Clone Parker 51

[chadden42]

Wow!!! Thanks for the info!!

[KBeezie]

Wow!!! Thanks for the info!!

 

Must be fun to post the question, then wake up to this lol.

[Sasha Royale]

Outwardly, the Hero 616 looks very much like a Parker 51. The feel and function are clearly not related to the Parker 51.

I bought a package of 10 Hero 616 pens for $20. Three "burped" ink, during the trial page. One fragmented in my hand

during use. The others are functioning adequately for $2 pens. As with all my "budget" pens from China (PRC), the nib

will run out of ink, and require periodic manual priming from the reservoir.

 

A good fountain pen writes until the ink supply is depleted.

[richardandtracy]

There are two sizes of the H616, the slender and the Jumbo. The Jumbo is the one that is the same size as the P51.

 

I don't think the H616 is a good enough pen to be directly compared with the P51, but I think it is a valid comparison between the P21 Super (Parker's own P51 clone) and the H616. So I did a comparison review here: https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/index.php/topic/63828-hero-616-and-parker-21-super/

 

I was quite surprised, as both were reasonable. The only problem is that a H616 is only available in a Fine nib.

 

Regards,

 

Richard.

[KBeezie]

I was quite surprised, as both were reasonable. The only problem is that a H616 is only available in a Fine nib.

 

Compared to all my other pens/nibs it's something I'd call an XXF even compared to some of the 'fine' from Asia, it's certainly half the thickness of a Jowo extra fine nib. ( and Chinese's labelings are even more confusing cuz sometimes the nibs are german made so they go by German's nib sizing and the other times they're not so they go by some of the Asian typical sizing ).

[richardandtracy]

I know.

Over time I've come to the conclusion that Hero nibs are just too fine for me. Ah well.

 

Regards,

 

Richard.

[mknoblauch]

There are two sizes of the H616, the slender and the Jumbo. The Jumbo is the one that is the same size as the P51.

 

I don't think the H616 is a good enough pen to be directly compared with the P51, but I think it is a valid comparison between the P21 Super (Parker's own P51 clone) and the H616. So I did a comparison review here: https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/index.php/topic/63828-hero-616-and-parker-21-super/

 

I was quite surprised, as both were reasonable. The only problem is that a H616 is only available in a Fine nib.

 

Regards,

 

Richard.

Richard, thanks for the side-by-side review of the Hero 616 and the Parker 21. New to fountain pens (or relatively new --9 months and only 12 pens) I am looking to make my foray into vintage Parkers and Sheaffers, and the P21 keeps popping up on eBay as an affordable option.

 

KBeezie, I must have lucked out with the two Hero 616's I bought on eBay.... I have been using both a green and red one as part of my everyday carry for almost the 9 months I have been in the hobby. I use them for note taking and have them appropriately loaded up with Noodler's Green and Waterman's Audacious Red. They are great for making graphs and charts, and underlining text. They've been a great help to me in making notes.

 

As are yours, the nibs on my pens are XXF, and, therefore, are not the smoothest writing, but they never fail to start even after several days of non-use and being stored nib-up in my briefcase. Sometimes they go a week if I am on vacation or have a break from my post-graduate studies, but they don't dry out and will start after only the least bit of coaxing. I thoroughly flushed them with water and a little bit of Dawn dishwashing liquid when they arrived and have since flushed them out with SBRE Brown's homemade pen flush recipe twice since then just to keep them clean and going. They are perfect!

 

This has been said a couple of times by others, but I will repeat it here myself as I am convinced of it: the success you have with your Hero 616's will depend on who you buy them from. I made sure to buy mine from a seller who had great reviews and who purported to have authentic merchandise. When mine die eventually, I will buy a 6- or 10-pack from such a seller, I really do enjoy mine that much!

[chadden42]

 

Must be fun to post the question, then wake up to this lol.

Yes a bit overwhelming but still appreciated!!! Now to start another fuss: who would you recommend buying these from?

