Vintage Pens: Parker 61

We consider the Parker 61 to be one of the last great filling system innovations. Parker called it the capillary filler. It used the same physics trees use to draw water hundreds of feet up to their highest branches. Designed to beat the Sheaffer Snorkel in the race to have the most mess-free fountain pen, all you did was dunk the Teflon-coated barrel of the filler in a bottle of ink for 30 seconds. It filled without any mechanical action. The Teflon coating intended to prevent the filler from needing any wiping. Thinner than the older Parker 51, the Parker 61 was released in 1956. Those very first pens had the "First Edition" shield attached to their caps, as this pen has. Parker called the color Vista Blue Turquoise. It is very handsome and very 1950s. We flushed this vintage pen as best we could. It still has a trace of black ink in it. The one problem with these pens is that they are not easy to change colors in. If you decide to write with it, your best bet for peak performance is the pick either Waterman black or Waterman blue ink and stick with it in this pen. Never ever uses shimmer or sheening inks in a Parker 61. We find the 14k gold to be an extra-fine that skips a lot. Not a great writer. However, it is a pen in close to excellent condition. No cracks. No problems with the plastic. The lustraloy cap has a few marks but no dents or deep scratches. 13.9cm capped.