A first year Parker 51 Special with teal barrel and hood and polished steel cap with black cap jewel and the date code for 3Q 1950.
The 51 Special was introduced in 2Q’1950 to provide a lower price point for the 51 range, between the $5 21 and the $13.50 standard 51. It used the Parker 21 filler, a simpler version of the aerometric filler but still with the resilient Pli-glass reservoir and an Octanium nib. The Octanium nib was the same design as the standard 51’s 14K gold nib but cheaper and tougher. Parker were wary of the Special taking sales from the standard 51 but in fact sales of both increased.
This teal Special is in excellent condition, the date code on the barrel feint but just legible, the polished cap in fine condition. The Octanium nib is a smooth fine point writer and the filler works perfectly.
The 51 Specials are not as common as the standard 51 (especially in Europe as the Special was only made in the US I believe) and this is a fine example at a fine price.


PRICE: £45 ($60, €56) plus postage:
POSTAGE:
UK Tracked 48: £3.39
EU tracked airmail: £9 (€11)
US tracked airmail: £11 ($15)
Asia tracked airmail: £11
PAYMENT: PayPal please to barrie51@icloud.com