, but this is the main site, where you can click Reference Pages, and find the profile for the Vacumatic.

I think the main things you need to consider are price, size and nib. I'll be honest and say, in my opinion, the lure of the Vac is probably not its nib. Most seem to come with a hard fine nib. The main thing for you will be the size of pen you want. Most Vacumatics are standard size, and that's a little smaller than modern pens, with a smaller section. If you want a larger one, like a Maxima or Oversize, that will be more expensive, hence the issue of price.

My main recommendation is to try to buy from a reputable dealer, and preferably at a pen show where you can try the pens and pick your favorite. I'm not sure where you live. Perhaps there's also a pen club nearby. Many pen people own a Vac, and would be happy to let you see them and try them out for size.

**dannzeman** · October 16th, 2014, 09:10 AM

I don't have a whole lot more to add as Laura covered it very well. As long as you read the Vac Nomenclature page on David's site, you should be good. For more information, visit David Isaacson's forum Fountain Pen Board.