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Parker "I.M."
Parker "3in1"
Parker "Profile"
Parker "XL"
2004-current
HISTORY
In 2004, Parker introduced the Vector XL and Vector 3-in-1. It was a fat, very stylised pen that had a moulded plastic barrel with a stainless steel section and chrome-coloured trim. The Parker XL was offered as a twist-action ballpoint pen.
The Parker 3-in-1 was offered either with two ball pen colours — black and blue — and a 0.7 millimetre pencil, or as a blue ballpoint pen, pencil, and PDA stylus. It was operated with a cap button to actuate writing mode and a side button to retract. It had a simple, stylised clip reminiscent of the 1930s Parkette and Duo-tone.
Parker I.M., aka Profile aka Vector mkII aka Parker XL in Cool Water, Royal Blue, Amarath Purple, Crystal Amber and Silver Grey. Last a Parker 3-in-one in Amarath Purple, 2008.
The 2004 finishes:
Tranquil Indigo (blue), (offered as XL only)
Celadon Ice (off-white)
Volcanic Smoke (aubergine)
In 2005, the line was enhanced with two new body colours, Cool Water and Crystal Amber. These two were offered as gel pens only, while Tranquil Indigo was now also offered as a 3-in-1.
The 2005 finishes:
Tranquil Indigo
Celadon Ice (not offerted as red, black and pencil 3-in-1)
Volcanic Smoke (aubergine)
Cool Water (gel only)
Crystal Amber (gel only)
In 2006, the XL and 3-in-1 were batched together as the I.M. (in the US) and the Profile (in the UK). IM stands both for "Instant Message" and, according to Parker, it can also be read as "I'm", for a very personal pen. It has also been referred to as the Vector MkII. The I.M. was now also offered as a fountain pen and rollerball.
The 2006 finishes:
Royal Blue (fp, rb, XL bp, 3-in-1: red bp/black bp/pencil)
Amaranth Purple (fp, rb)
Deep Black (fp, rb, XL bp, 3-in-1: red bp/black bp/pencil, blue bp/pencil/stylus)
Silver Grey (fp, rb, XL bp, 3-in-1: red bp/black bp/pencil)
Crystal Amber (XL gel)
Cool water (XL gel)
This line-up remained until 2008.
In 2009, the Parker I.M. was redesigned. The stylised arrow clip was removed and replaced with a sleek clip with fins and a very narrow end-arrow. The clip screw was still wide and tapered with the clip positioned a bit lower down on the body.
The cap ring was wider, and the fountain pen and rollerball had an additional ring at the end. The ballpoint and pencil were now button actuated, the pencil taking 0.5 millimetre leads. The 3-in-1 was discontinued. It was made from lacquered brass with a brushed metal section.
New Parker IM, Gun Metal, 2009.
The new 2009 finishes were:
Black CT
Black GT
Silver CT
Blue CT
Brushed Metal CT
Brushed Metal GT
Gun Metal CT
Shiny Chrome CT
Already in 2007, 200 workers at the Newhaven factory had been made redundant, and parts of the production were moved to Shanghai in China — mainly ink and Jotter assembly. These pens lack the "Made in" imprint.
When the Parker Newhaven factory was finally shut down in the autumn of 2010, the complete production range had moved to the Waterman factory in Nantes and to Shanghai. The Premium range was the first design solely manufactured in China: Premium Jotter, Premium Urban, Premium Vector, and Premium IM.
The IM Premium was offered in three finishes on lacquered brass, highlighted by chrome-coloured trim. Fountain pens, ball pens and rollerballs were manufactured.
The Parker IM Premium range:
Premium Deep gun metal chiselled
Premium Shiny chrome chiselled
Premium Twin chiselled.
(Updated 2011)
