My Parker 51 Writes Dry

[samba]

Hi All,

I have few Parker 51 Fountain pens.One of them writes pretty dry.This pen is a NOS Green Aerometric model, Made in England.I don't want to disassemble it.Please give me some useful tips so that I can turn it into a wet writer without doing any harm.I'm not a specialist. So I'd like to request you to give me some easy and simple tips in this regard. Thanks in advance.

[IThinkIHaveAProblem]

some recommended starting points. (many people seem to have had this issue)

 

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/227924-parker-51-writing-dry/

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/183369-my-first-51-writing-dry/

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/270466-my-parker-51-writes-like-a-desert-dry/?p=3057181

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/290192-dry-parker-51/

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/41949-anybody-elses-51-write-incredibly-dry/

 

TLDR in order of frequency of recommendation:

- make sure its clean (if it REALLY is a NOS this should not be a problem)

- make REALLY SURE it's clean

- are you ABSOLUTELY POSITIVE that it's clean???... maybe clean it again...

- use a wetter ink

 

WARNING THESE REQUIRE OPENING THE PEN and varying degrees of screwing around with stuff...:

- align air slits in collector with the nib

- nib work (tine spreading/flossing)

- nib/hood spacing issues

 

Also, I once read (but am now unable to find it) that some suspected that they would dry from the factory in order to help with the quick drying that people expected from a top tier pen that was supposed to "write dry with wet ink" Priorities back in the day were not necessarily on watching a nice wet patch of ink get laid down, but more on getting words onto paper and drying so they wouldn't smear.

 

My (completely non expert, absolute member of the peanut gallery) opinion: If this really is a NOS pen, and you REALLY are intent on using it (vs preserving it) then I would suggest using a wetter ink. That way you don't have to disassemble it. None of my "51"s are "gushers" most are medium/dryish in wetness. I guess it depends on what you consider "dry"

 

Good luck. Let us know how it turns out

[pajaro]

If you haven't used the pen very long, give it some time and use. Some of my 51s, from medium to broad, UK made pens especially, when filled with 4 or 6 presses of the filler bar seem to write moderate to dry. If I fill the heck out of them, 10 to 12 presses of the filler bar, they sometimes to be overflowing with ink and write very wet. Aerometric fillers, of course.

Edited April 12, 2020 by pajaro

[samba]

some recommended starting points. (many people seem to have had this issue)

 

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/227924-parker-51-writing-dry/

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/183369-my-first-51-writing-dry/

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/270466-my-parker-51-writes-like-a-desert-dry/?p=3057181

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/290192-dry-parker-51/

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/41949-anybody-elses-51-write-incredibly-dry/

 

TLDR in order of frequency of recommendation:

- make sure its clean (if it REALLY is a NOS this should not be a problem)

- make REALLY SURE it's clean

- are you ABSOLUTELY POSITIVE that it's clean???... maybe clean it again...

- use a wetter ink

 

WARNING THESE REQUIRE OPENING THE PEN and varying degrees of screwing around with stuff...:

- align air slits in collector with the nib

- nib work (tine spreading/flossing)

- nib/hood spacing issues

 

Also, I once read (but am now unable to find it) that some suspected that they would dry from the factory in order to help with the quick drying that people expected from a top tier pen that was supposed to "write dry with wet ink" Priorities back in the day were not necessarily on watching a nice wet patch of ink get laid down, but more on getting words onto paper and drying so they wouldn't smear.

 

My (completely non expert, absolute member of the peanut gallery) opinion: If this really is a NOS pen, and you REALLY are intent on using it (vs preserving it) then I would suggest using a wetter ink. That way you don't have to disassemble it. None of my "51"s are "gushers" most are medium/dryish in wetness. I guess it depends on what you consider "dry"

 

Good luck. Let us know how it turns out

I'm using Watermans Green ink which I believe is wet.One thing should be mentioned that the tines of the point is really tight and also there is no gap between the hood and the nib.Its a NOS pen.What shall I do now?

[IThinkIHaveAProblem]

I have no experience with waterman green. But i know that mysterious blue is neither dry nor wet and purple is the same. They are simply somewhere in the middle. Serenity is apparently the same (no personal experience) so i suspect green May be the same as well

 

Noodlers Lexington grey is wet. Most noodlers bulletproof inks are. It often feels like they are trying to escape from the pen and onto the paper

 

Aurora black is apparently very wet (No personal experience)

 

Spreading the tines would require removing the hood and nib

 

Adjusting the hood spacing also requires removing the hood and is not something to do lightly

 

Since you are not comfortable taking the pen apart (and since it’s NOS i don’t blame you, i likely wouldn’t either And an NOS green one is NOT the place to start learning how to do repairs)

 

My suggestions are as follows:

0) Clean it

1) try wet inks

1.5) follow pajaros advice above.

