Hello everybody,
I have a nice parker 51, that works as far as I can tell, but when I remove the blind cap it has this powdery, sandy bluish grey residue on the mechanism. When I shake the pen, it sounds like it has sand inside. The plunger goes up and down, but it has the same squeaky sandy sound.
How do I clean this pen, water??
Thanks so much-
~Inchworm

Sounds like it needs restoration of the vac system... not just a cleaning... IMHO

Sounds like your filler unit body is made of aluminum. As it oxydizes, aluminum oxyde (and salts) build up between the male threads and the body (not a cheap joke, I swear), jamming the filler unit in place. Soaking and gentle heating should help. This may be a VERY tough job. The filler unit can be relaced more easily than the barrel, so it it won't come out, you may want to take a Dremel tool to it. Good luck!