Considering a Parker 51 mechanical pencil for daily use

[MRusso]

Hey,

I'm considering a parker 51 mechanical pencil to match my FP and I'm wondering if there are any cons regarding fragility of plastics/internal parts of this particular vintage mechanical pencil. Not thinking of tossing on desk and use like a cheap $5 mechanical pencil of course but still, what are your experience with vintage mechanical pencils? Ok for daily use?

Thanks for any input.

[christof]

I am using a Parker 61 propelling pencil nearly every day. It's very sturdy but also elegant and ergonomic. I use pentel 0.9mm 2B HI polymer lead.

[MRusso]

very good, thanks. The Parker 51 is very sturdy but wasn't sure about the mechanical pencil.
cool signature by the way :haha:

[penwash]

One of my favorite vintage mechanical pencil is the Esterbrook J.
It is both robust and looks cool.

I haven't used a Parker 51 pencil yet, but I'd be really surprised if Parker made something for their flagship product that is subpar compared to the Esterbrook.

[jos]

The pencils of the 51 and 61 range are really great and classy writing instruments. I think that they outclass many modern mechanical pencils.

The internal parts of these pencils are sturdy and well engineered and rarely cause problems.

The plastic of the dove grey 51 Vacumatic pencil discolours easily and can become quite brittle too. But any other plastic from the Vacumatic or Aerometric period will do fine as a pencil for daily use.

[MRusso]

Great, oh, by the way I found out the mechanical pencil is of twist mechanism. Reading what I can find about it, it seems the click mechanism can be faulty but not finding much about the twist mechanism. It's a bit counter-intuitive to twist on a mechanical pencil but eh, so looking forward to match my P51 pen. If it works and is solid I could live with that.

[jos]

Which Parker 51 do you have?

The twist/rotary (Vacumatic era) and clicker (Aerometric era) pencils are well made. The rotary pencil is the period-correct companion for a Parker 51 Vacumatic but if you have a grey or blue coloured P51 Vacumatic it might be difficult to find a perfect colour matched 51 rotary pencil.

You possibly already found this webpage with interesting background info:
http://parker51.com/index.php/51s/pencils/

[MRusso]

Which Parker 51 do you have?

The twist/rotary (Vacumatic era) and clicker (Aerometric era) pencils are well made. The rotary pencil is the period-correct companion for a Parker 51 Vacumatic but if you have a grey or blue coloured P51 Vacumatic it might be difficult to find a perfect colour matched 51 rotary pencil.

You possibly already found this webpage with interesting background info:
http://parker51.com/index.php/51s/pencils/

Yes I've seen that page and from the looks of the pencil it seems like it is a 1950's Parker 51 Special Aerometric rotary pencil (companion to Parker 51 Aeromatric?) Mine is a 51 Aeromatric from 1948 (I checked engraving on the nib).
Here is the vendor's shot.
63649
is it really a Vaccumatic pencil? It seems pretty much like a match to my 51 (below)
63650

[christof]

I'd say that, because of the broad cap band, it is a transitional pencil.

[MRusso]

intriguing. It appears to be 1950's aeromatric on the body but vacumatic on the cap.

[christof]

according to the Parker "51" book (page 45) these caps came with the first Aerometrics in 1948.

[jos]

intriguing. It appears to be 1950's aeromatric on the body but vacumatic on the cap.

The cap of the pencil is definitely Aerometric, not Vacumatic. The barrel with the smooth nozzle on the front is typical for a P21 pencil but is indeed also found on the P51 Special pencil. But the cap band is not P51 Special.
If it is a transitional pencil I would expect that it has the typical nozzle of either the P51 Vac or P51 Aerometric pencil, not the nozzle that came later in the 1950s.

Anyway, the pencil visually fits with your P51 fountain pen. In fact, if it is a transitional pencil it would fit perfectly with your very early (1948) Parker 51 Aerometric.

[Chuck Naill]

I have had two of the early "40's models. The loading mechanism is a pain. If you want a vintage mechanical pencil that is bomb proof, get an Autopoint Rocket that matches your Parker. I've posted some threads in the pencil section. Someone said once the most rare Autopoint is the one that doesn't work...LOL!!

[Wahl]

I have mechanical pencils to match my P51 Aeros, they are "click" actions and function perfectly.

[MRusso]

dammit, someone snatched "my" pencil from the auction! :faint:

[proteus]

For what it is worth...........

P51 Aero retractable pencils are rather good, possibly the best pencil made.

Have collected a few in the past along with the twist activated version.

Of the two I would take the retractable very time.

Simple design, never seen one that does not work correctly.

