this would've been in 1950 at a Base Exchange at Travis Air Force Base (my father remembered purchasing it).

I'm trying to figure out what sort of Parker 51 it would've been --- may purchase a replacement for him (he owned a couple it turns out, starting w/ one he found on Phee Street in 1945 or 6).

Thanks!

William
(who is now starting to regret having given a co-worker a Parker 51 box and instruction sheet which he came across in a trade)

I don't know, but I sure wish that some BX, PX, or NX near me would find some old stash in their warehouse and put them out with those price stickers! Don't know how many other Active Duty (or even Reserve) folks there are out there, but I'd be racing you to the exchange.

The "51" Special was introduced in 1950, so it would not take much of a wild guess to come to the conclusion that it was that pen at that price point, chuck in a bottle of ink and away you go.

Jim

Comparing such pricing to my currently purchasing sure put my wife jump up high. I used to keep ad but have kept them away fearing my wife seeing them........Any one Care to sell me with "That kinda of price"? Do give me a Pm soooooooooon.

Jim: Sounds reasonable. How much was the regular 51 on the streets that year? The reason I ask is that the AAFES (Army/Air Force Exchange Services) typically has lower prices than retail places, and this was especially true back in the 50s and 60s.

I silenced most of my wife's complaints about pens and pricing with my reference to the coffee scale. In 1941, when the Parker 51 was introduced, I believe the price point was $12.50. At the time, a cup of coffee, with free refills, was $0.05. Likewise, a Coke was also a nickel. If you figure how many cups of coffee (or Cokes) you would have to forgo to get a P 51, it works out to 250. So, take the multiplier, 250, times the current price for coffee or Coke (in a restaurant). Say $1.65 for a tall at Starbucks, or nearly the same at a sitdown restaurant for bottomless coffee, or bottomless soft drinks, and the $12.50 in 1941 dollars would jump to $412.50.

For broader comparisons, minimum wage in 1941 was $0.30 per hour, and average annual wage was $1,492, or $0.72 per hour. Current Federal minimum wage is $5.85 (higher in CA) and according to BLS (Bureau of Labor Statistics) average annual wage is $34,819.20, or $16.74 per hour. So, how many hours would you have to work to buy the pen, or any other thing at the minimum, or even average wage?

Donnie

Not sure, but it could have been about $10, the Flighter was $12.5 I believe, you need to verify all this as I can't find the reference right now, hopefully somebody has it to hand. The Special was either $5, probably too low or maybe $7.50? I don't have a clue what the margin would have been so how low the AAFES could have gone.

Jim