The ultimate office pen. Parker 51 or Pilot Vanishing Point

[maxman]

Scorching hot topic here folks. I've used both in the office and I can't decide. The 51 is just about as good as a daily driver as you can get. But the VP is pretty sweet too.

Both easy to use. Both quick to get going. Both handsome in their own ways.

So which is it?
Which one reigns supreme??

 

[brucered]

I currently own the following and and enjoy all of them.

Pilot Capless (steel nib, import Japan version), FINE
Pilot Vanishing Point (18kt, rhodium plated nib), MEDIUM
Parker 51, FINE (I believe, it was NOS from a B&B 2013 Sabbatical PIF).

They are all great. The Paker has the class, prestige and history. The VP/Capless are more modern, more convenient to click and use, cartridges are easy to swap.

I wouldn't want to pick one, but if I had to, the Parker 51 would win for tradition.

 

[silverlifter]

I bought, and then onsold, a Vanishing Point and a Decimo. I found the former too heavy, andd the clip uncomfortable, and the latter an improvement, but both suffer from, for me, a fatal flaw: they dry out way too easily. The retractable capping mechanism just does not provide a good seal. And when you favour iron gall or permanent inks, that is unforgiveable.

The P51 on the other hand, is a simply stellar pen. Ergonomic, practically indestructible, holds a ton of ink (especially compared to the meagre amount the VP/Decimo holds), the collector means it never dries out, and is, for mine, one of the best pens ever made.

 

[brianw]

My answer is a shocker to most people .............a P51

 

[brucered]

I refilled my 51 tonight and wrote a few pages with it.

It's still hard to believe I'm the first person to write with it.

 

[Legion]

A P51, if it lives in your pocket, or you have very trustworthy workmates. I've had too many nice pens go missing from my desk.

 

[FarmerTan]

A P51, if it lives in your pocket, or you have very trustworthy workmates. I've had too many nice pens go missing from my desk.

That stinks.

I refilled my 51 tonight and wrote a few pages with it.

It's still hard to believe I'm the first person to write with it.

View attachment 1407935

I wonder what that price translates to in today's dollar...

 

[silverlifter]

I wonder what that price translates to in today's dollar...

Around $140 - and still a bargain!

 

[FarmerTan]

Around $140 - and still a bargain!

Thank you! And I agree. We in America have become so "throw away" in our attitudes about "things" that "value" is hard to define.

I put WAY too much sentimental value on things, but I connect to people and memories that way.

I've been brane washed into thinking that $140 is "too much" to spend on an "ink pen" but if it takes $65 to fill up my old truck I barely bat an eye!

LOL! We need to return to the Gold Standard!

 

[Tomo]

Not one of the options but the Lamy 2000 would be my pick for that category.

 

[Marco63]

P51 for ever!!!

 

[brucered]

Around $140 - and still a bargain!

And that's for a set, in a case. Mechanical Pencil/Fountain Pen in my case.

 

[BigFoot]

My combo is a Parker 51 and a Schaefer Touch Down. The 51 does win out.

 

[maxman]

Not one of the options but the Lamy 2000 would be my pick for that category.

Truthfully, I totally forgot about it. Another solid choice. I don't have one so maybe that's why.

 

[tankerjohn]

Not one of the options but the Lamy 2000 would be my pick for that category.

Me three! I don't have a P51 or VP, but the 2K pretty fills the low key office pen role in my quiver. I got close to pulling the trigger on a P51 a couple times, but have held off so far waiting for the perfect one. I'm sure VPs are great, just not my jam. Once upon a time, the Lamy 2000 wasn't my jam either and now I love it, so who knows where I'll end up in this crazy hobby.

 

[silverlifter]

The L2K is one of the pens I take to the office every day; the other depends on what I have in my rotation.

It is a stone cold classic. If I had to choose between that and a P51 for a longer writing session, I'd land on the L2K. Only because it is slightly girthier, and I find a larger pen a little more comfortable to write with for extended periods.

But you really can't go wrong with either. And the P51 does come in a pretty amazing array of colour and cap combinations...

 

[AimlessWanderer]

I've never used either pen, but every office I've worked in, has had a magic pen fairy that absconded with my scribbling sticks when my back was turned.

I'd be tempted to take a pen that I wouldn't be upset about if it disappeared. And buy three. One to use, one as a spare, and another that I'd have tweaked to be very leak prone with a vey bright and permanent ink, to bait the pen fairy with should the first one go walkabout.

 

[MyOldKentuckyHome]

I refilled my 51 tonight and wrote a few pages with it.

It's still hard to believe I'm the first person to write with it.

View attachment 1407935

Lovely color!!!

 

[thefenlander]

Not one of the options but the Lamy 2000 would be my pick for that category.

You beat me to it. My P51 looks on forlornly as I fill the Lamy up for another week at work.

 

[Doc4]

Lamy 2000 guys love that pen because they haven't tried the Pilot Heritage Custom 92 ...