Parker 45 vs. Parker 51

[HesNot]

The 45 and "51" is a little bit apples to oranges - at least in terms of design, engineering and materials which was reflected in their price points...

 

The 45 is a nice pen and a good daily user - but I admit I've never really warmed to them either - preferring the 75 or the 61 in that general shape. The older 45s also shared that clutch on the section design of the 61 that can cause warps in the section where the fingers make contact...

 

So it would be the "51" for me but I don't think it is at all absurd to like the 45 - you can own a whole heap of interesting 45s in a rainbow of colors and designs and materials with a wide range of swappable nibs...

[J English Smith]

They are both great - get some of both - that's my advice!

 

Yes, it's a shame about the 45 sections getting the bumps - most of the vintage ones have a little distortion there - but they don't crack for the most part, unlike 61 barrels.

 

The other great thing about the 45 imo is the ability to replace and clean the nib so easily. Andy, the nibs can even be disassembled to clean the feed and nib, then snapped back together. They're a wonderful little piece of cheap engineering.

 

The nibs are different than the 51 nibs - most have more feedback - some of mine are very smoth, some are just ok. As for the barrels, I love the Turquoise Blue color the most, but there are many good colors.

 

Yeah, if you could only own one of them, I'd vote for a 51 too. But with clean vintage 45s going for about $12-18 every day on the 'Bay, there's no reason not to try one.

Edited February 24, 2009 by J English Smith

[richardandtracy]

I have a few P51's, and my wife & eldest daughter both have P45 flighters.

 

The P51 is a better built pen, without a shadow of a doubt. I prefer it, as does my youngest daughter.

My wife & eldest daughter prefer the P45.

 

I suspect that we prefer the pens most like the one we started writing with. My wife's first pen was that P45, and my eldest daughter used her P45 most of all. My youngest daughter & I started writing with a hooded nib P17 Lady, and we are the ones who prefer the hooded nib P51.

 

Regards

 

Richard.

 

[wspohn]

I want to know which Parker pen is better, not the flighter models or any other, the originals, the ones with metal caps and plastic barrels. I personally like the Parker 45, whats your opinion, state the facts too please.

 

Edit: By the way which pen is better the MODERN Dupoint or Sonnet?

 

 

The 51 is the fart superior pen. And if you meant modern Duofold (not sure what a Dupoint is), the Duofold is far superior to a Sonnet.

[asimplemaestro]

I would have to vote 45...I know that can get me stoned and quartered here but I have found the 45's I own to be completely reliable writers. Also the only 51 that I have owned AND the one's I have written with have yet to impress me. I like the 51's but don't honestly see where all the hype comes from. That said...yeah it's the 45 for me.

[tawanda]

I have one P51, two P21s and ten P45s.

 

I would choose a 45 over the others any day. Its a real workhorse, costs half the price of a 51, is much more versatile (carts/converter fill system) and the nibs are so interchangeable. If I fancy using my broad nib but have a fine in, it takes just a second to unscrew and change. That also means if I break a nib the pen is not gonna have to go off to a meister, or cost me bucks to mend either. If a section cracks ( I've never had one do it yet, though) you can easilt buy a cheap replacement off flea-bay.

 

The are also lighter in my hand and come in an amzaing range of colours and model variations. Great for collecting!!

 

T

[penspouse]

51. I don't care for the looks of the 45.

[randyholhut]

Another vote for both, although its unfair to compare them head to head -- it's like debating the merits of a Chevy Impala versus a Cadillac Coupe de Ville, mid-1960s, post-tailfins vintage.

 

The 45 is an Impala -- simple styling, solid performance and affordable.

 

The "51" is a Coupe de Ville -- big, smooth and well-engineered without being too garish.

 

Cadillac's slogan used to be "The Standard of the World," a description that aptly fits the "51" in its three decades of production. Like Cadillac, the "51" was the standard other pens were measured by.

 

But the 45 stayed in production for nearly 50 years, proof of the endurance of an affordable, well-designed pen.

