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I have a 1948 (based on the nib's date) Parker 51 vac. It has been my favorite '51 and I have probably carried it the most in spite of having a half dozen others. 10 months ago the diaphragm developed a leak and I set the pen aside for repair. When I finally got to the repair, I ran into several problems. Getting the filler out was problematic, even with the clamping tool I had purchased and when I did get the filler apart, the existing vintage filler proved unusable as the socket for the pellet was broken. I ended up purchasing a post production all aluminum filler since the pen's collector value is diminished due to the nearly buffed away imprint. I installed the new filler and diaphragm, checked for air leaks and reassembled the pen. It writes quite well but it has surprised me off and on with an occasional leak. I can use the pen for a week or two and then, when I uncap it for use, find my writing hand inky due to ink all over the shell. Since I use the pen quite a bit, it often spends a lot of time laying flat on a table or on my desk. Any ideas why this is happening? It never happened before the failure of the old diaphragm. I have replaced other vac diaphragms and have not had this issue but this one has me perplexed. The only thing that I can think is that the might be a minuscule air leak in the diaphragm somewhere...not enough to leak ink at the filler but enough to allow air in, which would then allow ink to escape. The other possibility that I can conjure is that the replacement filler's button may be hitting the blind cap and be partially depressed. Any ideas/suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks.... Cliff