Parker51 Fountain Pen, Midnight Blue Barrel, Chrome Trim, Fine Nib, Black Ink Cartridge, Gift Box

Nice light writing, good flow and easy to write with. Good for letter writing and note taking.

The new Parker 51 is an excellent homage to the original 51, produced from 1941-1972 in the US, and into the 1980’s in Argentina on American equipment. The new pen is not an exact reproduction as there are a few minor differences between the two. I have three refurbished 51’s, and the new pen looks and feels like the original, but it’s about a half inch shorter. The cap doesn’t close with the familiar thunk sound as it now has a screw-in cap. While some people think that this method won’t last long, I have a Duofold from the 1920’s and a couple of other Parkers from the 1930’s with screw-in caps and they are still going strong. Granted, today’s plastic is not as solid, but you don’t need it to last almost a century. The classic arrow clip on the metal cap is long gone, along with the jewel on top, and it’s a shame that Parker didn’t bring them back. Finally, the primitive feeder systems have been replaced by a modern cartridge, but some the original 51 had cartridges from 1961-1963, so that’s not entirely different. Nevertheless, Parker should have included a converter along with the two cartridges.The good news is that the original 51’s write differently from other pens, and the new 51 carries over that tradition. The hooded nib works great although there is more separation from the cover. It’s just a great pen to write with and has excellent ink flow and a really nice script, so Parker has done a great job of reimagining the 51 for a new century. Just remember that it’s not the same pen, which I’m sure would be really expensive, and you will be really happy with your purchase.

Love this Parker pen - the mid mod look and the great color scheme brought me back to an era when my grandparents had avocado green furniture and a hifi stereo that played Petula Clark's "Downtown." I have had a few hard starts, which is to be expected given the hooded nib and that I'm using a cartridge and letting it sit too long between uses. But for the most part, this pen rests smartly in my daily planner and while light weight, is still a pleasure to write with and drafts a nice smooth line that's not too wet. If you're a beginner with fountain pens, I'd start with something softer and with more ink flow, like a TWSBI. But if you're a veteran and a collector of sorts, this is a fun addition and has that retro look and feel that invokes nostalgia with each pen stroke. Great purchase here on Amazon.

Yes, it writes and it does so just fine. My problem with this is that it sort of looks like a 51 but if you are familiar with the original, you may find this one a tad disappointing. The first thing I noticed was that the weight was different in my hand. Modern materials and manufacturing, and a cartridge instead of refill mechanism may contribute to this. The cap no longer has the trusty clutch ring allowing you to slip on the cap but it threads on which I see being a problem down the road as the threads on the body are plastic. The big gotcha for me was the distinctive hood over the nib. On original 51s, the hood hugs the nib and it looks like it was meant to fit. On the new version the hood gaps from the nib which just looks cheap. If you want a pen that writes get one, I would recommend the Parker IM over this one though, it just feels better in your hand.One month later… don’t bother with this pen. It is not a best effort by Parker. My cheap Noodler is more reliable. It takes several minutes to start writing again after sitting a couple days and then it skips badly. Nice try Parker but you could have done better.

I have several fountain pens but this writes every time I use it. It is smooth and fits in my hand well

It's an injection molded plastic body with a twist cap that has vent holes in it for some reason. I can't understand why you'd put vent holes in a twist cap. All they do is allow air directly into the nib, which will dry out the ink. A press cap, like the original, could use them to prevent a vacuum problem, but this seems like a dumb choice.The metal is extremely cheap and of low quality, and the threads look like a lower quality resin. I can easily see missing a thread and screwing them up, ruining the function of the twist cap.For $85 I would expect this pen to ship with a converter, but it does not. It ships with a blue and black cartridge. The writing field is okay and the ink flow is rather smoothly.

Be careful. I ordered a teal blue pen. A burgundy pen arrived here. The box did not look right, appeared somewhat dirty, and under the tray the instructions were folded in half horizontally, even though the lower tray has a fit slot for it. There were no quink cartridges except the one I found installed (as expected). The pen appeared dull and was slightly sticky. I wiped it off with water and it became brighter and smooth. Then I tried writing with it. I could not get any ink flow. I put a loose tissue around the end and gave a sharp snap of my wrist, which almost always gets things started. No ink through the nib although a cartridge was installed which appeared ~1/3 down compared to other quink cartridges I had handy. Using a 30x magnifier, it appeared there was dried ink in the nib. I rinsed the pen under running warm water, and after a minute or so ink started to flow. Putting it all back together, I tried writing with it. My father had had a Parker 51 given to him in 1960, which he treasured and I remembered fondly. This example skipped and had uneven line widths. I wrote several pages of nonsense on some rag paper and it ultimately began to feel and respond smoothly. It now writes as I expected in ordering it.I ordered another pen to give to my wife for valentine's day. I requested teal blue again. A few days later, a teal 51 in a pristine box arrived. Out of the box it wrote smoothly and beautifully, at least as far as my handwriting allowed. The instruction sheet was in its proper slot in the lower tray and everything was neat and clean.Why the difference? I'm not sure, but I would be prepared for a bit of TLC to get the Parker 51 experience.