 

I have several of both, and have no complaints about either model.

[rahulg]

I love both pens. The 51 in terms of design and aesthetics, the 45 for its suitability as a reliable knockabout pen. The 51 looks great, writes great and is made of better materials, but to use the cliched term, at the end of the day, with a far simpler design and 'hot swappable' nib my vote goes for the humble 45. Given a choice the 45 Flighter - never fails, and won't bleed you if its damaged or lost. The 51 was probably the best made pen in the world, but the 45 was one of longest running.

 

It was nice to read this thread.

 

Regards,

Rahul

[Ernst Bitterman]

I've just taken in a newer 45, and I start to understand some of the contempt a few folks have for them. The point is, new from the box, pretty darn scratchy. It's nothing I can't set right, and it's a body style I've been after for a while, so I don't mind it, but if you were newly come to FPs and this was your first 45, it would probably incline you strongly against them. Parker UK quality inspectors should hide their faces.

[welch]

I loved my old Parker 45. Used it all through junior high and high school, and I'm still annoyed that I have it to a prospective girl-friend just because she asked for it five or six times.

 

However, the 45 cost about $4.95, and the 51 was about $10 or $15 in '60 or 62. Price signals quality. The 45 was a "school pen", I have since read: meant for kids like me who had outgrown those Schaeffer cartridge pens that scratched through all types of paper. The 45 was meant to be simple, cheap, durable.

 

I recently bought another, and I still like the feel: my hands seems to remember. Still, I've bought a 51 and will take it for renovation as soon as it arrives.

 

There is something about web articles that always start: "The Parker 51 is the greatest fountain pen ever made." Pretty persuasive.

 

[The Grim Sheaffer]

always 51

[telltime]

Without going through all the replies I will just say (and sorry to the 45 loyals)...

 

If you have to ask the question, you've never handled a 51.

[J English Smith]

I've said it before and I will say it again: own 'em both. At $15 for the 45 and maybe $45 for a good user 51 - there's just no reason not to!

[cfclark]

Without going through all the replies I will just say (and sorry to the 45 loyals)...

 

If you have to ask the question, you've never handled a 51.

 

 

Or to quote the old Packard ad: Ask the Man Who Owns One.

[Shamouti]

The best Parker pen is the one whose nib is gliding across the page with smoothness known worldwide.

 

Shamouti

[pb2]

I want to know which Parker pen is better, not the flighter models or any other, the originals, the ones with metal caps and plastic barrels. I personally like the Parker 45, whats your opinion, state the facts too please.

 

Thanks in advance!

 

Edit: By the way which pen is better the MODERN Dupoint or Sonnet?

 

I love the "italic" 51! I can only write well with them if I make Pendleton Ponts out of them, otherwise I just dont write well for with them. But I am very attracted to the great design and the quality feel of them.

 

The 45s write better for me, but they really take on a whole new dimension that well supercedes the 51 when I go italic with them. The two beauties below are never without italic nibs anymore. They really become great pens with the Pendleton Point smooth, crisp, cursive italic, oops, I boasting again...

[JinhaoMaster]

Without going through all the replies I will just say (and sorry to the 45 loyals)...

 

If you have to ask the question, you've never handled a 51.

 

 

thats right!

[OcalaFlGuy]

And if you value the opinions of those not so naturally enamoured with the P51 as fountain pen people are, The 51 not only won numerous design awards from outside pendom but also resides in both the Design Museum in London and the Museum of Modern Art in New York. I don't think the P45 was anywhere near so recognized outside the pen world.

 

Bruce in Ocala, FL

[JinhaoMaster]

After reading your opinions, and reasons, and going away for a long time, I'm coming to an obvious conclusion that the Parker 51 is a much higher quality, and valued pen. Also, that the 45 is cheap, and over time the plastics camp change shape, or crack, but the 45 has the convenience of a quick nib swap.

 

Salute to your captain, I am, Captain Obvious!