2) live with it as it is. It simply has a different personality than your other pens

3) send it to a reputable nib meister to have it adjusted

4) sell it and find one that you like better (green in NOS condition (now “near mint” condition since you have inked it) are relatively sought after. You could likely get enough for it to buy two user grade black ones!)

 

Good luck

[Bo Bo Olson]

Waterman use to be a wet ink...until Noodler users thought it a dry ink......so get a wet Noodler's ink.

 

I actually went out and bought Waterman ink back before Noodlers came along in I had a pen that wrote dry, and the Waterman South Sea Blue...turquoise.....don't remember the new name, cured my problem. Waterman use to be considered by Richard Binder as the best ink...the one he used to test his repaired pens. Richard....was once one of our Big Three.................do go to his sight and look up inks.

.

I find DA Royal Blue to be a bit wetter than Waterman, more saturated also.

 

One don't have to pen up a P-51 other than unscrewing the barrel....so flush the pen out with water***, even if 'NOS' it may have been filled once in the shop............and dried.

***Could use a pen flush also....JP's or home made.

[inkstainedruth]

@ samba -- what is the nib on yours? Because if it's an EF, it may need a little work on the nib to open up the space between the tines. I had to have that done with two of my 51s (a 51 Vac and a 51 Aerometric) that were EFs; until I had pros tweak the nibs, they were scratchy writers (the tines were too tight together in both cases). Once that was was done, both pens became very good writers; if I need to take a lot of research notes, my first choice would be that 51 Vac now, because of the ink capacity (although the 51 Aero is no slouch in that department either).

Don't know who to recommend in your neck of the woods. Both of mine got worked on at pen shows here in the US (one by Ron Zorn, who was rehabbing the pen for me in general; and the other -- the Aerometric -- was done last fall by J.J. Lax).

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[samba]

@ samba -- what is the nib on yours? Because if it's an EF, it may need a little work on the nib to open up the space between the tines. I had to have that done with two of my 51s (a 51 Vac and a 51 Aerometric) that were EFs; until I had pros tweak the nibs, they were scratchy writers (the tines were too tight together in both cases). Once that was was done, both pens became very good writers; if I need to take a lot of research notes, my first choice would be that 51 Vac now, because of the ink capacity (although the 51 Aero is no slouch in that department either).

Don't know who to recommend in your neck of the woods. Both of mine got worked on at pen shows here in the US (one by Ron Zorn, who was rehabbing the pen for me in general; and the other -- the Aerometric -- was done last fall by J.J. Lax).

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

 

Its an EF Aerometric filler, the barrel imprint near the clutch ring says ' MADE IN ENGLAND ' and there is no date code.I flushed out the green ink and cleaned it up with water repeatedly.Then I inked it up with Watermans Mysterious Blue and it writes little bit better.How can I open up the space between the tines?They are too tight especially at the tip of the point.

[samba]

I have no experience with waterman green. But i know that mysterious blue is neither dry nor wet and purple is the same. They are simply somewhere in the middle. Serenity is apparently the same (no personal experience) so i suspect green May be the same as well

 

Noodlers Lexington grey is wet. Most noodlers bulletproof inks are. It often feels like they are trying to escape from the pen and onto the paper

 

Aurora black is apparently very wet (No personal experience)

 

Spreading the tines would require removing the hood and nib

 

Adjusting the hood spacing also requires removing the hood and is not something to do lightly

 

Since you are not comfortable taking the pen apart (and since it’s NOS i don’t blame you, i likely wouldn’t either And an NOS green one is NOT the place to start learning how to do repairs)

 

My suggestions are as follows:

0) Clean it

1) try wet inks

1.5) follow pajaros advice above.

2) live with it as it is. It simply has a different personality than your other pens

3) send it to a reputable nib meister to have it adjusted

4) sell it and find one that you like better (green in NOS condition (now “near mint” condition since you have inked it) are relatively sought after. You could likely get enough for it to buy two user grade black ones!)

 

Good luck

 

Thanks for your words.Now I'm using Watermans Mysterious Blue and getting a little bit better result .Its actually an EF. I have no experience with Noodlers inks because they aren't available at our place.I have Watermans Florida Blue ,Mysterious Blue and Inspired Blue in my collection.I don't have the Serenity Blue.

