Hints And Tips Requested In Purchasing A Parker 51 In The Second Hand Market

[Legion]

I have a number of 51's, as they were my gateway drug into fountain pens.

As a first pen I would probably get an Aero, rather than a Vacu (Sorry @nemo). The Vac will be fine as long as it has been restored well (new diaphragm, mainly) but the Aero is bulletproof, and many can be found in the wild that need little more than a good flush out. If they do need servicing they are easier to work on, without any special tools, in my experience.

Colour, gold filled Vs Lustraly, nib width, that is all YMMV, and personal.

FWIW, my everyday pen is Aerometric, gold filled cap, fine nib, and I run it on my own ink mix, but also quite like Noodlers. Seems to work fairly well in them. That pen is one I built out of the parts of two broken pens I found in the same shop for cheap. Such is the fairly simple and robust nature of the 51 Aerometric.

 

[psfred]

Given that the "51" Aero was designed to use a corrosive alcohol containing ink (SuperChrome), you can put anything in it. High staturation inks allowed to dry out in it will be a problem, but other than that nothing is going to happen. The ones marked "use Superchrome ink" often have corroded vent tubes which were silver.

The only ink you cannot use is pigmented drawing ink, which polymerizes and if allowed to dry in the pen will be a huge pain to fit.

Vac filler models should not be used with high dye content inks, nor things like the Noodlers "bulletproof" inks because modern filler diaphragms are very much less reliable that the originals. I've had them melt in the bag before installation, which is a huge pain, and in a pen that never had ink after I replaced the diaphragm. Very disappointing. And they will fail in use and dribble ink everywhere if the rubber isn't compatible with the ink. It's the rubber I think, not the ink since un-intalled ones fail.

Otherwise they are superb pens, had to believe my current daily carry one is almost 80. Never have any issues with it unless I stick it in the pen cup for half a year and forget about it.

 

[beginish]

Well, Parker Quink of course! Why has no one mentioned it? Silly, I know.
Montblanc and Waterman are good, too. Pelikan 4001 is another.
Ink that was made by a large company manufacturing quality pens for many years is a safe bet.

I've got plenty of vintage inks.

Now -- good stuff, washable.
View attachment 1809178

I remember when @brianw had vats of the vintage stuff.

 

[Breen]

I started wetshaving and collecting vintage Gillettes in December of ‘21. Much like @Alum Ladd my interest is due to a love for the quality of the daily tools of a bygone era.

My fountain pen collecting began almost a dozen years prior when my work transitioned to an office setting. Putting on a tie every day but writing with a crummy throwaway pen just felt wrong.

Finances kept my collection humble with all modern pens. Typical stuff like Lamy Safari/AlStar/LX, Pilot Metro, TWSBI and Jinhao, with a few other choice gems, but no vintage.

Fast-forward to Dec ‘21, when the Gillette collecting (along with my wife’s blooming antique addiction) led me on a 2 year dedicated search of every antique shop within a 2 hour drive of home. Every weekend was another hunting party and my collection rounded out nicely.

Along the way I came across so many fountain pens, but a lack of knowledge kept me from ever picking one up until I came across a $12 Waterman 55 this past November. I knew Waterman was an old name, and the pen looked familiar so I grabbed it, only realizing what a deal I’d just found after some Googling later that night. From there my antennae was up for vintage pens.

In January, I came across this 3rd quarter ‘45 Vac pen/pencil set for $15. I sent it out last week for an overhaul and should be getting her back on Monday (fingers crossed). I also sent the Waterman, and an Esterbrook J for a new sac and service. I’m really excited to put down some ink with these ol’ beauties.

All this to say, you might want to hit some local shops before committing to an online purchase. They might be out there waiting for you!!

 

[InkStainedWretch]

So what should I be looking for, in terms of age, variant, condition, etc? I would like to purchase one for around the £70-£80 mark, and any guidance would be most appreciated.

As others have already said, there are essentially 3 major variants of Parker 51s: (1) vintage vacuumatic, (2) vintage aerometric, and (3) modern. Given what you've written, it sounds like you'd like a vintage pen. Good because I haven't heard much good said of the modern variety. Of the two vintage varieties, I personally would recommend the aerometric. They're like the Kalishnokov of fountain pens: they just work. Particularly if you're looking to buy from eBay.

When looking at vintage 51s, make sure there are no cracks in the pen. The caps come in lustaloy (Parker speak for brushed steel), Sterling silver, and gold. It's really a choice of aesthetic.

Oh, and if you think a 51 is a terrible choice for a beginners pen, please comment. I can handle it.

Like razors, fountain pens are YMMV. I have 3 Parker 51s; none are my favorite. For some reason, I find it hard to find the right angle. I have a few Parker 21s and it's much easier for me to find the right angle. That said, the 21 is made of less durable plastic than the 51.

