12 replies to this topic

[beaconpens]

Good Evening - I have three different versions of Parker Quink bottles and wonder if anyone has the definitive dates/references for these bottles - either if you have the information or can point me in the right direction.

Bottle A & B bottles and boxes are very similar - very slight label variation and box variation - biggest difference is the metal cap Vs bakelite.

Bottle C shares the metal cap of Bottle B, but totally different box design.

Looking for dates to put them in chronological order. I have magazine ads dating Bottle B 1941 to 1946 but cannot find references to the others.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

thanks
Mike

[John Danza]

IMHO, oldest to youngest is bottle B followed by bottle A followed by bottle C. When Quink was first introduced in 1931, the bottles had bakelite caps. When the new bottle was issued (as you have here), I believe that they went to the metal caps. However, the war use of metals made Parker go back to plastic caps. The reason I say bottle C is the youngest is because of the box, which is the design used after to the design for A and B. You'll see that they returned to the metal caps as well, at least for a time. Again, my 2 cents based on handling bottles and not based on printed ephemera, except for the early Quink having bakelite caps (see below).

[matt]

[quote name='John Danza' date='03 March 2011 - 10:08 AM' timestamp='1299172137' post='4850']
<When Quink was first introduced in 1931, the bottles had bakelite caps.>

John,

What size Quink is the bottle in the 1932 and 1934 catalogs (billspens.com) that appears to have a stopper? 15 cent, 1 oz.?

[Teej47]

I too wonder about Quink dating every time I find another bottle. I have here at work a bottle of Micro-Film Black that is like 'Bottle A' (the label says "REG T M" instead of the blurb about Solv-X) that has a metal cap. I tend to equate Micro-Film Black with "V-Mail", and so assumed it was pretty much during-the-war production. So now I wonder about the timeframes of metal and bakelite caps. Obviously both would be for sale at the same time (older product tends to stay on the shelf next to newer stuff until it sells)... so maybe my bottle is from early vs. mid forties?

Tim

[matt]

I too wonder about Quink dating every time I find another bottle. I have here at work a bottle of Micro-Film Black that is like 'Bottle A' (the label says "REG T M" instead of the blurb about Solv-X) that has a metal cap. I tend to equate Micro-Film Black with "V-Mail", and so assumed it was pretty much during-the-war production. So now I wonder about the timeframes of metal and bakelite caps. Obviously both would be for sale at the same time (older product tends to stay on the shelf next to newer stuff until it sells)... so maybe my bottle is from early vs. mid forties?

Tim

None of the wartime Life ads showing Quink appear to show a bakelite cap; they all appear to be metal...

[John Danza]

John,

What size Quink is the bottle in the 1932 and 1934 catalogs (billspens.com) that appears to have a stopper? 15 cent, 1 oz.?

Hi Matt,

I don't know what size that is, as the photo is pretty small and the PCA website seems to be down, so I can't pull it up there. I know that the early sample bottles of Quink had stoppers (see below), but I've seen the same bottle with a bakelite cap. It appears that bottles with both bakelite caps and stoppers were available at the same time.

[John Danza]

I too wonder about Quink dating every time I find another bottle. I have here at work a bottle of Micro-Film Black that is like 'Bottle A' (the label says "REG T M" instead of the blurb about Solv-X) that has a metal cap. I tend to equate Micro-Film Black with "V-Mail", and so assumed it was pretty much during-the-war production. So now I wonder about the timeframes of metal and bakelite caps. Obviously both would be for sale at the same time (older product tends to stay on the shelf next to newer stuff until it sells)... so maybe my bottle is from early vs. mid forties?

Tim

Tim,

You're correct that the Microfilm Black ink was associated with V-Mail. V-Mail was adopted by the U.S. Army in the middle of 1942 but it really didn't get going until 1943, which is when many of the V-Mail related products started to show up. I wrote an article for the Writing Equipment Society last year about V-Mail in the U.S. which you might have a copy of. I also wrote a shorter article about V-Mail for the PCA a couple of years ago. If you don't have access to the WES article, send me your email address and I'll shoot you an electronic copy.

Anyway, I've got Microfilm Black bottles with both metal and bakelite caps, so there was a switchover during the war.

[John Danza]

Hi Matt,

I don't know what size that is, as the photo is pretty small and the PCA website seems to be down, so I can't pull it up there. I know that the early sample bottles of Quink had stoppers (see below), but I've seen the same bottle with a bakelite cap. It appears that bottles with both bakelite caps and stoppers were available at the same time.

OK, I got a look at the 1934 catalog. It shows a stopper in the 2oz bottle and a bakelite cap on the 4oz bottle. I guess they were out at the same time early on.

[beaconpens]

Hi Matt,

I don't know what size that is, as the photo is pretty small and the PCA website seems to be down, so I can't pull it up there. I know that the early sample bottles of Quink had stoppers (see below), but I've seen the same bottle with a bakelite cap. It appears that bottles with both bakelite caps and stoppers were available at the same time.

Isn't that a wood and cork stopper? I have a couple and the top sure looks and feels like wood. The weight isn't right for it to be bakelite.

[beaconpens]

Great input all - thanks. John - I don't disagree with you on the bottles and the order you put them in - makes sense. If I could just find the dates when they made the changes.

Question - in your ad you posted, what is the date? I swore I saw an ad somewhere for that bottle in 1946. But that wouldn't make sense if Parker had gone back to the metal caps after the war. Can you verify the date of that ad?

Also, I'd like a copy of your article on VMail please. mwadner@mac.com

Other than ads, any suggestions for resources for bottle dates?

Mike

[John Danza]

Isn't that a wood and cork stopper? I have a couple and the top sure looks and feels like wood. The weight isn't right for it to be bakelite.

I believe that the top of the stopper is wood. However, the early bottles with the screwcap are either bakelite or some other plastic.

[John Danza]

Great input all - thanks. John - I don't disagree with you on the bottles and the order you put them in - makes sense. If I could just find the dates when they made the changes.

Question - in your ad you posted, what is the date? I swore I saw an ad somewhere for that bottle in 1946. But that wouldn't make sense if Parker had gone back to the metal caps after the war. Can you verify the date of that ad?

Also, I'd like a copy of your article on VMail please. mwadner@mac.com

Other than ads, any suggestions for resources for bottle dates?

Mike

The item I posted above is not really a magazine ad per se. It's the insert that was in that sample Quink box with the bottle I posted above. I can definitively date these items to 1933 because of the opposite side of the insert, shown below. The reason for the dating is the naming of the pen.

I'll email a copy of that article to you.

[John Danza]

Since we're talking about old Quink bottles, I might as well post one of my favorites in my small collection. This is a 32oz bottle and the box is near perfect. The colors are great.