How can I tell a burgundy Parker 51 from a Plum one?

[ToddPeperkorn]

Okay, I am a TOTAL NOVICE at Parker collecting, so help me out here.

Is there a place where I can get a good color sample of the plum vs. burgundy? I just got a gorgeous pen/pencil set and the case it came with would lead me to believe its from 1948/49. But since I've never seen the plum or burgundy versions, I can't tell them apart.

Help!

Todd

2096

[Laura N]

Take the pen (and here pencil, too) outside in daylight. If it's plum, you can tell immediately in natural light.

[pajaro]

If you have a powerful flashlight, like a Maglight, that works too. It is very helpful to have a known USA burgundy for comparison. The plum is more bluish. The case you have looks like a case for a Vac 51 set. Your set looks burgundy to me. If you paid less than about $200, it's probably not plum.

The guys on FPN are often reporting finds of Plum 51s for Sumgai prices. I am not sure I believe any of it. They are sought after by many who know what to look for.

[Laura N]

... The guys on FPN are often reporting finds of Plum 51s for Sumgai prices. I am not sure I believe any of it. They are sought after by many who know what to look for.

Honestly, I got my plum (with GF cap) for less than $40 shipped. My friend also got his at a great price. Both of us from the auction site. Neither of us thought they were plum when we bid.

[pajaro]

I chased a plum 51 for years, never bidding quite high enough. $221 wasn't high enough for one. I suppose that there might be a timing thing, where all the older people who had one of the plum 51s have been dying off and these pens have been bought by estate sale buyers who don't know what they have.

See this listing, recently sold. http://www.ebay.com/itm/Restored-plum-Parker-51-fountain-pen-MK-1-Lustraloy-cap-1949-/281094406099?_trksid=p2047675.l2557&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEWAX%3AIT&nma=true&si=gDxIXRSONC4Z6iaiJfP7tg7yXBk%253D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc
If you have been impossibly lucky, count your lucky stars. I don't believe that the auction air waves are paved with milions and milions of plum 51s.

[Laura N]

Yes, I felt lucky when it turned out to be plum. As I said, I hadn't expected it and I wasn't searching for one. I hope one turns up for you. :)

[david i]

Plum looks eggplant in white light. Burgundy... not so much.

Sumgai (that pen term as per Bill Riepl circa ~ 1999) plum finds do happen. Not all pens offered as plum (particularly on ebay) actually are plum.

You can see some plums (residual from what was the world's heftiest offering) on my 51 page.

http://www.vacumania.com/websitesales/forsaleparker51.htm

regards

david

[pajaro]

Yes, I felt lucky when it turned out to be plum. As I said, I hadn't expected it and I wasn't searching for one. I hope one turns up for you. :)

I got mine. Paid $205 for the set, and am satisfied with the price. It was a long chase.2209:)

[Laura N]

Yes, I felt lucky when it turned out to be plum. As I said, I hadn't expected it and I wasn't searching for one. I hope one turns up for you. :)

[COLOR="#000080"]I got mine. Paid $205 for the set, and am satisfied with the price. It was a long chase.

Very nice!

[Annie]

Here are two 51s. Same question as the OP for you. What exactly do I have here. The one at the top is burgundy so the one underneath is what??? Not that it matters in the ID but the one at the top is the one I would rush back into a burning building to save.
2279

[nxn96]

I think the bottom one might be a Burgundy 51 Aerometric made by Parker in Great Britain; which had a decidedly red look when compared to the US-made Burgundies.

Hope this helps

[pajaro]

This might help.

2358

[grandmia]

This video may help, it shows some different colours of the Parker 51 Aerometrics at about 3:24.


http://youtu.be/sX17nTz1VQ0

[pajaro]

How about this?

2535

[AnthonyB]

I recently purchased a Plum Parker 51 from a member of this forum. The pen, when taken out into sunlight is unquestionably "purple." When compared side-by-side in sunlight with an American Parker 51 in the burgundy color, the burgundy appears brown, whereas the Plum stands out as truly purple. As an earlier member stated, you can readily tell a Plum Parker 51 from all shades of burgundy when taken out into sunlight. That's the way to tell, even if one has never seen a Plum Parker 51 or a Burgundy Parker 51 - sunlight will reveal the truth!

[pajaro]

You can shine a bright flashlight on the pen also. In my pic of a bunch of 51s above, I think you can tel the plum pen and pencil apart from the burgundy pencils and pen around them.

[Farmboy]

I've found that the easiest way to determine the true color is to place the pen for sale on eBay and then sit back and listen to the prognostications on FPN.

Even if you never find out what color it really is, the commentary is worth the effort.

[pajaro]

You can get the dog avatars wagging by saying plum 51s are rare.

[blopplop]

Plum looks eggplant in white light. Burgundy... not so much.

regards

david


David nailed it. Plum's are eggplant color all the way. Much different really than the burgundy.

Oh why did I sell my plum? :(

Dave

[pajaro]

You can say they are eggplant, but I have both and they are hard to tell apart in ordinary room light. Both just look dark. It takes bright light to see eggplant color start to come out in plum. In online pics it can require careful estimation to pinpoint one you think might be plum. I keep 2-AA cell Maglight near the pen storage to be sure of the colors of the dark 51s. Sunlight helps too.