Gs4 Security: Parker Duofold

Friday 4 January 2013

Parker Duofold

The Duofold was a design that changed everything. Its success swiftly transformed Parker from one company among many into the undisputed market leader. Its bold two-tone color scheme solidly put to rest the belief that the public preferred their pens plain and black, and set the stage for the widespread adoption of color celluloid pens a few short years later.The Duofold was an offshoot of Parker's Jack Knife Safety line. The first Duofolds (introduced 1921) were large button-filling pens in red hard rubber with black hard rubber end pieces and bandless caps – showy items that caught the public's fancy in a big way. The original full-sized Senior Duofold (5.5 inches/13.8 cm long) was soon joined by a smaller Junior and a ringtop Lady Duofold. Colors were limited to red and black until 1926, when production shifted to celluloid (called "Permanite" by Parker). The first new color was a jade green, but the "Jade Pens" bore no Duofold marks until the latter part of 1927 – at which time two new colors,