Parker 51 Review

[tandaina]

I've had one real area that hasn't worked for me since I joined the FP world: note taking in meetings and conferences. Basically I spend a lot of time in situations where I'll write furiously for a couple minutes and then sit and listen for a bit, then write again, etc. My FPs failed at this task. Some did better than others, but none have been able to handle that writing situation with grace. Sitting unused they'd go dry and not be ready to just start writing as needed. To stop this I'd have to cap ever time I finished, then rush to uncap and get writing again. It was, frankly, a pain.

 

A few days ago a member here posted a Parker 51 "user grade" in the sale forum. He warned me it was "rough," not pretty, but reliable and a good writer. The price was right, and I'd been wanting to try a 51, but eBay prices had been crazy. So I bought it. He and I have very different definitions of "rough." I think she's beautiful! Signs of use, but after forty years I sort of think that's expected! The little micro scratches, one small dent on the cap, a little wear around the top of the cap mostly just make this a pen I'm not afraid to USE. To toss in my bag and take with me anywhere.

 

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8340/8227422294_0d31f5b324.jpg

photo by JoAndRoses, on Flickr

 

So yesterday was THE test. I took the 51 to a lecture last evening. It sat uncapped the whole time, I wrote off and on, often with long stretches of listening between notes. It never ONCE dried out or failed to write instantly. It never skipped, or balked. It put down a nice consistent line all night with no fuss, no drama. I stopped thinking about my pen and started being able to just USE it.

 

This Parker has a pump filler. Not the red ring, easy to fill. Insert nib into ink, pump end roughly 9 times. Replace end cap. Done. The ONLY issue I have had was that after first filling the pen REFUSED to write. I left it sit overnight and it started up just fine in the morning. I'm not sure what was going on there because it has written immediately every time since. No issues whatsoever, so this may be a problem with MY use of a new-to-me filling system.

 

The other advantage I've discovered is that unlike 90% of my other FPs this nib seems to behave well with my Moleskine work notebooks. I have it loaded with Noodler's black and there is no feather or bleed through. Most of my pens are VERY wet and bleed badly on Moleskine, ever with well behaved ink. No such issue here. The 51 will be used exclusively for work notes, that's for sure. I have no idea what size the nib is. I'd say either a sort of fat F or a nicely trim M. Though it may just be that it is enough less wet that the M line just behaves better.

 

Now all that said, and I love my 51, she takes some getting used to. My non-hooded FPs the nibs tend to "self correct," they just seem to settle perfectly onto the page in writing position, and obviously it is easy to SEE if they are upside down, or sideways. The Parker 51's nib is SO hooded, such a tiny part extends beyond the body of the pen that I have a hard time telling how the nib is oriented. The only writing issues I've had is when I put the nib down on the paper at some funny angle. MY solution has been to carefully post the cap with the clip aligned with the TOP of the nib. I can then visually check how I'm holding the pen based on the clip instead of the nib. Not a huge issue, just something you have to get used to, but I could see some folks just really disliking the hooded nib.

 

For me this pen is fantastic. It is the zero drama, reliable, professional looking daily writer I've been looking for. I highly recommend this old classic for anyone who needs a good solid pen, and the FPN as a great place to get pens you don't have to tweak and worry about.

 

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8482/8227422882_0a8d3f41ce.jpg

photo (1) by JoAndRoses, on Flickr

[majorworks]

Nice review, and welcome to the "51" club! Judging from the photos you posted, that's a real nice "user grade" specimen.

 

As to the pen not writing immediately after filling, that is odd. You don't mention whether you gave it a good flush before filling it. If not, next time you fill it, you might consider flushing it with a solution of 10 parts water to one part household clear ammonia. Perhaps the act of filling it dislodged some crud from somewhere in the feed and it got redeposited in such a way as to block the flow.

 

Meanwhile, enjoy note-taking with it!

[Scribblesoften]

Thanks for the great review. I, too, have found that the Parker 51 has evolved into my note taking pen. I am often in situations similar to your own as well as having to take notes while flying in aircraft. The other day I noticed that my pen roll has evolved into flexible nib pens for use at my desk and Parker 51's, of various nib widths, for use everywhere else.

[stefanv]

Thanks for the mini-review. I have a "51" much like yours, and it has been my at-work pen for the last year. Before I got the "51", I thought I may not like it, based on the nib orientation issue that you described, but I found I quickly got used to it. Although you can't really see the orientation of the nib, the tip is of course off-centre like it is on pretty much any fountain pen, so if you have a light enough grip on the pen, it will naturally rotate into the correct orientation when you first touch the paper.

 

Regarding the initial flow problems, I agree with what majorworks said above. The Parker "51" feed holds as much (or maybe even more) ink than the actual ink chamber does, and if there's dried out ink in there, it could cause the problem you experienced. Sitting overnight might have allowed the ink to redissolve in the fresh ink. A good flushing is highly recommended.

[tandaina]

That's entirely possible. My other thought was that the filling instructions had you remove the nib from the ink BEFORE releasing the plunger the last time to "suck up" the ink in the feed and keep it from gushing when first put on paper. My initial thought was that it sucked it a bit too dry. Either way, it resolved.