Parker 51. Irresistible Design Icon Or Ugly Duckling?

[EGdaTarHeel]

I started my vintage collection with a blue vac 51 I obtained from rosspens. At the time I thought the 51 was the quintessential vintage pen. And in many ways it still is. When I purchased my 51 from Ross, he let me sample a vacumatic. I was a bit intrigued with the celluloid. I was still smitten with the 51. Then I was able to do a package deal: plum 51, double jewel black 51 and a green striped vacumatic. I love all three. The vac and the dj 51 are user pens and the 51 is my go to for writing thank you notes (filled with MB midnight blue). The green vac has been abut problematic and I just got it back and will ink it shortly. My daily go to pen is a burgundy vac I purchased from David I. I love that pen.

 

The bottom line: the 51 is an awesome pen. I love the DJ variety and plan on collecting one in each color. I also want one first year just because. I have to say that I really love vacumatics. I have 15 now including some less common varieties? It's the varieties of celluloid that I like so much. Would I trade my DJ 51 for anything? No. It is a work of art. It's all good. We all have great taste in these pens!

Edited April 19, 2014 by EGdaTarHeel

[Florida Blue]

 

The word iconic is dreadfully overused, however I think it fair to say that the P51 was certainly at the pinnacle of that style, as were Stickley and Wright. I am sure the works of all three have received many awards but can't back that up with any research.

 

The 51 did win a gold medal in 1950 from the Fashion Academy for "Outstanding Design and Distinctive Style," and a 51 is featured in the design collection at the Museum of Modern Art.

 

However, whether something is "iconic" or "ugly" is really just subjective and up to the individual to decide, but there is no disputing that the 51 writes well and is well made. There is also no disputing that the 51 was both a critical and commercial success.

 

Personally, I love the design and I see it as both iconic and timeless. It looks at home in both 1941 and 2014.

Edited April 19, 2014 by Florida Blue

[Woodster]

I recently got my first 51, a black Aerometric. It has a wonderful design that looks as fresh today as it did when it first came out. The only thing I'd change on the pen is to replace the medium octanium nib with an extra fine. Perhaps I can find one at the Columbus, Ohio pen show later this year.

 

That's just the beginning of the end! My first 51 was a black Aerometric and I was absolutely smitten....then the compulsive collecting set in.....does anyone have a Forest Green for sale, or a full size plum....or a Signet pencil.....?

[pajaro]

That's a mighty high horse you're on there. You know, there's such a thing as differing senses of aesthetics, different cultural preferences, and these things change over time for the same people as different schools of design come and go. It's accurate to say that the Parker 51 is a stellar example of one school of Western design philosophy, but it's utterly impossible to claim that it's the pinnacle of pen beauty and design for everyone worldwide, and insulting the people who don't think the design is all that is incredibly rude.

 

Then there are those who don't like the 51 design, and write rude things about it. I think that if you don't like a pen because of the looks, and if there isn't some negative technical feature people should be warned about, you might say nothing and move on to another thread. I totally despise the looks of many pens, but I try to contain my self and refrain from comment. Those who don't like the 51 usually like the open nib and more embelished and less streamlined or Spartan design.

 

Interestingly, the Waterman Carene is a more embilished pen with an open nib and hooded feed. Design awards for the Carene? I don't know. It's another option for a pen that resists drying up. I like them both. I have about 50 51s and 3 Carenes.

 

Insults are rude, but often fun, and often well earned.

[Woodster]

My father owns two Parker 51s that he purchased back when they were new pens. They both have a sac inside filled by a lever on the side.

 

I honestly don't care for the pen at all. The clip is nice, but the rest of the pen just doesn't appeal. I know it has engineering that is supposed to be clever. I dissected one of the pens way back just to see all the parts. But, it seems like a lot of trouble just to keep Superchrome ink from drying out.

 

They were certainly common pens in their day, and I'm glad they have their fans, but I just have no interest. Apparently I'm ignorant and devoid of style recognition.