[KBeezie]

 

KBeezie, I must have lucked out with the two Hero 616's I bought on eBay.... I have been using both a green and red one as part of my everyday carry for almost the 9 months I have been in the hobby. I use them for note taking and have them appropriately loaded up with Noodler's Green and Waterman's Audacious Red. They are great for making graphs and charts, and underlining text. They've been a great help to me in making notes.

 

As are yours, the nibs on my pens are XXF, and, therefore, are not the smoothest writing, but they never fail to start even after several days of non-use and being stored nib-up in my briefcase. Sometimes they go a week if I am on vacation or have a break from my post-graduate studies, but they don't dry out and will start after only the least bit of coaxing. I thoroughly flushed them with water and a little bit of Dawn dishwashing liquid when they arrived and have since flushed them out with SBRE Brown's homemade pen flush recipe twice since then just to keep them clean and going. They are perfect!

 

This has been said a couple of times by others, but I will repeat it here myself as I am convinced of it: the success you have with your Hero 616's will depend on who you buy them from. I made sure to buy mine from a seller who had great reviews and who purported to have authentic merchandise. When mine die eventually, I will buy a 6- or 10-pack from such a seller, I really do enjoy mine that much!

 

Since I put in the Black Eel the other day the 616 has been rather flawless as of late (guess it just needed a little lubrication, well mine anyways), it's XXF as you said, but I may actually start carrying it with me with the other pens in case I do need an extra-extra-fine line on regular notebook paper. (it's a bit too fine for my taste for the usual writing, but for documents and such seems the perfect size for those tiny little boxes).

[KBeezie]

Yes a bit overwhelming but still appreciated!!! Now to start another fuss: who would you recommend buying these from?

 

Hrm, mine personally came as a gift from the guy who restored my Sheaffer Snorkel, don't know where he got his, but I have no doubt mine is an actual Hero 616 since he usually knows what's what (I'll have to ask where he got his, I know normally gets his chinese stuff off ebay, typically in bulk packages, but not sure which seller he buys from).

[Flounder]

I have a soft spot for these pens. Before I bought a Parker 51, they were like those empty frames you try on at the opticians, useful for checking how well they suit your hand. I only buy the larger, 51 sized and proportioned 616s, and only from eBay seller YesPen. He also sells the older 'gold' (ahem hemity hem) nib & cap version, mine came in a nifty rigid pen box handy for reuse posting people pens.

 

I recommend getting the 3 blister packaged chrome cap version, to get around the quality crapshoot.

[KBeezie]

I have a soft spot for these pens. Before I bought a Parker 51, they were like those empty frames you try on at the opticians, useful for checking how well they suit your hand. I only buy the larger, 51 sized and proportioned 616s, and only from eBay seller YesPen. He also sells the older 'gold' (ahem hemity hem) nib & cap version, mine came in a nifty rigid pen box handy for reuse posting people pens.

 

I recommend getting the 3 blister packaged chrome cap version, to get around the quality crapshoot.

 

Funny considering I used to treat Russian/Ukraine Cameras the same (like wise with the lens), like if I ever planned to order a Fed/Zorki or Jupiter/Industar lens, almost every seller sold them in lots of 3s, cuz least one was always going to be a dud.

[richardandtracy]

Richard, thanks for the side-by-side review of the Hero 616 and the Parker 21. New to fountain pens (or relatively new --9 months and only 12 pens) I am looking to make my foray into vintage Parkers and Sheaffers, and the P21 keeps popping up on eBay as an affordable option.

 

...

When thinking of the Parker 21, please realise there are several types of Parker 21.

The 'Standard' Parker 21 is a standard nibbed pen that is hidden inside a hood to make it look like a P51. The older versions have an inverted ridge clip as shown here: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Parker-21-Inverted-Ridge-Clip-Black-Fountain-Pen-fine-point-/351020544898?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item51ba747382 . The hoods on these pens can be a bit fragile. Note the look on the underside of the hood where the feed is visible, this is totally different from a P21 Super.

Then there is the P21 Super - which is a true hooded nib pen and whose tubular nib is interchangeable with a P51 nib. These can be seen here: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Parker-Super-21-black-gray-red-blue-fountain-pen-fine-Nib-from-1970s-NOS-/321328275758?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item4ad0a8612e .