For a beginner, if you're wedded to buying a 51, I recommend buying from a reputable dealer, not some random eBay merchant. The reason is that a bad pen may put you off fountain pens. A modern, new pen is more likely to give you a good experience. The usually suspects: Pilot Metropolitan, Platinum Preppy, Lamy Safari. Less often recommended: Jinhao 51a, or Hongdian C1. I have both of the latter pens and have had good experiences with both. You can get good prices on AliExpress; just be prepared too wait for delivery (definitely not overnight).

If you have your heart set on vintage, I really like my Aurora 88k and 88p, and my Lamy 27. These are all piston fillers, and may require minor servicing (lubricant with silicon grease). But I love the way they write.

 

[huck1680]

Great info about some vintage pens. I haven't been doing this long but currently have a Lamy Studio Fine, a Traveler's Company Fine, a Faber Castel Ambition Fine and a Safari that I'm waiting for new nibs etc because I ruined it with waterproof inks (didn't clean it properly. I also have a number of dip pens and nibs I'm using for sketching. My inks are Pelikan Edelstein and Lamy black. Both good inks, I haven't gone to blue or any other colours yet. My dip pens use Mon Blanc permanent, Higgins permanent and that's about it. All my pens are excellent in writing, balance and aesthetics. I'm looking at Gravitas as well...they have several skull themed pens that look cool.

 

[rff000]

Here is my Parker 51 story. I started out around 2011, thinking that I got an incredible deal. I got a nice looking 1947 Vac for $13. It needed a new diaphragm and required a special wrench to do the job. I had no intention of doing more repairs, so I sent it out and had a new diaphragm installed. This cost $30, including shipping, which wasn't too bad. It wrote very well, probably the best of any pen I owned. The only downside was cleaning it in order to try another pen, of which I own a couple dozen. I rarely used it due to how long it took to clean it out. Since you can't easily remove the section and plunger, rinsing is a long process. Some people adapt a salad spinner for cleaning, but I did not bother with that. Eventually, I picked up the pen after several years and found that it not draw ink again. I debated about whether I wanted a second repair but eventually decided to try one more repair. It turned out that something else had broken due to age--the plastic cup that holds the pellet attached to the diaphragm. This second repair cost $60. including shipping, which meant that my super $13 bargain now actually cost $103!
During the time my pen was being repaired, I decided that it was worth it since I had no other Vacumatic pen and I thought it would be nice to have one in working condition. Then, I accidentally discovered that there is a good Chinese copy of the Parker Vac, made in the old Parker factory in Shanghai. I found a brand new one for sale to new customers for only $8, including shipping, and I couldn't resist. So, now I own a restored real P51 that set me back $103, and a brand new Wing Sung 601 Vac that cost only $8. I'm now using the Wing Sung Vac, not only because it's cheap. It works very well, though the nib is not as smooth and excellent as the P51. But the Wing Sung copy does not require specialized tools to remove the section or the Vacumatic pump, which can be unscrewed by hand with no wrench. So, I could easily repair the Wing Sung or just order new parts. On the other hand, if my P51 goes bad again, I'm likely to call it quits and not have it repaired again.

 

[tehnothing]

From left to right, a Blue Diamond Vacmatic from Parker51.com, a Aerometric Junior or whatever the short pens were called, and, a aerometric “51” Flighter. Both the later were purchased from the auction site that starts with E. All three pens were serviced and working when I got them. Another easy Parker that doesn’t get much love is the 61. Mine is also fully stainless and all I did was run it through an ultra sonic a few times to clean the old ink out and it was good to go. The 61 you just place back end down in the ink and it fills itself. That pen was also from the big E auction site. None of these pens were expensive. The “51” Flighter was the most expensive at 165 USD. I think the Blue Diamond was 150, and the Lady or junior or whatever was 80 USD. I have more Vintage pens, but, they all need work. Parker51.com has fair prices for guaranteed servicable pens. The top pic is the 61 set.

 

[psfred]

I have a third quarter '45 "51" as well, and the one I usually carry (with a butchered clip) is a '48 Vac. I only use Skrip Blue-black in that one, I've had too much trouble with modern diaphragms deteriorating with any other ink. For that matter, I've had a few (and some Snorkel sacs) melt unused. Rubber just isn't what it used to be I guess.

A "51" is just slightly too fat for me, but I seem to use them a lot.

All the 61s I have eventually cracked and the hood leaks, which is sad because I really like them. Chinese Hero 100s are a copy, I might see someday if the hood off my Hero fits on of the 61s. Weird color match, as the 100 is teal, but a working pen is a working pen. Easy to split the barrel on the 100 just like the 61 as well.