Ignorant and devoid of style because you don't like a particular style of pen? Not at all! Surely beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Life is completely subjective - otherwise we'd all be driving the same car, listening to the same music, eating the same food....just reading through some of the comments it's pretty clear the good old 51 continues to provoke robust debate!

[Buzz_130]

Woodster--that's an incredible collection, and I have a few pangs of envy.

 

Beautiful design and engineering marvel. Who designs a product today that will last 30 years like the pli-glass sac (many are still using their original!)? A pen that can be used unpressurized up to 70,000 feet? I can verify up to 18,000 feet during an aircraft emergency, and I was writing with a "51" Flighter. The Flighter version was beautiful long before brushed aluminum became the craze for laptops and iMacs. Lucite is durable, rugged, and reliable. And a feed that's designed for the toughest office environment of sitting then writing then sitting. The aerometric filling is a true breeze as you never worry about a bent J bar, a crumbling/discolored vac, or even a bent power filler.

 

Love the "51" in all of its flavors--irresistible design!

 

Buzz

[brunico]

I can appreciate the design, but I don't care for it. The same with the Aurora Hastil in MOMA - designs that I can see were ahead of their time but that don't excite me. If Dieter Rams, though, had designed a fountain pen in 1941 or 1969, I'd probably be all over it.

 

The hooded nib, the metal cap, the Parker arrow, the lack of italics, and the crazy prices driven by its cult status all make the Parker 51 the pen I'm least likely to get, well, maybe after Parker's wonderful Fifth Dimension. Heaven help us if one of the world's most expensive felt tips makes it into a design museum...

[OcalaFlGuy]

 

The hooded nib, the metal cap, the Parker arrow, the lack of italics, and the crazy prices driven by its cult status all make the Parker 51 the pen I'm least likely to get, well, maybe after Parker's wonderful Fifth Dimension. Heaven help us if one of the world's most expensive felt tips makes it into a design museum...

 

$35 to a nib technician solves any "lack of italics" issue. I have two CI'd 51's myself. Crazy prices? Where? I saw a perfectly decent, probably nearly ready to write Aero 51 go for $53 last night on Fleabay. I have several bought in the past 2 years that are in excellent shape for $55 or less shipped.

 

I can see that some people don't get on with the nib being hidden but that's usually a point visibility issue more than a real aesthetic negative.

 

Bruce in Ocala, Fl

[brunico]

 

$35 to a nib technician solves any "lack of italics" issue. [...] I can see that some people don't get on with the nib being hidden but that's usually a point visibility issue more than a real aesthetic negative.

 

True, I have a custom grind myself, though a pen needs to be a good price for me to contemplate paying extra to remedy the 'defect' of a ballpoint nib, and my recollection of UK dealer prices made me think they were crazy. But I can see from UK Ebay that they can be snagged for much less, and less than an Esterbrook (some still go for crazy prices, to my mind).

 

But I don't like hooded nibs. It's not about point visibility, as I don't always look down when I position the pen on the page - or even when I'm writing, for that matter. No, I just like the way exposed nibs look, regardless of how plain or ornate they are: I just think it unseemly to disguise the business end of the pen. I like nib creep, too, for similar reasons (to me, it's like seeing a film of oil on the piston of an old engine). Perhaps if dip pens had been hooded in some way and fountain pens had developed similarly, I'd think differently, but there it is. Just my take on it, that's all.

[Runnin_Ute]

When I first saw a P51, I didn't care for it. Not sure why. That being said, I have only seen them in photos and not in person.

 

Personally, my favorite Parker? The 45 Flighter. I find it far more attractive than any 51. However, I have grown to appreciate the 51. I may or may not ever own one. We will have to see.

[WirsPlm]

 

Then there are those who don't like the 51 design, and write rude things about it. I think that if you don't like a pen because of the looks, and if there isn't some negative technical feature people should be warned about, you might say nothing and move on to another thread. I totally despise the looks of many pens, but I try to contain my self and refrain from comment. Those who don't like the 51 usually like the open nib and more embelished and less streamlined or Spartan design.

