Parker 51 — what is the appeal?

[Turquoise88]

I know the Parker 51 is a wildly popular and beloved pen.  But I just don’t understand the appeal. To me it just looks like a nondescript pen with a metal cap (don’t shoot me — just personal opinion!) 

 

I’d enjoy hearing from 51 devotees regarding what makes this pen so special.  Was it historically innovative? Was the design new and different? Does it perform substantially better than other pens of the period? How does it compare with other Parker models? 

[joss]

Appeal is a matter of taste of course. They say that this pen grows on you.

 

Did you do the effort to read a bit on the history of the Parker 51, trying to understand the significance of this pen in respect to innovation in technology, quality and design of fountain pens?

 

These are excellent starting points:

http://parker51.com/index.php/education/51-history/

http://parkercollector.com/parker51.html

[sansenri]

Well, of course at the time the design was innovative, which is the reason it was then very widely copied, or in the best of cases it inspired other similar pen designs, which in a way tried and partly achieved to improve it.

It was also extremely reliable (still today), which is the reason so many units were produced.

Read as suggested, the historical reasons are fascinating.

Personally I like two things especially, besides the great reliability, the balance and the lack of disturbing threads or steps on the barrel, it's very comfortable to use, becomes part of your arm...

[es9]

2 hours ago, Turquoise88 said:

To me it just looks like a nondescript pen with a metal cap (don’t shoot me — just personal opinion!) 

 

That's one thing I love about it.  Back when meetings happened, I could use it without having to announce to everyone that I was using a fountain pen.  Workplaces are all different, of course, but having that option is nice.  I have also found them to be extremely durable.  (Yes, the plasticizer in the pli-glass sacs on the PVC pens can create problems if you have to change the sac; but the sac itself is so durable that you often don't even have to.  And yes, fixing the vacumatic ones requires some special tools and a little know-how; but once they are repaired, they behave very well.)  The collector means they usually write immediately even after having not been used for a while.  And I personally find they write quite well.  

 

There are a few pens that I think of as embodying the platonic form of a fountain pen--Esterbrook J, Parker 51, Lamy 2000, etc.  With each, form does not comes at the expense of function.  Nothing writes better for me than a Sheaffer Snorkel; it must be the upturn at the end of the nib.  I *love* Snorkels, and I find the complexity of the filling mechanism extraordinary and humbling.  But they are not exactly the self-filling pen I'd take into battle.  

[gyasko]

You’re only considering the looks.  Yes, it lacks, gew gaws, purple swirlies & bling (unless you go for a Tiffany model or a Presidential).   So what?  Its designers made something better.

 

Consider instead the excellent ergonomics and the unparalleled functionality and reliability of the aerometric version.  You should also recognize the difficulty in churning out a pen that demands such close tolerances in the millions.  It is an engineering marvel and a damn good pen.

[mitto]

Can there be a pen user or a pen collector who doesn't like the 51?

[sgphototn]

12 minutes ago, mitto said:

Can there be a pen user or a pen collector who doesn't like the 51?

Yes. It doesn't appeal to me in the least. 

[TheRedBeard]

34 minutes ago, gyasko said:

You’re only considering the looks.  Yes, it lacks, gew gaws, purple swirlies & bling (unless you go for a Tiffany model or a Presidential).   So what?  Its designers made something better.

 

Consider instead the excellent ergonomics and the unparalleled functionality and reliability of the aerometric version.  You should also recognize the difficulty in churning out a pen that demands such close tolerances in the millions.  It is an engineering marvel and a damn good pen.

Absolutely agree, 100%.

P51 is a very rare combination of genius design, technological perfection, high reliability/performance and... unbeatable elegance - all in one pen.

 

I don't think you could find all that under one  hood in any other pen..

[TheRedBeard]

2 hours ago, joss said:

Appeal is a matter of taste of course. They say that this pen grows on you.

...........

 

It is true - and it exactly happened to me  :)

Long time ago using many other Parker models I had the same question about P51... until I got one and understood what did real Parker pen mean :)

[carlos.q]

2 hours ago, TheRedBeard said:

It is true - and it exactly happened to me 

Long time ago using many other Parker models I had the same question about P51... until I got one and understood what did real Parker pen mean

Same here. It's a no fuss and well balanced writing instrument. It just works. 

[inkstainedruth]

In their heyday, 51s were the top of the line for Parker.  And were so for something like two decades.  People would apparently just buy the caps, just so people would see that arrow clip in their shirt pocket.  

