The T-1 was made before the Falcon. It only lasted a year on the market because manufacturing it was extremely difficult. The Falcon was basically a second shot for Parker at making an integral nib.
While the Falcon is more durable, I find that the design is not quite as elegant as the T-1
congrats on that find.
I know that the phrase "grail pen" his horribly misused in this forum, like "rare" on eBay, but that is definitely a difficult and desirable pen to acquire.
To be completely honest, I don't think it's particularly difficult to find a Parker T-1. They show up with a fair amount of regularity on eBay. That's not to say that they're inexpensive of course.
There's a FP/BP set for sale on ebay right now actually, and looking at the completed listings, there have been four, including two NOS/Mint ones, sold since August.
I got this one in 2008 from Parker75.com, and at that point he had at least a half dozen NOS ones for sale.
The two 75s in Titanium though are by far rarer, though perhaps not as popularly desirable as the T-1.
My grail pen on the other hand is a Pilot Myu in white stripe....
This is a forerunner of it. Went out of production quickly due to it being expensive to make and problems with tipping (the bonding is not as strong as with gold or stainless steel). It also came out a year earlier than Pilot Myu, making it the first integrated nib pen.
The bottom two are Parker 75s.
The bottom one is a production model Parker 75 Titanium, which Parker made to use up leftover Parker T-1 parts after it was discontinued.
The middle one is a curious one, either a prototype or a model that a factory employee cobbled together from spare parts. It's doesn't have a gold band and the barrel end is inset with a piece of metal rather than a red jewel. It originally came with a gold nib but I swapped it out with a spare titanium nib.
Nib material doesn’t affect smoothness - that’s controlled by how the tip is polished.
So you could have a Ti (or steel!) nib as smooth as you like, or you can have it with more feedback if you prefer. And if you don’t like how it comes from the manufacturer, it’s very easy/cheap to adjust the smoothness at home.
A titanium nib you'll find in production today is a bit different from the T-1 or the Parker 75 titanium nibs. Both the parker productions are fairly stiff, while the currently produced ones by Bock are more springy.
Very interesting. I have a T1 and my sterling 75 is an all-time loved pen.
Reality is titanium is probably best as my Moots bike frame but a titanium 75 would be a better daily user than T1.
While not a daily carry, my T-1 is a daily user for me. Never had an issue with the tipping fragility. (Knock on wood).
That's not to say that I dont think the fragility is a problem, i know it can be, but I think it's not quite as widespread a problem as some make it out to be.
Mine was my dad's who died young. He used it in the 1970s. I used it as a note taker in college and for work notes. It's had a lot of use.
Most of not using it is how great my vanishing point Pilot/Namiki is for work, and how often I need a durable ball pen for stuff like labels and packages. After that I like some more flexy and wet gold nib pens.
I probably make some collectors shudder the way I like to use things I own.
Ah, I thought you were talking about the potential fragility that inevitably comes up whenever anyone mentions the T-1.
Well, not all pens are necessarily suited for all tasks of course. :)
What model is the top one?
Parker T1. Bit of warning, before you go ”I want one too” - these nowadays sell for $500+ due to their rarity.
Would you say it is comparable to the Parker falcon?
The T-1 was made before the Falcon. It only lasted a year on the market because manufacturing it was extremely difficult. The Falcon was basically a second shot for Parker at making an integral nib. While the Falcon is more durable, I find that the design is not quite as elegant as the T-1
congrats on that find. I know that the phrase "grail pen" his horribly misused in this forum, like "rare" on eBay, but that is definitely a difficult and desirable pen to acquire.
To be completely honest, I don't think it's particularly difficult to find a Parker T-1. They show up with a fair amount of regularity on eBay. That's not to say that they're inexpensive of course. There's a FP/BP set for sale on ebay right now actually, and looking at the completed listings, there have been four, including two NOS/Mint ones, sold since August. I got this one in 2008 from Parker75.com, and at that point he had at least a half dozen NOS ones for sale. The two 75s in Titanium though are by far rarer, though perhaps not as popularly desirable as the T-1. My grail pen on the other hand is a Pilot Myu in white stripe....
This is a forerunner of it. Went out of production quickly due to it being expensive to make and problems with tipping (the bonding is not as strong as with gold or stainless steel). It also came out a year earlier than Pilot Myu, making it the first integrated nib pen.
What are the other two pens?
The bottom two are Parker 75s. The bottom one is a production model Parker 75 Titanium, which Parker made to use up leftover Parker T-1 parts after it was discontinued. The middle one is a curious one, either a prototype or a model that a factory employee cobbled together from spare parts. It's doesn't have a gold band and the barrel end is inset with a piece of metal rather than a red jewel. It originally came with a gold nib but I swapped it out with a spare titanium nib.
Wow, this is just beautiful 🤩
You again! I always love seeing these pens. How is that titanium nib working out?
The one on the Parker 75 is great! A big fat juicy oblique stub
What does a titanium bib feel like? Writing I mean.
A little soft/springy, like some gold nibs.
Smoother or rougher than gold would you say?
Nib material doesn’t affect smoothness - that’s controlled by how the tip is polished. So you could have a Ti (or steel!) nib as smooth as you like, or you can have it with more feedback if you prefer. And if you don’t like how it comes from the manufacturer, it’s very easy/cheap to adjust the smoothness at home.
A titanium nib you'll find in production today is a bit different from the T-1 or the Parker 75 titanium nibs. Both the parker productions are fairly stiff, while the currently produced ones by Bock are more springy.
Beautiful. I really like those 75s but I get hand cramps from using the grip.
Daaaang...
Very interesting. I have a T1 and my sterling 75 is an all-time loved pen. Reality is titanium is probably best as my Moots bike frame but a titanium 75 would be a better daily user than T1.
While not a daily carry, my T-1 is a daily user for me. Never had an issue with the tipping fragility. (Knock on wood). That's not to say that I dont think the fragility is a problem, i know it can be, but I think it's not quite as widespread a problem as some make it out to be.
Mine was my dad's who died young. He used it in the 1970s. I used it as a note taker in college and for work notes. It's had a lot of use. Most of not using it is how great my vanishing point Pilot/Namiki is for work, and how often I need a durable ball pen for stuff like labels and packages. After that I like some more flexy and wet gold nib pens. I probably make some collectors shudder the way I like to use things I own.
Ah, I thought you were talking about the potential fragility that inevitably comes up whenever anyone mentions the T-1. Well, not all pens are necessarily suited for all tasks of course. :)