The Parker VS, said to be named as the 'Vacumatic Successor', button filling pen was only made from late 1946 to 1948, a very short procuction run for a Parker.
This pen is a 'Custom' version, characterised by a Gold filled cap with finely engraved lines. Custom caps on Parker pens are almost always 1/10th 12Ct. Gold but this cap carries the inscription:
'1/8 14K Gold Filled. Made in U.S.A.'
This indicates that it has more Gold of higher purity than standard, Parker clearly intended it to be a high end offering.
The pen is finished in a mid brown colour, described in the catalogue as 'Rust', it is much lighter than the 'Cordovan Brown' found in the Parker 51. The surface is unmarked and carries a clear imprint:
'Parker VS. Made in U.S.A. .7.'
The two dots with the number 7 show that the pen was made in the second quarter of 1947. The first VS pen had an aluminium filller button with an aluminium collar, but this was found to be troublesome in that the collar was prone to corrosion and could cause the button to stick so the system was modified to a design with the collar becoming an inegral part of the barrel, as in this pen. The chnageover must have taken place in the first quarter of 1947 as I have recently owned a VS Custom dated for the first quarter of 1947 with a 'full' aluminium filler.
The original sticker is still in place :
'XF. 47-074. 10.00'
The 'XF' denotes an extra fine nib, 47 is the year and 10.00 is the retail price of $10, I'm not sure about the '074', could be a batch number.
The pen is totally immaculate and is probably new old stock. As it is uninked I have maintained this status but have tested the filling system with water and it is working well.
Parker made very few VS Custom pens, this is only the second one I have encountered. As an 'as new' very rare vintage pen it is clearly highly collectable but could also be pressed into service as an attractive and practical daily writer.