What's Going On In This Pen? (Or, How Do You Tell Mold And Such From Dried Ink?)

[F104]

I am not sure what's going on with this TWSBI 580. I think it's nib creep and dried out ink. It seems to me that if there were mold or some other biological evil in the pen, there would be something a little more...weird...looking in there, and not just ink-colored clumps. But, with the expertise available here, I thought I'd share a few pics and ask guidance before I leap into a cleaning process.

 

The pics:

 

 

The ink has been in there for a while, but this began when it had only been a couple of weeks since I filled the pen. The ink is Organics Studio Edgar Allan Poe, an ink that had previously flowed poorly and dried quickly in a couple of other pens (if memory serves, at least in both a Platinum Preppy and a Platinum Cool), but was cleaned out much more quickly from those pens. The remainder of the bottle still looks okay, or like a translucent red fluid, anyway: no clumps, strings or anything like that. And the only change I've seen in the pen over time is a decrease in the fluid volume and increase in the size of the red globs adhering to the walls of the reservoir. The nib has not changed.

 

So, does anyone care to venture a diagnosis? Tips for dealing with either situation (bio-contamination or really bad pen maintenance)?

 

Thanks for your attention. (And apologies for my camera work.)

[kkshadow]

I see the same kind of thing in my TWSBI Vac700, and several people have commented on it. If you shake the pen and the clumps dissolve, I would not worry about it. I think it's something about the way the surface tension of the ink reacts with the plastic used in the clear TWSBI's. I am sure that's not technically correct, but something like that.

 

I have not used the Edgar Allen Poe ink, but the Organics Studios inks that I do have seem to be very well behaved, and wet to the point that I think there's a lubricant in the formula. The closest I have to your ink is Hg (Mercury) which is a bright red, but have not used it in my TWSBI yet.

 

Ken

 

Edited to add: The only experience I've had with mold is that the ink smells bad. Like really bad. And there were large clots in the bottle.

Edited November 24, 2014 by kkshadow

[swanjun]

Just looks like nib creep/dried ink to me. If nothing fuzzy is sprouting from your nib by now, I wouldn't think it would be mold.

[whereisandy]

I haven't had good experiences using Organics Studio reds. I have Mercury and Edgar Allen Poe and they both seem to leave a residue on my nibs and gum up my feeds with similar gunk. I diluted the Mercury with distilled water and that made it a little bit better. I haven't revisited Poe.

[Cordovian]

Zombie virus?

[yogalarva]

I have had mixed experience with OS Poe. The sample I had of it seemed a bit... chunky, in that there was definitely particulate that had come out of suspension. I would advise cleaning your pen thoroughly and perhaps filling it via a syringe for a bit just to be sure.

[F104]

I see the same kind of thing in my TWSBI Vac700, and several people have commented on it. If you shake the pen and the clumps dissolve, I would not worry about it. I think it's something about the way the surface tension of the ink reacts with the plastic used in the clear TWSBI's. I am sure that's not technically correct, but something like that.

 

I have not used the Edgar Allen Poe ink, but the Organics Studios inks that I do have seem to be very well behaved, and wet to the point that I think there's a lubricant in the formula. The closest I have to your ink is Hg (Mercury) which is a bright red, but have not used it in my TWSBI yet.

 

Ken

 

Edited to add: The only experience I've had with mold is that the ink smells bad. Like really bad. And there were large clots in the bottle.

 

Interesting thought. I have a another 580, and it's never done anything like this--or course, I never put the old Edgar Allan Poe in it, either. And the Platinums I put it in never did this--but then, I cleaned them out a lot more quickly once they started to dry up.

 

Just looks like nib creep/dried ink to me. If nothing fuzzy is sprouting from your nib by now, I wouldn't think it would be mold.

 

That's been the explanation I've been leaning toward as I've watched and waited. It just doesn't seem to be behaving biologically. But, I'm not the most experienced user, so I figured I could be wrong.

 

I haven't had good experiences using Organics Studio reds. I have Mercury and Edgar Allen Poe and they both seem to leave a residue on my nibs and gum up my feeds with similar gunk. I diluted the Mercury with distilled water and that made it a little bit better. I haven't revisited Poe.

 

The Poe was my one and only Organics Studio ink, and the troubles I had with it were the reason it was my one and only.

 

Zombie virus?

 

That'd be about my luck. Now, which is it for zombies? Stakes for vampires; silver bullets for werewolves; exorcism for ghosts and demons; those things from LV-426 have to be nuked from orbit... --Brain trauma! Right, brain trauma does in a zombie. Does that mean I need to whack the nib with a hammer...? At least on a TWSBI they're replaceable.

 

I have had mixed experience with OS Poe. The sample I had of it seemed a bit... chunky, in that there was definitely particulate that had come out of suspension. I would advise cleaning your pen thoroughly and perhaps filling it via a syringe for a bit just to be sure.

 

Yep, that's my next step, the thorough cleaning. I've been studying the disassembly videos and planning how to do it up right. Will definitely isolate it from all inks, likely filling it from a dedicated vial, with the vial filled by syringe, or single use pipette, and the vial cleaned between fillings.

 

Thanks to one and all for taking the time to read and reply. Your insights are appreciated.