Sold all my collection...........early this year

I doubt that there is a better classic / vintage pencil ever made.

Passing through...........

[MRusso]

beautiful.

[welch]

The P-51 pencil works fine. I now use an Autopoint .046, but the 51 is oplenty good enough. Only problem I had was fine an "orphan" that works. In a set, the pencil usually works, but the lone 51 pencils usually arrived broken. The aerometric era pencil, the push-down, often has lost it's grabbing ability. One push and the lead slides out. The twist pencils, from the 51 Vac, are more likely to work.

All use the .036 / .9mm leads, which are still easy to find.

[proteus]

welch,

Read your comment with interest.

Thank you.

In my experience both retractable and twist activated P51 Aero pencil work just fine unless they are damaged.

[ralfstc]

In my experience, lots of pencils from the mid-20th century are excellent. Generally a nice size and nicely weighted, they often work especially well with B lead. Parker 51s are great (both types), so are Sheaffer's, Waterman, Esterbrook, Montblanc and many more. I think they were definitely made to be used, and used a lot!

I like to have sets for my favourite pens, so I have lots of vintage pencils. They are all great. My favourite, just because they can be a little harder to find, is a barely used PFM pencil that came with my chalk marked PFMIII.

Have fun!

Ralf

[christof]

...so are Sheaffer's, Waterman, Esterbrook, Montblanc and many more. I think they were definitely made to be used, and used a lot!



...for example AUCH Pelikan. These are excellent repeater pencils:

https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/51227375524_e106f4f597_b.jpg

[ralfstc]

Definitely agree Christof. I have a couple of the top ones (200's IIRC) and they are great. I just picked up a MB172 to match my Celluloid 146. They are really funky looking. Got any beautiful pictures of MB pencils? (I know MB is not your usual thing, but thought I'd ask).

Best,

Ralf

[proteus]

For what is it worth..........

An image of the best pencil I have ever seen - a P51 Signet.

It was NOS and worked perfectly

....the P61/65 was rather nice too.

[MRusso]

the 51 signet above is stunning!

The seller did put up another model of p51 pencil. This one definitely looks like an aeromatic. However it has some rust/tarnish(?) on the cap. I wonder if I can work it out with sand paper and polishing?

63802

63803

[pajaro]

I use Parker 51 pencils for crossword puzzles. Vacumatic, aero cap clicking and aero twist action. That is when I am not using a 51 ballpoint.

[MRusso]

cool I haven't seen many P51 ballpoints for sale. I'm considering a jotter to go along with the 51 fountain and pencil because it also clicks. I've read somewhere the new 51 is twist instead of clicking. Shame. For me ballpoint with click is always best.

[MRusso]

Ok, pulled the trigger on that P51. Hopefully I'll be able to polish that tarnish off. I'll update this thread then :)

[pajaro]

My Parker 51 ballpoints are cap actuated -- push the cap down to work the action. Parker 51 ballpoints are uncommon and expensive. I bought a couple in the 1990s and they were about $70 then. Parker 45 ballpoints are cap actuated and look pretty nice. Some with gold tone clips, and are more available and not as really pricey.

[MRusso]

My Parker 51 ballpoints are cap actuated -- push the cap down to work the action. Parker 51 ballpoints are uncommon and expensive. I bought a couple in the 1990s and they were about $70 then. Parker 45 ballpoints are cap actuated and look pretty nice. Some with gold tone clips, and are more available and not as really pricey.

How are they compared to vintage parker jotters? weight, fell?

[pajaro]

I haven't used a real vintage Jotter since college, when I found one on campus in 1969. I don't think there is much difference that you would notice.

[MRusso]

thanks Pajaro.

Damn the seller just sent me a message that the Parker above isn't indian black but a very dark green :(

[pajaro]

thanks Pajaro.

Damn the seller just sent me a message that the Parker above isn't indian black but a very dark green :(

Aw, rats. What a shame.

[welch]

I have found that the way to get a working P51 pencil is to buy a set: fountain pen and pencil. About two-thirds of the individual pencils -- "orphans" -- I bought were duds. The push-down aerometrics tend to let the pencil lead slide out when you advance it one click. The twist-action 51 Vac pencils are a little better although some showed up rusty inside.

A hunch: as a pencil broke down, owners put them aside. A lot of the orphan pencils sold on EBay are these. Of course, that's just a hunch.

[christof]

I have found that the way to get a working P51 pencil is to buy a set: fountain pen and pencil.

I think that this is a quite good advice. I just bought a Parker 75 set with two FPs and one Pencil. One FP ist shot, the other is used, but the pencil is in excellent shape.