51’47 Refurb the Teardown

The pens I typically refurbish do not require special skills or tools, then along came the 1947 Parker 51. Refurbishing this pen is not overly difficult; however, it is not possible without the proper tools. As this restoration is a very technical tear down and build-up process, this post will be decided into two parts.

In the 1930s, Parker developed their proprietary vacumatic filling system. Instead of an ink sac, the barrel is the ink reservoir. A rubber diaphragm is installed between the reservoir and a spring-loaded pump which, when depressed, forces air out of the reservoir creating a vacuum that draws ink into the reservoir.

Disassembly

Remove the hood, which is cemented in place with a heat-sensitive sealant. Failure to soften the sealant first and the use of section pliers will not end well. With the hood safely removed, the collector is friction fit in the barrel and may be easily removed by twisting the collector loose from the barrel. The feed and nib are removed from the collector by a simple twist and pull.

Parker began dating nibs in 1943ish, and most will have the tipping material also engraved on the nib. The earliest 1943 nibs will have OS-PL, which stands for Osmiridium Plathenium, changed later in the same year to RU-PL, which stands for Ruthinium Plathenium. Sometime in 1947, the designation was changed to just RU.

Using a sheet of paper (heavier weight) I slide it through each fin of the collector removing old ink. The nib and feed were cleaned with a Sunshine cloth. The capillary channel on the feed was cleaned using a dental pick. The breather tube is yellowed, brittle, and fouled by dried ink.

Screw the threads of the filling unit (where the plunger is) into the removal tool/wrench (I use the Pen Tools Vacumatic tool). Tighten the knurled knob, and depress the plunger before attempting to remove the threaded collar. I applied heat to the barrel at the wrench, now grasp the wrench securely in my right hand and grip the pen barrel with a rubber pad (I use a bicycle inner tube) in my right hand, and twist in a clockwise direction until the filler unit is free of the barrel.

Now that the filler unit has been unscrewed from the barrel, the remainder of the unit may be pulled straight out. Sometimes the unit may be stuck. In which case you should use a “pump ejector.” If a pump ejector is used, be super careful and avoid shattering the pellet pocket. Upon removal, it became apparent that the diaphragm was no longer seated in the unit.

The filler unit was covered with residual ink, shellac, and grime. Making use of a Sunshine cloth, a variety of dental picks, and nylon brushes the unit was cleaned. As a final step, the unit was placed in an ultrasonic in solution of water and ammonia. A similar effort was employed to clean the threads inside the barrel.

Special Tools

D7 BRASS VACUMATIC TOOL. This unit is made of brass. There are 2 sizes of threads used on Vacumatics and 51s, covering Debs, Standards (both the same thread), and Oversized / Maximas. This tool will fit both thread sizes for all three pen sizes.

D15 VACUMATIC PELLET PUSHER. Use this to re-install a removed/damaged Vacumatic diaphragm on Parker Vacs and Vac 51s.

Reference Material

• Restorer’s Art: Breaking Down a Parker Vacumatic Filler Unit
• Parker Sheaffer: Parker Service Manual
• Parker Pens: Date Code Key
• Pen Tooling: Parker Body and Filler Tools

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