Parker 51 Nib And Hood Placement

[Sir Zage]

Hello,

 

I've recently been having some issues with my Parker "51". It seems to have trouble starting up and it is very particular about writing angles. After searching Google images for Parker 51 nibs, it seems to me that my nib is too far down into the hood. The tip of the hood lies almost directly over the tip of the nib, whereas in the images you can see a bit more of the tines. Peering from the front, you can just barely see the tip of the nib behind the hood on mine. Is this normal? Does anyone have a reference for this? Also, if it is an issue, how would I go about pulling the nib out a bit more?

[Sir Zage]

Here is a close up of an image I found on Google images and my Parker "51" for comparison. I don't have any other experience with the "51", so any insight would be helpful.

[NinthSphere]

Your picture cuts off the tip of the hood, so you can't really see what you're talking about. All of my 51s have about 1/16" of visible nib.

[Sir Zage]

Your picture cuts off the tip of the hood, so you can't really see what you're talking about. All of my 51s have about 1/16" of visible nib.

That's weird, the picture shows up fine on my screen. How is this? I'd say it's about half of that showing though.

 

Here's a view from the top:

 

How would I go about pulling it out further?

Edited February 10, 2015 by Sir Zage

[NinthSphere]

Ah. Seems I'm having display issues with the ad space on the right. Your original pic shows up ok if you click it for the pic popup. New pic shows up ok too.

 

That's way too far in.

[Sir Zage]

Ah. Seems I'm having display issues with the ad space on the right. Your original pic shows up ok if you click it for the pic popup. New pic shows up ok too.

 

That's way too far in.

Yeah, that's what I suspected. It needs to be at a very particular angle to write and it writes dry. Would it be too hard to take it apart and personally fix it?

[mhosea]

How would I go about pulling it out further?

I didn't think it was possible for it to be that far in. Are you sure the hood is screwed all the way on? If it's an aerometric, make sure that the hood is installed without the barrel on. The clutch ring should be pushed all the way back as far as it will go.

 

At any rate, to pull it out, you will need to remove the hood, and then adjusting the depth of th enib should be a simple matter of pulling on it a bit. It just slides into the collector.

Edited February 10, 2015 by mhosea

[Sir Zage]

I didn't think it was possible for it to be that far in. Are you sure the hood is screwed all the way on? If it's an aerometric, make sure that the hood is installed without the barrel on. The clutch ring should be pushed all the way back as far as it will go.

 

At any rate, to pull it out, you will need to remove the hood, and then adjusting the depth of th enib should be a simple matter of pulling on it a bit. It just slides into the connector.

Hello Mike,

 

I think the hood is screwed all the way on, I've never touched it until today. I've tried twisting it to take it off today to no avail. I warmed up the section a bit, but perhaps not enough. Thanks for the advice, I'll try to get the hood off again tomorrow.

 

Is this what it should look like without the barrel?

[mhosea]

Is this what it should look like without the barrel?

51.jpg

Yes. Looks right. Not sure what's going on with the nib, but yeah, more heat...and patience. Plus, soaking the section up to just under the clutch ring (I wouldn't immerse the filler for very long) might help, since any dried ink does tend to sort of "glue" on the hood.

[Sir Zage]

Sorry to bump an old thread, but I'm still having issues with this '51' and I'm trying another take at fixing it after giving up. Can anyone take a look at the pics I've posted and give me some advice and how to fix this? Is removing the hood my only course of action?

 

Thanks in advance!

[northlodge]

I think you really need to remove the hood. Perhaps then take another shot. The nib simple does not look like it is correctly fitted, and there is no way I can see why.

[Flounder]

Yes, that hood needs to come off. It's fortunate the tip of the hood hasn't been snapped off, at least. Maybe someone held the pen at right angles to the paper, and pressed it in, though what's visible of the nib doesn't appear bent.

 

What difficulty are you having? Is the hood refusing to unscrew?

[Sir Zage]

Thanks for taking a look at it guys. Last time I tried to take the hood off it just would not budge. I do not have a heat gun, so it's either hot water or a hair dryer. Last time I tried soaking it in ~170° water. Is a hair dryer a better method to loosen it? It's a 'made in Argentina' model, not sure if that changes anything. Also, with the nib facing up, I should be twisting counter-clockwise if I remember correctly, correct?

[northlodge]

I find HOT water is just fine for this purpose, 30 seconds with the hood submerged to the clutch ring. Then unscrew (often turning by hand is possible, sometimes extra torque is needed.

[Sir Zage]

I find HOT water is just fine for this purpose, 30 seconds with the hood submerged to the clutch ring. Then unscrew (often turning by hand is possible, sometimes extra torque is needed.

Last time I tried hot water several times, even with section pliers and a rubber grip on the other end, it will not budge in the slightest. I wonder if Argentina used a different sealant for the hood. I'll keep trying though! I'll update if I have any luck removing it.

[Flounder]

Assuming the hood hasn't been glued on:

 

Do you have an ultrasonic cleaner? There might be some stubborn dried ink making a nuisance of itself.

 

Other things I've found to help are heat cycling with a hair dryer (use the narrow nozzle thing to direct heat where you want it instead of the hood tip and sac connector) combined with using one of Dr. Oldfield's C rings for aero shell removal and 2 sets of section pliers (http://www.penpractice.com/page3.html).