 

Regards,

 

Richard

[tony1000]

First of all, there are Hero 616 counterfeits out there. I found out that my first 616 (bought several years ago) is a counterfeit. The top of the clip is rough and out of alignment, the aesthetics are shoddy and it doesn't hold much ink. Do a Google search on "Hero 616 fake" and you will find YesPens' guide to spotting a fake.

 

Also, the quality varies in the various 616 models. The small models are not very good with feed issues and not that great a nib.

 

The best quality is the Here 616 Doctor (sometimes also called the Jumbo). You can find it on eBay for just below $5 shipped from China. It is very well made, writes smoothly and the aerometric converter works fine.

[mknoblauch]

When thinking of the Parker 21, please realise there are several types of Parker 21.

The 'Standard' Parker 21 is a standard nibbed pen that is hidden inside a hood to make it look like a P51. The older versions have an inverted ridge clip as shown here: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Parker-21-Inverted-Ridge-Clip-Black-Fountain-Pen-fine-point-/351020544898?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item51ba747382 . The hoods on these pens can be a bit fragile. Note the look on the underside of the hood where the feed is visible, this is totally different from a P21 Super.

Then there is the P21 Super - which is a true hooded nib pen and whose tubular nib is interchangeable with a P51 nib. These can be seen here: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Parker-Super-21-black-gray-red-blue-fountain-pen-fine-Nib-from-1970s-NOS-/321328275758?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item4ad0a8612e .

 

Regards,

 

Richard

 

Thanks for educating me regarding the differences between the Super and the ordinary P21, Richard.

 

I have tried to "snag" one on eBay a few times this week. Unfortunately, I still had some learning to do regarding their fair market value and my bidding efforts fell short, but at least I will know what I am doing for next time. However, I have to say that I am disappointed to find out that the going price for the Super is so high... Before becoming aware there were P21's and P21 Supers, I was blissfully ignorant thinking I would only have to spend $20-$25 to get what I was looking for --now maybe only a Super will do!

[displacermoose]

I have not yet had the pleasure of using a Parker 51, but I do have a couple of 616 jumbos and have been very happy with them. They are reliable, smooth, and the fine nib can handle even the junkiest of jukie paper (I use them for grading college essays). I, too, source mine from yespens. I have a batch of nine on the way now.

[tryphon]

I bought my first Chinese Parker 51 clones in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia 20 years ago. I later bought many variants of these fine pens in Shanghai (about 15 years ago). First: most people think these are retro-engineered clones: Parker actually manufatured the 51 in China, before Mao took control of the Country. The Hero 100 is a very fine pen. ALL the Hero 51 clones can be excellent writers: all one has to do is adjust the nibs. The feed is excellent, just like a late 51's. I guess one could use an authentic Parker nib in a Chinese copy and have the very same writing experience one has with an authentic 51. For best quality, choose the Hero 100: even though it is more expensive, it is still very good value. I have no connection with any seller of Chinese pens, by the way. For those interested in Parker 51 clones, check out my article on the 51s of Settimo, located in another pen lovers' website. I wrote it over 10 years ago, but I believe it is still online!

[Seele]

Tryphon,

 

I'd like to add that the Hero 100 has been extensively counterfeited for the past number of years, but if you purchase from reputable vendors who are willing to back up their products, then you should be fine.

 

There are also reports that the later examples of the 100 are known to have issues, mainly the tendency for the section hood to develop cracks. Every 100 ever built is under lifetime warranty, but have to be sent to Hero's own service centre, which would be a bit tricky for most of us. Combined with the counterfeiting issue, this explains why examples built in the 80s and 90s are highly sought after.

 

Apparently, the counterfeiters have not got their mitts on the Flighter version, so it might be a safer bet. I bought mine as a slightly used example from a local seller and that worked out very well. I would also recommend the purchase of the special tool needed to dismantle the 100, as its construction is totally different from Parker products; without the tool you will destroy the pen while attempting to dismantle it.