Dating a Parker 51

[Avastgard]

I looked up on Richard Binder's website the dating system for Parker, but my 51 does not match any of them. I live in Brazil, so I guessed there was a possibility that the one I have was made in Argentina with the machinery Parker abandoned, as stated on Mr. Binder's website. But the cap clearly says that it was made in USA.

Well, my pen has all of the characteristics of a Mark I pen: rounded barrel end, metal filler with a plastic finish and a broad double clutch ring. The clip is the short arrow with no jewel or incsribing of any kind. But there is nothing on the barrel to identify its date. The only clue I have is an engraving on the cap: I/IO, or 1/10, I'm not sure how to read it. What does that mean?

[Laura N]

Lots of 51s have no date on the barrel. I wouldn't worry about it -- in fact, I don't.

Some 51s also are an amalgam. So the cap may not have been original, for example. Do the production dates match for the filler and the cap? Have you looked at Parker51.com? That's a really great source for information about production changes and dates.

Can you post some photos?

[Avastgard]

I believe this pen in particular is still original. There are no production dates anywhere I looked - not on the barrel and not on the filler, only the 1/10 (or I/IO) on the cap.

I took a brief look at parker51.com, but couldn't find anything to help me. Perhaps I just need to look more.

I took some photos, but my tablet's camera is horrible and the pictures were all blurry.

One thing I noticed is that, at the end of the barrel there is a white dot. It does not seem to be something factory made, but instead it looks like there was a hole there and it was plugged with some kind of plastic. Does it make any sense or is it evidence that the barrel was replaced?

[Laura N]

I'm no expert, and others are, who eventually will see this thread and chime in.

The hole at the end of the barrel is normal. Sometimes it traps a little bit of white polish that sellers use to shine up the barrel before selling. If that's what you have, and you want to remove it, unscrew the barrel and either clean it or gently poke it out with a toothpick or something like that.

I've got lots of 51s, some of which don't contain a date on the barrel. I am not sure it's evidence that the barrel was replaced during repair at the factory, because although that's one possible explanation, there are other possibilities, too. They made millions of these over time.

The way to date yours is to check the filler unit and the cap, as you did. You can find approximate dates, as you did, after which such and such filler unit was used, and such and such cap. Both styles evolved over time. Even if your barrel unit had a date, you'd probably still check to make sure the filler unit and cap style matched, right? The Parker51 website has lots of pages showing different cap styles, if you'd like to browse those. It sounds like you might have a basic lustraloy cap, so as you figured out the clip style will be the main indicator of date.

But, above all, the main issue with any 51 for me is, how does it write? Probably perfectly.

It's a great pen, and I hope you enjoy it.

[Avastgard]

Yep, it's a great writer, but perhaps a little too broad for me. Not a problem if you use good paper, though.

Anyway, thank you for your help!

[pajaro]

After the early 1950s there are no date codes on 51 barrels. You need to look for other clues. Even so, you won't be likely able to date it to a year, just to a period in the production.

As an example, I bought a 51 new in 1970 in the US Air Force Exchange when I was in the Air Force. The pen has the "51 Special" filler. It has a 14K nib, a Lustraloy nib and a gray cap jewel. This makes it a 51 Standard. My pen is nearly identical to one my father was given in the late 1950s when he left the Post Office. The difference between the two pens, and both are midnight blue, is that the cap on my pen has the Parker halo emblem on the back of the cap, where my father's pen doesn't. According to parker51.com, that makes my pen a 1960s production pen, and dad was wrong when he thought I had his pen.

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[Barry B. Gabay]

Date coding on Parker 51s stopped in US & Canada in 1953 and in England in 1959. I don't know much at all about Brazilian and Argentinian 51s. But congratulations on your new pen. Enjoy.

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