[samba]

Waterman use to be a wet ink...until Noodler users thought it a dry ink......so get a wet Noodler's ink.

 

I actually went out and bought Waterman ink back before Noodlers came along in I had a pen that wrote dry, and the Waterman South Sea Blue...turquoise.....don't remember the new name, cured my problem. Waterman use to be considered by Richard Binder as the best ink...the one he used to test his repaired pens. Richard....was once one of our Big Three.................do go to his sight and look up inks.

.

I find DA Royal Blue to be a bit wetter than Waterman, more saturated also.

 

One don't have to pen up a P-51 other than unscrewing the barrel....so flush the pen out with water***, even if 'NOS' it may have been filled once in the shop............and dried.

***Could use a pen flush also....JP's or home made.

 

I don't have a ' PEN FLUSH ' so please help me in this regard.

[Estycollector]

After reading somewhere that vintage pens perform better with wetter inks, I now only use Waterman inks. My favorite is Serenity Blue which apparently is the same as the former Florida Blue.

 

I think Ruth uses dish soap to flush. I've just used water or a dilution of ammonia and water to clean stainless nibs. I am more cautious with gold nibs.

Edited April 14, 2020 by Estycollector

[samba]

After reading somewhere that vintage pens perform better with wetter inks, I now only use Waterman inks. My favorite is Serenity Blue which apparently is the same as the former Florida Blue.

 

Thanks a lot.This information is really helpful.I have 12 vintage fountain pens in my collection and 8 of them are in Near Mint condition.I mostly use Waterman and Pelikan inks.

[IThinkIHaveAProblem]

 

Thanks for your words.Now I'm using Watermans Mysterious Blue and getting a little bit better result .Its actually an EF. I have no experience with Noodlers inks because they aren't available at our place.I have Watermans Florida Blue ,Mysterious Blue and Inspired Blue in my collection.I don't have the Serenity Blue.

 

 

After reading somewhere that vintage pens perform better with wetter inks, I now only use Waterman inks. My favorite is Serenity Blue which apparently is the same as the former Florida Blue.

 

I think Ruth uses dish soap to flush. I've just used water or a dilution of ammonia and water to clean stainless nibs. I am more cautious with gold nibs.

 

Waterman's renamed Florida Blue to Serenity Blue a few years ago.

 

To spread the tines (if you are sure you want to go this route) you can either remove the hood and then pull the nib from the collector and gently spread the wings of the nib, or you can TRY flossing the tines with some brass sheets. (be careful with the flossing while still in the pen, it can easily cut a slit/make a nasty mark in your feed.)

 

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/316462-nos-parker-51-nib-wont-write/ (with excellent advice from Ron) (the Jet Pens method outlined in this post is NOT a good idea on a 51, for reasons also covered in this post)

 

HERE! Fount it! This is where it says 51s are dry by default, and from none other than THE MAN himself.

http://www.richardspens.com/ref/pendoctor/22.htm

 

Further reading from the master:

http://www.richardspens.com/ref/pendoctor/12.htm

 

Remember, if you're not confident doing it yourself, there are people who make a living doing this and will do it for you without risking damage to your pen.

Edited April 14, 2020 by IThinkIHaveAProblem

[samba]

 

 

 

Waterman's renamed Florida Blue to Serenity Blue a few years ago.

 

To spread the tines (if you are sure you want to go this route) you can either remove the hood and then pull the nib from the collector and gently spread the wings of the nib, or you can TRY flossing the tines with some brass sheets. (be careful with the flossing while still in the pen, it can easily cut a slit/make a nasty mark in your feed.)

 

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/316462-nos-parker-51-nib-wont-write/ (with excellent advice from Ron) (the Jet Pens method outlined in this post is NOT a good idea on a 51, for reasons also covered in this post)

 

HERE! Fount it! This is where it says 51s are dry by default, and from none other than THE MAN himself.

http://www.richardspens.com/ref/pendoctor/22.htm

 

Further reading from the master:

http://www.richardspens.com/ref/pendoctor/12.htm

 

Remember, if you're not confident doing it yourself, there are people who make a living doing this and will do it for you without risking damage to your pen.

 

Really helpful.Thanks a lot.

[IThinkIHaveAProblem]

[inkstainedruth]

I think Ruth uses dish soap to flush. I've just used water or a dilution of ammonia and water to clean stainless nibs. I am more cautious with gold nibs.

 

A clarification: for new pens, I will use a drop of dish detergent (Dawn) in distilled water to clean out any manufacturing gunk.

