British Parker 51

[Guest JohanO]

I would like to buy a British 51 from the Sixties or Seventies. Because I fear that the sac has rotten, I wonder if I can remove the aerometric filler and replace it with another converter....

 

Thanks for your help...

[JimStrutton]

They did make a MkIII that had a converter a bit like the later Parker 61, but they are very rare and therefore expensive. The Aerometric fillers rarely go wrong and if they do are not expensive to fix. I had the sac changed on one of my 51 recently as the black ink I had used had statined the old plexiglass sac so badly I could not see the ink level. That and a service cost me 10GBPs so not expensive.

 

I have a 1950 51 Flighter that still has it original sac along with four others all about 50 years old and they are just fine, the sacs are not rubber so they don't rot.

 

Regards,

 

Jim

[JeffTL]

The filler on older pens generally isn't a converter, but rather an actual part of the pen.

Probably not a concern with an aerometric Parker 51, anyhow, as their sacs hold up well. If the sac has perished, I understand that aerometric sacs aren't too tricky to replace; if you don't feel up to it yourself, it's something I imagine just about any repair business can take on (unlike, say, the Sheaffer Vac-Fill pens).

[Guest JohanO]

Well, but I do fear that the previous owner has kept blue ink in the pen for quite some time; perhaps this will have caused some rotting. On the other hand, there has been written with this pen very recently, and there seems not to be any problems... Nevertheless; 51's are very reliable aren't they?

[Maja]

Well, but I do fear that the previous owner has kept blue ink in the pen for quite some time; perhaps this will have caused some rotting. On the other hand, there has been written with this pen very recently, and there seems not to be any problems...  Nevertheless; 51's are very reliable aren't they?

Reliable....Oh yeah...Definitely!

 

From the late Frank Dubiel's Fountain Pens: The Complete Guide to Repair and Restoration (a/k/a "Da Book"):

 

"(the Parker 51) series is considered to be among the most dependable pens ever built by any company."

 

Apparently some of the aerometric filling units have a metal covering, while others (the later models) were opened-ended. The metal covering is cemented in place and has to be removed in order to change the sac. Rarely is heat application needed; the covering can usually be pried off "by a slow gentle wiggle motion", according to "Da Book."

 

You can get the tapered replacement sacs from The Pen Sac Co. (tapered latex sacs for the Parker 51) or Woodbin (who carry the silicone--see through--tapered sacs for the 51)

[Carrie]

Reliable....Oh yeah...Definitely!

Yep, love the way there never seems to be any worries with a 51, makes it a great pen for carrying round every day. Just about to reintroduce a friend to fountain pens with a Parker 51

[Michael Wright]

Well, but I do fear that the previous owner has kept blue ink in the pen for quite some time; perhaps this will have caused some rotting. On the other hand, there has been written with this pen very recently, and there seems not to be any problems... Nevertheless; 51's are very reliable aren't they?

Aerometric 51s are so reliable that the normal advice is to flush with water and start using them. But in a case like yours, you could just fill with water and write with the reconstituted ink .

 

Rubber sacs perish with time, but the Aerometric sac is made of pli-glass (whatever that is), which doesn't rot in the same way. The only problems commonly found with 51s are clogging with old ink, and nibs having got out of adjustment in the shell (probably the result of abuse of some kind).

 

Buy. Enjoy.

 

Michael