Parker 51 As Edc?

[surprise123]

So I have just put my first bid on my first P51. Now, I have no idea of the quality of the plastic on a P51, but I wonder if it could stand as a bang-around pen. As it is a relatively cheap pen when sold as used. I'm concerned about overall usability and writability, in a rough environment like a middle school. It would provide a much lower aura of interest, as it would look like an ordinary ballpoint at a glance while maintaining that buttery smooth potential inside of a gold nib. It sounded like a perfect school EDC, I just don't know whether or not it would be happy with a rough environment, as it is plastic AND a slip-on-and-off cap instead of threads.

 

Also, does a P51 dry out if left in a bag for a weekend? (I am getting the aerometric model with a lustraloy cap and teal colored plastic body)

[inkstainedruth]

Parker 51s were made out of Lucite. They're pretty sturdy, unless you get one in Cocoa (apparently there were issues with that color, and after seeing one with an inch long crack in it, right through the threads on the barrel). And I left one at home for a week over Thanksgiving, and it started right up when I got home (ink was Lamy Pacific Blue) -- although it was left nib up, not knocking around in a bag.

I should say, though, that I would NOT bring a 51 to middle school. Cheap is relative: over the course of my being on FPN I've collected a number and the prices range from the mid $50s US to around $110 -- and I'm a grownup. I've been able to get a few really cheap, but those needed repairs (mostly 51 Vacs), and that boosted the overall price. And while they are excellent pens, you really might want to rethink your plan to use one at school until you're older -- you really don't want to lose the pen or have it stolen.

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[mitto]

The P51 would write even if left unused for six months.

 

I have not seen any issues with any of the colors on 51s. My cocoas are as sturdy as any other color 51s.

[sanesangowdayya]

P51 can be okay in school in my opinion but it depends on how you choose to carry it around. Keep it in a sleeve and don't let it leave your sight and you should be okay. The 51 is a discrete pen so fewer people will be asking to see it and try it.

[Arstook]

Just chiming in. I think keeping the pen in a protective sleeve, carrying around a packet of tissues, and being gentle with it should make everything just fine. I remember using a fountain pen during middle school and staining up my fingers something awful. Just be sure to gently wipe the nib section every time after filling and to carry around a bottle of ink in a ziploc bag. I imagine you'll be taking lots of notes.

[kazoolaw]

Can't promise that it will be immune to theft.

 

Lucite is very, very sturdy. Mine have taken falls from my desk, dropping on the ground, having books dropped on them, etc. they're not indestructible, but they are quite sturdy.

 

The slip cap is not a sign of weakness if the clutch which holds the cap on the barrel is in good shape. i've owned several and that's never been an issue.

 

Enjoy,

 

gary

[Offret]

P51 is my only EDC pen - it's the only FP that I trust 100%. No pen is immune to theft or abuse. However, the P51 is a sturdy workhorse that will provide decades of service if you take care of it. BTW, the slip cap is - IMO - a better alternative to the screw cap. Don't worry so much. Fill it, carry it and write with it - you will be rewarded.

[surprise123]

I am notorious for being protective of my pens at school (don't ask how but trust me, an angry Asian kid is not someone you can afford to provoke) so theft will never be a problem. The pen I bought was $30, the same price as my TWSBI Eco, so I am not too concerned. I will take into account the packet of tissues and leather slip, though. Plus, people tell me to use BICs. Cap removed, how far is the P51 from there in terms of looks? NOT TO SAY THAT BICs ARE ON THE SAME TIER AS THEM

[surprise123]

Can't promise that it will be immune to theft.

 

Lucite is very, very sturdy. Mine have taken falls from my desk, dropping on the ground, having books dropped on them, etc. they're not indestructible, but they are quite sturdy.

 

The slip cap is not a sign of weakness if the clutch which holds the cap on the barrel is in good shape. i've owned several and that's never been an issue.

 

Enjoy,

 

gary

Ever seen an angry Asian kid? In my school, people stay away if they know I'm peeved for two very important reasons: The teachers often look the other way for minorities and asian parents encourage "expression". I've never had to use any physical force, ever, but people know it is very much existential.

[Charles Rice]

I bought a 51 new back when I was in high school. Used it most every day. It has a few dings, but works as well now as it ever did.

[mana]

Hi! The plastic on the Parker 51 is Lucite which is pretty dang durable. Overall, a Parker 51 makes for a great EDC pen (esp. the Aerometric models) as they have relatively few parts that can break from mechanical stress. Of course you can break anything with abuse but you should be safe carrying it around in your back bag etc.

Ok, the caps can dent but that is the same for every other pen. The lustraloy caps are more durable (steel) than the gold filled ones (not to mention the solid gold or silver ones). So in that sense, you are good to go with your pen. As long as you don't abuse it you (and your pen) will be fine.

 

The nib design of the Parker 51 is one of the things that is great, you can leave it uncapped for a much longer spell than ordinary non-hooded nibs (which means you will spend less time capping and uncapping it for example when taking notes during a lecture/class).

 

Also, the cap forms a pretty good seal (and it has no air vents/holes) so you can leave a fully filled pen resting for a month or two and it will most likely produce a line straight away (I heard someone telling me of a Parker 51 that was left unused for three months and it started writing immediately). This of course can vary from ink to ink but that is the experience usually. They just work.