 

Interestingly, the Waterman Carene is a more embilished pen with an open nib and hooded feed. Design awards for the Carene? I don't know. It's another option for a pen that resists drying up. I like them both. I have about 50 51s and 3 Carenes.

 

Insults are rude, but often fun, and often well earned.

In a thread that invites discussion of whether or not people like the 51's design it's totally appropriate and in fact useful to post multiple points of view, especially when an evangelist is tossing around insults about anyone who disagrees with them.

 

Also, if you actually read my posts, I haven't actually said anything about my opinion of the 51 design (you know what they say about assumptions...), I have simply pointed out that a poster was significantly and rudely overstating what could be reasonably said about it's design. Nothing in the tone of the posts conveyed the idea that the poster was attempting to make a joke, which is usually a pretty delicate thing to convey online and needs to be called out specifically to avoid misunderstandings (the /sarcasm tag was invented for a reason).

Edited April 20, 2014 by WirsPlm

[carlos.q]

Well, in my opinion proper appreciation for a Parker 51 is an acquired taste, much like wine.

I have 3 of these: one with a F nib, another M and finally a B nib, and I am still trying get the feel for them. However I do like wine.

[Aysedasi]

Icon.

[dali3464]

I definitely think it's an icon. But as for 'irresistible'? It's hard to say. I'll admit, prior to becoming acquainted with FPN (though at that stage I was using fountain pens) I had never heard of the Parker 51, and so I wouldn't think it's a pen with which most people - particularly in my age bracket - are familiar.

 

I think the design feature that counts both very much against and yet simultaneously very much for the 51 is the hooded nib. At least in Anglophone countries, fountain pens are probably considered luxuries and so open nibs are considered more appropriate in displaying workmanship and whatnot. Yet it's a good reminder than the 51 was made to write: a hooded simply to prevent the drying out of an ink designed to dry extremely quickly! This is the utilitarianism that I find extremely attractive.

[kalem]

Both a design icon and an ugly duckling.

[ANM]

Lazlo Maholy-Nagy did design work for Parker but started working for them after the 51 had already been designed. He did express admiration for it though.

 

 

What do I think of the design (not the engineering)? I don't think it's ugly. I think it is a 70 + year old design that was more interesting and different back then than it is now. It is an icon of it's time. The double jeweled ones look elegant but also seem to be trying to be a new design while still holding on to elements of an older design. The colors are muted, going on dull. All said though, I will snatch one up every time I can find one at a decent price.

Edited April 20, 2014 by ANM

[mhguda]

I thought the meaning of the phrase ugly duckling was to convey that the "inherent beauty" of the pen goes - incorrectly in the asker's opinion - under-appreciated. That was the meaning of the Andersen's fairy tale - the ugly duckling which turned out to be an orphan Swan...

It seems to me that the pen can hardly be an ugly duckling - it definitely has its appreciators, some of whom have made themselves very vocally known in this thread... I am not stating an opinion as to whether one can consider them ugly or not - obviously, one can, and some do... but if you think about it, the icons that are supposed to bring to mind fountain pens all seem to draw pens with exposed nibs, so the P51 seems hardly iconic as defined by use as an icon, i.e. as immediately recognizable as representing a fountain pen. Food for thought, hopefully.

[Charles Rice]

I have a 51, but to be honest, I don't like the design. I like to see the nib.

[pajaro]

Try the Waterman Carene if you like the looks of it. Open nib and hooded feed. Ink stays wet longer.

 

I have a 51, but to be honest, I don't like the design. I like to see the nib.

[pajaro]

Styles do change. As they do, the older folks often think the young are heathens with their more recent fashions, and the young think the old are crabs. Nothing new under the sun. The 51, streamlined and sleek in its time, is apparently regarded by many today as being as stylish as a "finmobile." I am unsurprised.

 

It is beyond me to understand how the inanimate pen could be transformed from an ugly duckling to a swan, unless the creations of those like Bexley, Kullock and Prather are what was intended.