Which Shellac Is Good For Pen Repair?

[Thinkpad]

I have this vintage Sheaffer pen and the grip section has come loose from the body.

I cleared some greenish dust/substance. I was hoping to repair this myself with some shellac. (right?)

 

In my area I noticed two shellac brands :

 

"Liquid Shellac" by Sennelier

"Shellac Varnish" by Maimeri.

 

Anyone know if these will be good or bad for reparing pens?

Are there differences between various shellacs? Because the Sennelier is also almost twice as expensive...

 

Thanks all

 

 

I've attached some pics of the bottles:

[Ron Z]

If they list them, look at the ingredients. Shellac is used primarily as a furniture finish, so the "varnish" may apply, though not the words that we use here in the US. Whatever you use should have 1]shellac and 2] alcohol, either ethanol, or isopropanol as as the solvent. It may not may not say "denatured alcohol".

 

If it has oils or other stuff in it, you don't want to use it.

[teej47]

It looks like you're shopping in an art supply store (I'm familiar with Sennelier - love their pastels - and judging by the label of the other it's marketed to those who apply gold leaf). Since shellac is first and foremost a classic wood finish, you may find a better deal where those products are sold. I've no idea if you have hardware stores in Belgium, but it would be a starting point here. Even the vastly larger quantity that you'd have to get (far more than necessary) might be cheaper than the more convenient sized packaging at an art supply shop. I got mine online.

 

Tim

[Mephistosnib]

I am always reticent to respond on repair issues being more of a newbie however I do know my shellacs. I've been doing restoration and preservation work on vintage bagpipes for years. One of the best, but it's a bit of hassle to prepare, is Kusmi Buttonlac. I like the amber because it's the clearest. I get mine from the the shellacshack.com. It comes in large buttons or lozenges and they need ground up before they can be dissolved in alcohol. Buy a cheap coffee grinder, one that you will NOT be using for coffee or anything else, and you can grind it down in that. Then it's mixed with alcohol to produce the end product. Shellac is essentially the excreted goo by the female lac bug, stick lac it is called. Then they strain out the bark, bits of bugs, etc., and make buttons out of it. But the Kusmi is some of the best out there used by museums for restoration and conservation work on furniture, etc.. The Shellacshack.com offers good directions as well. However, I'm sure there are probably on-line dealers in Europe that will be cheaper in terms of postage. The best thing about the Kusmi Buttons is that there are no additives or petroleum product in it, just good old unadulterated lac bug poop. As far as the applications of Shellac with pens are though, I'll leave that up to the experts here.

[Possum Hill]

I am always reticent to respond on repair issues being more of a newbie however I do know my shellacs. I've been doing restoration and preservation work on vintage bagpipes for years.

Is there no escape? I thought I'd finally found a forum free of vintage bagpipe restorers and here one is again.

 

 

Sorry, but we have such an interesting group of people here and I thought it required comment.

[gmberg]

Ask Francis Goosens. He goes under the name "fountainbel" on this list. He makes and repairs pens, AND HE LIVES IN BELGIUM. He would no doubt recognize your two bottles and know exactly what kind you kind and where to get it.

Gerry Berg

[Mephistosnib]

I am always reticent to respond on repair issues being more of a newbie however I do know my shellacs. I've been doing restoration and preservation work on vintage bagpipes for years.

Is there no escape? I thought I'd finally found a forum free of vintage bagpipe restorers and here one is again.

 

 

Sorry, but we have such an interesting group of people here and I thought it required comment.

Hard to keep the infernal instrument and it's conservators silent for long, ah nothing is sacred is it. BTW, How can you tell when a bagpipe has made the perfect pitch? Answer: when it lands in the deep end of the lake

[Possum Hill]

I am always reticent to respond on repair issues being more of a newbie however I do know my shellacs. I've been doing restoration and preservation work on vintage bagpipes for years.

Is there no escape? I thought I'd finally found a forum free of vintage bagpipe restorers and here one is again.

 

 

Sorry, but we have such an interesting group of people here and I thought it required comment.

Hard to keep the infernal instrument and it's conservators silent for long, ah nothing is sacred is it. BTW, How can you tell when a bagpipe has made the perfect pitch? Answer: when it lands in the deep end of the lake

My knowledge of bagpipes is rudimentary on my best day, but I have to ask -- how did you get into bagpipe conservation? Are you putting them into playable condition or just preserving for display?