[NinthSphere]

2-3 51s, a cocoa demi among them, have been my go-to edcs for a while now, although they occupy a Nock Co. case carried in my coat pocket, not a bag. They're well suited to the task & a few days of not using them shouldn't be a problem. The only ink I recall that *has* given me problems with drying out is Liberty's Elysium. That took ~4-5 days of non-use & was put back into use in short order after a dip in a cup of water.

[inkstainedruth]

Well $30 *is* a really good price for a 51 Aero. But you still want to take good care of it. Because the next one *won't* be that inexpensive....

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[welch]

Parker designed the 51 to be the only pen a person would own. Of course, it was Parker's high-end pen, and, as their advertising said, the most desired pen in the world. I used a Parker 45 through junior high and high school, and it is still an all-around good school pen. The 51 would have been better, but in 1960, the 51 was about three times as expensive as the 45.

 

If you fill a P-51 every morning you will never run out of ink during the day. I used a washable ink, and most inks today will wash off your hands just as easily. Ink should, also, wash out of a sink and wash out of your clothes...there is no benefit in "bulletproof" inks, which is why Parker and Sheaffer did not make them.

 

The "slip-cap" was a design feature. Parker engineers wanted a pen that could be uncapped quickly.

 

By the way: take a look at the pinned thread: "so you've just received a P51 from the wild". An aerometric P51 should write with only a simple flush, but the nib might need to be tuned, and, if the 51 was made in the US, it probably has a fine nib. (The English Parker factory produced more medium and broad nibs.)

[Arstook]

One thing though to consider about fountain pens in general though. They seem to require patience and a certain quality of being able to be still for a little bit, and care to be used to their fullness. (Pardon the pun) I hope you can find that it middle school. I was an Asian-American middle-schooler once and I only used cartridge pens. It's only into my early 30s that I've gotten the patience and wherewithal to deal with a sac filling vintage. My dad of course didn't have a choice when he was a kid. I've got to ask him what kind of fountain pen he used when I get the chance.

Edited December 8, 2017 by Arstook

[surprise123]

Hi! The plastic on the Parker 51 is Lucite which is pretty dang durable. Overall, a Parker 51 makes for a great EDC pen (esp. the Aerometric models) as they have relatively few parts that can break from mechanical stress. Of course you can break anything with abuse but you should be safe carrying it around in your back bag etc.

Ok, the caps can dent but that is the same for every other pen. The lustraloy caps are more durable (steel) than the gold filled ones (not to mention the solid gold or silver ones). So in that sense, you are good to go with your pen. As long as you don't abuse it you (and your pen) will be fine.

 

The nib design of the Parker 51 is one of the things that is great, you can leave it uncapped for a much longer spell than ordinary non-hooded nibs (which means you will spend less time capping and uncapping it for example when taking notes during a lecture/class).

 

Also, the cap forms a pretty good seal (and it has no air vents/holes) so you can leave a fully filled pen resting for a month or two and it will most likely produce a line straight away (I heard someone telling me of a Parker 51 that was left unused for three months and it started writing immediately). This of course can vary from ink to ink but that is the experience usually. They just work.

 

 

Good, I got a lustraloy cap model.

[surprise123]

One thing though to consider about fountain pens in general though. They seem to require patience and a certain quality of being able to be still for a little bit, and care to be used to their fullness. (Pardon the pun) I hope you can find that it middle school. I was an Asian-American middle-schooler once and I only used cartridge pens. It's only into my early 30s that I've gotten the patience and wherewithal to deal with a sac filling vintage. My dad of course didn't have a choice when he was a kid. I've got to ask him what kind of fountain pen he used when I get the chance.

Wow, I do not even look at cartridge pens because they seem to limit you to only so many colors unless a syringe is utilized. I love using fountain pens, for one reason, that it can let you write notes with no cramps at all, until the ink runs out. I literally took so many notes in Geometry at school and Calculus after school that I ran out of ink on my TWSBI Eco. And my hand was fine, unlike my friends the next day.

[surprise123]

Parker designed the 51 to be the only pen a person would own. Of course, it was Parker's high-end pen, and, as their advertising said, the most desired pen in the world. I used a Parker 45 through junior high and high school, and it is still an all-around good school pen. The 51 would have been better, but in 1960, the 51 was about three times as expensive as the 45.

 

If you fill a P-51 every morning you will never run out of ink during the day. I used a washable ink, and most inks today will wash off your hands just as easily. Ink should, also, wash out of a sink and wash out of your clothes...there is no benefit in "bulletproof" inks, which is why Parker and Sheaffer did not make them.

 

 

 

The "slip-cap" was a design feature. Parker engineers wanted a pen that could be uncapped quickly.

 

By the way: take a look at the pinned thread: "so you've just received a P51 from the wild". An aerometric P51 should write with only a simple flush, but the nib might need to be tuned, and, if the 51 was made in the US, it probably has a fine nib. (The English Parker factory produced more medium and broad nibs.)

Would a mike masuyama tune up be around 50 small? Because that is what I have reserved for tune ups this holiday season.

[surprise123]

Well $30 *is* a really good price for a 51 Aero. But you still want to take good care of it. Because the next one *won't* be that inexpensive....

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

There was a seller I found that sold lots of p51 specials for cheap, should I buy bulk? They all have 17 day warranties so there is little risk... and yes, I will most certainly take care of a pen that could see me through school, college, and beyond.

[FarmBoy]

Interesting.