My fountain pen is now 70 years old

Continuing the fountain pen theme from my last post, I'd like to record that my own pen - Water Dragon - is now seventy years old. Here it is:

Like the Queen's pen, Water Dragon is a Parker 51, albeit a slightly plainer version than she would have had. I know all about Parker 51s, and I can (from several styling clues, plus a conclusive date mark) confidently say that this one - made in Sussex at Newhaven - was made in July, August or September 1955. Well, here we are on 2nd September 2025, and I think it would be entirely fair, were I so inclined, to open the champagne bottle and toast this long-lived writing instrument. 

You would not think that an easily-damaged and much-used thing like a fountain pen would last for decades. It has an alloy cap that protects the gold nob when on, but obviously not when posted onto the other end for actual writing. You can imagine how vulnerable that nib really is, should the pen roll off a desk or table and take a header onto a hard floor. Most of the exterior is plastic: liable to cracking, and easily broken. Inside is a rubber sac into which the ink is drawn. A metal bar presses onto it during the weekly refilling operation, and although rubber can take a lot of punishment it doesn't last forever. There are tubes and baffles to get clogged up, mostly plastic. Most individual parts are fragile, and it isn't hard to see how even a well-made fountain pen might suffer in the hands of a clumsy or impatient person. 

I bought this one from a dealer in 2019, and conjectured in an earlier post that it might (prior to my ownership) have been the cherished possession of a headmistress, who had used it for a very long time, though eventually becoming too old to write properly with it. So for most of its life it would have been well cared-for, spending only the last few years consigned to a drawer. The dealer had taken it apart to flush away congealed ink and replace the rubber sac, but otherwise I had got myself a truly vintage pen only three years younger than myself. 

And it has never given a moment's trouble or concern. Nothing bad has happened. No leaks, for instance. And it writes beautifully. I use it several times a day, mostly for short, temporary notes, and it is of course my pen for birthday cards. 

But all the time I'm highly conscious just how easily damaged Water Dragon is. So in between use, my pen sits in a soft leather pen case that I made myself, and I re-cap it as soon as I've finished writing. People sometimes ask whether they can try it out, but I have to say no: Water Dragon is just too old and delicate for someone else to write with it, especially if they are not used to fountain pens. It's nothing like using a ballpoint. You don't press with a fountain pen: you let it glide over the paper. That's why smooth paper is needed, and plenty of writing-practice.

Seventy years old though! I don't think I possess any other device that has lasted anywhere near so long, and which I still use today. Well, Water Dragon ought to carry on being useful for the rest of my life. There are plenty of vintage pen dealers who can fix it, if ever a part wears out. It does consume ink of course, at roughly the rate of a bottle each year. And every time I buy a new bottle, the cost has increased, although it's still modest. Ink will be available, online at least, so long as there are artists and calligraphers, and sufficient numbers of other people who enjoy writing well with something special.

I rather like old-fashioned things, provided they are genuinely useful and a viable alternative to their modern equivalent. I'm definitely not alone in this. It may seem quirky, impractical or unfashionable, but I'm sure nobody laughs at me when I take out my pen and use it. The same with my wicker basket, and my red fedora hat. They are all reminiscent of a different time, and perhaps a more congenial one. And people know that they will easily outlast any trendy gadget you might buy today.