Anybody a high-end pen collector here?

So, what name brand pens are considered high end, and where does Parker rate? I remember growing up in Japan back in the sixties - whenever my Mom's Japanese friends wanted a good fountain pen they would ask her if she could get them a Parker from the PX. They seemed to think Parker were the best.

Parker is still highly respected and costly if among their rare and collectable series. You would be surprised to see how many command good money. Do a search on Ebay for Parker pens and order the result highest price first. It will be a while before you reach $25.00.
Fountain pens still command the highest prices, the oldest tech around, c sound vaguely familiar?

@Mechans - Yes, I vaguely remember the letter "c" - it was included in the conversations when I would listen in on the ladies talking about certain Parker Fountain pens. What does "c" mean anyway?

I remember those pens looking very elegant and kind of feminine.. high tech with very small pointy tips. They were very attractive pens for sure.

I have accumulated a rather sweet pen collection, if I do say so myself. I have two montagrapas, a visconti, an omas... One of my favorites is my John Lennon 'Imagine' by Mont Blanc - complete with guitar neck for pen clip - the PERFECT pen for an audiophile) given to me by the wife last christmas.

I collected pens as a young man, but eventually wised up. However, I use a Parker Duofold ballpoint daily (about $300 now) that I got in about 1996, that often impresses clients. It has a Lifetime Warranty! Parker replaced it twice (the design wasn't as robust as they apparently intended.) Parker was acquired a while back, and the new owners are somewhat less amenable to honoring the warranty. They seem to think that "Lifetime Warranty" has some legal definition that is not exactly what it sounds like, and they seem to be prone to blaming the owner now; I had to pay for the last problem, which is always the retraction mechanism. I understand that the warranty is two years on new Duofolds. It may make some sense to buy an expensive pen intended to last for the rest of your life, but not otherwise, imho.
On the other hand, if you want a good fountain pen, it aint' cheap to make an 18K rhodium plated nib.