But the real thing was that *everything* in the cost of the pen was due to the R&D to make them functional writing instruments, from the hooded nibs to the Lucite barrel.  You can find a 51 Aerometric in the wild, and 9 times out of ten, all you need to do to get them up and writing is a good flushing out (see the pinned thread about finding your first 51 in the wild).  The earlier 51 Vacs might need some work to get them back working -- but they hold a HUGE amount of ink.  If I need to do a ton of writing (say for a research project) the first pen I'm going to reach for is one of my 51 V1cs (the one with an EF nib). If I just want a pen that works, no muss, no fuss?  Any one of the Aerometrics.

Parker 51s were considered top of the line pens (according to a website which calculates inflation, that $12.50 US price would be the equivalent of $150.  That's in a time when dinner at a nice restaurant with a bar was maybe 50¢.  A second tier pen like Esterbrook would be about $3.50 (additional nib units a buck apiece).  A low-end pen like an Arnold?  89¢.  In spite of the price differential, Parker sold 12 MILLION of them and then stopped counting (the estimate is about 20 million pens over that 20 year run).

And I've NEVER paid as much as $150 for a vintage 51, and most of mine were $80 or less.  And, they just WORK.

Yes, they're understated looking pens.  But they don't look old-fashioned, the way some vintage pens do (and they don't look tacky like some of the high end LE pens do). They write well (unless you want a flexing nib, of course).  They're a good size and weight for my hand.  They're comfortable to hold, with no step-down to the section.  And, they just write.  

How many things can you say just work after nearly 70 years?  I can EASILY do so with my 1949 Plum Demi 51.  (I should work so well after 70 years...).

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

 

[Turquoise88]

Thanks everyone — the historical information was especially interesting as are the personal experiences others had had with becoming converts — maybe I should give a 51 a try 😇 

[bsenn]

Interesting to collect in that there are many combinations of date codes, colors, cap styles, filler variations, double jewel, nibs, etc.

 

 

[SamChevre]

I got my start with fountain pens with a box of random odds and ends with two pens in it.  One of them was a 51 Vacumatic (1944, Cedar Blue).  (I fixed the other one--a Waterman Crusader--first.)  

 

The thing about the 51 is that it just works.  Whether I used it yesterday or two weeks ago, it works perfectly every time.  I use my pens for work, and so that is a very nice feature.   The cap is secure, but I can pop it off one-handed if I need to.  It's a somewhat boring pen--but some things, like banks and cars, I like boring--and a work pen is in that category.

[PAKMAN]

I love the hooded nibs and the fact that it is so hard for them to dry out between uses since the feed and most of the nib are under the hood and not out in the air to dry out.

[como]

What's the appeal? Well, you can say that about just any pen, or anything, if you don't like it for one reason or another.🙂

[CS388]

Reliability. Never known a FP which is so reliable.

I do like the simple, elegant lines of the design, too.

 

On 1/30/2021 at 1:48 AM, Turquoise88 said:

 ... maybe I should give a 51 a try 😇 

 

I'd recommend it.

A user pen isn't going to break the bank - and if you don't like it, you should be able to sell it on easily enough.

 

Enjoy.

 

 

[Aysedasi]

On 1/30/2021 at 1:48 AM, Turquoise88 said:

Thanks everyone — the historical information was especially interesting as are the personal experiences others had had with becoming converts — maybe I should give a 51 a try 😇 

 

This is it.  Give one a try.  As many have said, they can be picked up 'in the wild' for very little outlay and as Ruth says, with a good flush and refill, it will probably write perfectly.  You see a lot for sale every day on auction sites and you see very few badly abused P51s.  As others have said, they just work exceptionally well, and are relatively easy to swap nibs on.  I went through a spell a few years ago when I got up to about 15 of them.  I now just have my 2-3 favourite ones, although I have to say that with so much discussion about the 51 on here recently (including the 'new' 51), my interest has been rekindled and I bought another one today!  

 

If you try one and hate it, there's a ready market to sell it on.  Win/win really.....   

[TheRedBeard]

13 minutes ago, Aysedasi said:

 

......

  I now just have my 2-3 favourite ones, although I have to say that with so much discussion about the 51 on here recently (including the 'new' 51), my interest has been rekindled and I bought another one today!  

 

If you try one and hate it, there's a ready market to sell it on.  Win/win really.....   

Uuhhh! You are so lucky

A few days ago I stupidly failed (being outbid during last 10 seconds) to purchase a P51 Forest Green in near mint condition ...

Though it was with medium nib, while I wanted a fine one...

Edited January 31, 2021 by TheRedBeard

[Aysedasi]

I had a Forest Green, but foolishly sold it, like my Cedar Blue...  I still have a Signet/Insignia, a Cordovan Brown 51 vac and a Teal Aero.  I prefer broad nibs as my hands are far too clumsy to write with fiddly fine nibs.....