What Line Thickness Do I Have On This 51?

[bullet08]

i was told it's very wet M. but this looks much thicker than M from more recent pens. where do i find out what size nib i have? does the Parker 51 nibs have size stamped on them? it's could just be that it is M, but heavily used an worn down.

 

[richardandtracy]

Is it a UK made P51. If so, with a line width of around 0.6-0.7mm, it would be a nice juicy UK medium, which run up to half a size wider than US M nibs.

If it's up to 0.8mm, it could be a US broad.

 

Regards,

 

Richard

[OcalaFlGuy]

I'd lean towards a very wet Medium. No, 51 nibs aren't width marked, though about 80% of the U.S. 51s were sold with Fine nibs.

 

Yes, the Brits not only liked wider Medium nibs, but had a higher percentage of them.

 

Bruce in Ocala, Fl

Edited August 31, 2014 by OcalaFlGuy

[Florida Blue]

A Richard alluded to, the difference between a US medium and a US broad is quite substantial. Broads nibs have a huge amount of tipping. I agree with Bruce, that the nib is mostly likely a medium.

[bullet08]

thanks. i should get this nib grinded by someone who knows what they are doing. just to thick for me.

[Dr.Grace]

The repair person wouldn't have to grind it, just swap with a finer nib. There are plenty of fine-line p51 nibs around in the US, and M nibs are harder to find.

[pajaro]

thanks. i should get this nib grinded by someone who knows what they are doing. just to thick for me.

 

Before you grind this nib, why don't you just sell the pen or trade the nib?

 

All the comparison lines you wrote are fine of finer, and the 51's line is medium. I have one that writes like that, and, even though I use it seldom, I recognize that it is less common than the fines, and it's nice to have. I think there are people who would be glad to trade a nice fine nib to you for this medium, and they would be happy to perform the change on your pen.

 

Have it ground if you must, and it's your property, but you could possibly negotiate a better deal, maybe getting something more than just a fine nib, because what you have is generally better than a run of the mill fine nib.

[bullet08]

played with the nib a little. seems to response better than the steel nibs.

 

[ac12]

What ink are you using?

A wet ink will make a wider ink line, a dryer ink will make a narrower ink line.

[bullet08]

i'm using Noodler's Black Swan in English Roses. haven noticed any specific issue with this ink in other pens. and i think it goes nicely with burgundy 51.

 

i closed the tines just a little, and now it's writing fine. not as wet as before, and not dry where the ink looks faded. the nib look as if previous owner has tried to adjust the nib with pocket knife. some scratches on the edge of the nib. it needed some tip alignment. but there is good amount of tipping material on the it and it writes very smooth.

 

maybe i'll also look for another one with fine nib..

[KBeezie]

I noticed with Noodler's Liberty's Elysium my P51 comes out somewhere between a Fine and Medium, but with the current Parker Quink Blue it comes out as more of a Fine.

 

The Write Sample with the Liberty's Elysium:

http://static.karlblessing.com/pens/inked/aug_27_augmented.jpg

 

And with it currently inked with Parker Quink Blue

http://static.karlblessing.com/pens/inked/rhodia_sep3_2014_300dpi.jpg

 

I know Liberty's Elysium leans more on the wet side, but not sure about how wet BSER typically is. Quink Blue seems to be on the dryer side but it flows very nicely (seems to be a little thinner, my P51 Vac sucked it up real fast).

 

Yours looks like a Medium in my opinion.

Edited September 3, 2014 by KBeezie