For vintage (or older, but previously used pens) I use dilute ammonia solution (roughly a 1:9 ratio of clear ammonia and distilled water) again with a drop of Dawn -- unless I *know* that a low pH ink (such as an iron gall ink) has been used -- in which case I use white vinegar instead of the ammonia. In both cases I flush with distilled water alone both before and after the solution is used (and in the latter case I THEN do a flush with ammonia solution and then more distilled water). Some people say plain tap water is fine -- but I see the mineral buildup on my faucets from having hard water.... I do not want THAT gunking up a feed....

I think I originally got the solution recipe from the pinned thread at the beginning of the Parker Forum -- the one about "finding your first 51 in the wild". 51s hold a LOT of ink (especially the earlier Vac models). And if ink has been left to dry for a long time (sometimes decades, I suspect) it's going to be a slow process of flushing and soaking and flushing and soaking, often over several days. I use a thick-walled, straight sided votive candle holder that is, IMO, less top heavy than a shot glass, and a plastic clothespin to stabilize the pen and keep it more nearly upright (I can lean the edges of the clothespin against the edges of the candle holder).

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[Estycollector]

 

A clarification: for new pens, I will use a drop of dish detergent (Dawn) in distilled water to clean out any manufacturing gunk.

For vintage (or older, but previously used pens) I use dilute ammonia solution (roughly a 1:9 ratio of clear ammonia and distilled water) again with a drop of Dawn -- unless I *know* that a low pH ink (such as an iron gall ink) has been used -- in which case I use white vinegar instead of the ammonia. In both cases I flush with distilled water alone both before and after the solution is used (and in the latter case I THEN do a flush with ammonia solution and then more distilled water). Some people say plain tap water is fine -- but I see the mineral buildup on my faucets from having hard water.... I do not want THAT gunking up a feed....

I think I originally got the solution recipe from the pinned thread at the beginning of the Parker Forum -- the one about "finding your first 51 in the wild". 51s hold a LOT of ink (especially the earlier Vac models). And if ink has been left to dry for a long time (sometimes decades, I suspect) it's going to be a slow process of flushing and soaking and flushing and soaking, often over several days. I use a thick-walled, straight sided votive candle holder that is, IMO, less top heavy than a shot glass, and a plastic clothespin to stabilize the pen and keep it more nearly upright (I can lean the edges of the clothespin against the edges of the candle holder).

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

 

Thank you, Ruth, for clarifying.

[samba]

A clarification: for new pens, I will use a drop of dish detergent (Dawn) in distilled water to clean out any manufacturing gunk.

For vintage (or older, but previously used pens) I use dilute ammonia solution (roughly a 1:9 ratio of clear ammonia and distilled water) again with a drop of Dawn -- unless I *know* that a low pH ink (such as an iron gall ink) has been used -- in which case I use white vinegar instead of the ammonia. In both cases I flush with distilled water alone both before and after the solution is used (and in the latter case I THEN do a flush with ammonia solution and then more distilled water). Some people say plain tap water is fine -- but I see the mineral buildup on my faucets from having hard water.... I do not want THAT gunking up a feed....

I think I originally got the solution recipe from the pinned thread at the beginning of the Parker Forum -- the one about "finding your first 51 in the wild". 51s hold a LOT of ink (especially the earlier Vac models). And if ink has been left to dry for a long time (sometimes decades, I suspect) it's going to be a slow process of flushing and soaking and flushing and soaking, often over several days. I use a thick-walled, straight sided votive candle holder that is, IMO, less top heavy than a shot glass, and a plastic clothespin to stabilize the pen and keep it more nearly upright (I can lean the edges of the clothespin against the edges of the candle holder).

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

 

 

Thanks

[Conradandhispens]

not much to add that others have not said already, but first try soaking the pen and flushing it out with water and a drop of dawn multiple times, then try a wetter ink. if your not satisfied with this and you want it wetter id take the hood off (you can search this up on google, basically heat up the hood with dry heat, and remove with grippy rubber or section pliers, this can take a few tries) and then take the nib out and using a brass shim spread the tines carefully, that will make it wetter. Im by no means a professional by the way, but ive successfully tuned the nibs of several p51s.

[sandy101]

I had to hold a P51 at a 45 degree angle to get it to write. 

 

I put some pressure on the tins to splay them a litte and this seemed to fix it, for now, anyway. 

 

I suspect that the tines were too tight, so the ink was flowing past them, rather than through them. 

 

it is writing like the others.