51 And 61 Desk Pens

[hkinser]

So I have a 51 vac made in Canada and a 61 capillary, both desk pens, but have no base. Is it worth it to try and find a base for them? I probably won't hang on to them for my own purposes. Also, Is there a difference on the pen holders for the 51 and 61? Or would any parker holder from that era work?

[Ernst Bitterman]

It can be a bit of a struggle to find an appropriate base. Coming at it as one who know that, I'd be inclined to pay a bit of a premium for someone else to have put the work in, but I don't know that everyone that might buy the pens will realize this.

 

If you do find a base for either, try it out for a while before you sell on. The convenience of a desk pen is hard to overstate.

[sherbie]

The Whitefriars heavy glass bases are excellent and very attractive. These can be picked up quite cheaply in the UK and on ebay.

 

Not sure if they were ever sold in North America though. They fit almost any 51/61/65 era pen

 

Just do a quick google search - the electric blue, ruby red are especially nice

 

Cheers, Paul

[pajaro]

Based on the above post I looked for the Whitefriars bases. I found one and it was well over $100 US. I have seen these over the years, and they always seemed expensive, but they are quite nice.

[sherbie]

They appear regularly on fleabay uk - indeed there is one up now with a day and a half to go for Under £6. But seller states only ships to UK, but you could email and ask nicely.

 

Cheers, paul