Parker Duofold Centennial Fountain Pen | Classic Big Red Vintage | Medium Solid Gold Nib | Black Ink and Convertor | Premium Gift Box

Much better than expected. I have an extensive collection of great pens but no Parkers. Like another reviewer I was biased against their modern pens preffering vintage ones. This big red duofold has changed my opinion, above all the nib is a dream and the build quality is sound. Very happy with my purchase maybe I won't be as sniffy towards modern parkers anymore.

The resin is solid and beautiful. You don't feel it like a cheap plastic nor less precious than other high end resin. The nib is artistic and gorgeous. It writes perfectly even when reverse writing.

After some questionable experiences woth Parker in the 90s, I bit the bullet on a recommendation of a friend and a decent discount. I have to say, that the Duofold Centennial punched well above expectations. Solid build quality, nice heft and an exceptionally smooth nib which competes with my Sailor and Pilot pens for smoothness.

The Vintage Big Red is a very nice pen overall with some genuine heft and a feeling of luxury - it’s actually surprising how nice a “resin” pen can feel. The fine nib writes close to a medium, and the two-tone colouring is lovely. I can definitely see myself being nervous about scratching the resin in the long-run, but such is life - I don’t have these fears with my metal Parker Premier. Unfortunately I had to return the duofold because the ink converter was damaged at the top - like someone had pushed it in before it was properly aligned, and so I couldn’t draw up ink. A shame. I don’t think the pen is worth more than the £263 Amazon was selling it for, and I think if you’re paying £300-£500, you’ll certainly question the value of what you’re getting. The materials aren’t worth that and in my case neither was the quality control. You also don’t get the larger presentation box as described.

The duofold in Centennial vintage red (actually orange) fine nib is actually faultless and it looks superb like the original pre-war colour. A superb writer (note a fine nib writes like a generous medium, I knew this by reading reviews which state this and I can confirm they are correct) and I got a reasonable price. The one star review relates to Amazon NOT TO THE DUOFOLD PEN. The box had been previously opened and although the pen is perfect and appears unused, the gift box has marks on it and the Parker instruction book and guarantee were missing with just an empty space left in the box! There was not the opportunity on the Amazon website to email Amazon customer services and tell them only a crap virtual chat line which was about as useful as a chocolate teapot! The only option I had was presented with was to return the pen which as the pen is superb an an excellent nib on my mine that I could not take the risk of returning and getting a less perfect nib so I'm risking keeping it with no guarantee! Poor service Amazon.

Beautiful design, really smooth writing, comfortable grip and reassuringly solid design. The colour looks fantastic.

I decided to amend my review as after using it for a while I think I was a bit overcritical of it. Lookswise it's nice but there's just something I can't quite put my finger on which makes it look a bit cheap to me. Screwing/unscrewing the cap doesn't feel great, the thread feels a bit rough and it can squeak a bit, I've had far better experiences with £5 fountain pens. It's a cartridge/converter and the converter was very stiff but worked fine. The nib looks fantastic. Now the most important bit, the actual writing! I went for a medium nib and although slightly broader than I expected it's a really nice writer. There's a little bit of line variation and just the right combination of smooth/feedback, the section is comfortable and not slippy at all, it's great for long writing sessions, we'll balanced and weighty without being overly heavy. I got mine from Amazon Warehouse with about 40% off the normal price (pen perfect condition, box a bit ripped) and I'm happy with it but don't think I would pay the full price, there are better alternatives out there for that price.

A beautifully engineered metal pen that feels great to write with. I opted for medium nib and am not disappointed. The finish and craftsmanship are excellent and the pen does exactly what is says on the tin! A premium price for the pen that definitely says 'luxury', however, that said, a pen that will last several lifetimes if taken care of.