 

If you're working with vintage instruments, I suppose they use a "natural" rather than synthetic air sack or whatever it's called. I've heard they're a little unpleasant.

 

Anyway, we're always glad to hear from members with interesting experience. Watch out for the kilted members; they're a little strange.

Edited September 16, 2010 by Possum Hill

[bbs]

Someone who very kindly restuck a section for me with shellac the other day told me that in a last resort, clear nail varnish would do the trick ....

[Ron Z]

Someone who very kindly restuck a section for me with shellac the other day told me that in a last resort, clear nail varnish would do the trick ....

 

No.

 

There's another thread currently running about someone who can't get a section off of a 51 because (they suspect) nail polish was used. On a pen that has a celluloid barrel and celluloid section (like many Sheaffers) the acetone in nail polish, not to mention the celluloid sometimes used, will act as a rather effective solvent WELD. That will give you a rather permanently "stuck."

[Mephistosnib]

I am always reticent to respond on repair issues being more of a newbie however I do know my shellacs. I've been doing restoration and preservation work on vintage bagpipes for years.

Is there no escape? I thought I'd finally found a forum free of vintage bagpipe restorers and here one is again.

 

 

Sorry, but we have such an interesting group of people here and I thought it required comment.

Hard to keep the infernal instrument and it's conservators silent for long, ah nothing is sacred is it. BTW, How can you tell when a bagpipe has made the perfect pitch? Answer: when it lands in the deep end of the lake

My knowledge of bagpipes is rudimentary on my best day, but I have to ask -- how did you get into bagpipe conservation? Are you putting them into playable condition or just preserving for display?

 

If you're working with vintage instruments, I suppose they use a "natural" rather than synthetic air sack or whatever it's called. I've heard they're a little unpleasant.

 

Anyway, we're always glad to hear from members with interesting experience. Watch out for the kilted members; they're a little strange.

The restoration work just came out of maintenance issues. The more you play the more you need to be able to work on them. Basically the same thing you hear from folks that ride motorcycles I suppose. Old Pipes are typically made out of Blackwood (african Mpingo) Ebony, and cocus--now fairly rare out of Brazil. Pipes are meant to be played so I would only work on them for that purpose. No real need for conservation for display unless it was a rare piece for a museum. The bags, simply called, are made out of cow-hide and sheepskin, as well as goretex now. It's all a personal preference as the bag has little effect on the sound. The new bags, leather and synthetic come with zippers, which I prefer as it's easier to keep the thriving communities of bacteria at bay a little easier. All--in-all a wonderfully strange and complex instrument to maintain and manage let alone play. The playing is the fun part. The maintenance bit can get tedious and labor intensive at times. You either love 'em or hate 'em, no real midland on bagpipes.

[teej47]

Watch out for the kilted members; they're a little strange.

 

That's because a man in a kilt is a man and a half.

 

Tim

[SteelCity]

Jo (my wife) and I laughed our way all through this string. Only on FPN...

[wekiva98]

I feel the need to step in. A friction-fit section of the sort found on many Sheaffers should NOT be glued in with something like shellac. Some people have suggested that shellac or nail polish could be used to build up the diameter of the section so it fits better -- nothing more. The idea is to let the material dry before you reinsert the section. I have never tried this and am not recommending it. I have tried wrapping a little teflon tape around the section to improve the fit and it worked adequately. Some people use a strip of paper. Whatever you do, just don't glue the thing together....

[eckiethump]

.

 

 

If you're working with vintage instruments, I suppose they use a "natural" rather than synthetic air sack or whatever it's called. I've heard they're a little unpleasant.

 

Anyway, we're always glad to hear from members with interesting experience. Watch out for the kilted members; they're a little strange.

 

I'll second that

et

Edited September 25, 2010 by eckiethump

[fpnnm]

This question is sort-of on topic: Should pen sac cement be from "with-natural-wax-left-in" shellac or from dewaxed shellac? Thank you in advance for any help with this question.

Edited September 30, 2010 by fpnnm

[Ron Z]

This question is sort-of on topic: Should pen sac cement be from "with-natural-wax-left-in" shellac or from dewaxed shellac? Thank you in advance for any help with this question.

 

I don't think that it matters. Zinsser is not dewaxed (it's not clear, but is slightly cloudy). Sheaffer was using it, and it's what I've used for 20 years.

[fpnnm]

Thanks again, Mr. Z, for your reply.

[eli]

What about the cut of the shellac? I just mixed a fresh stock of 3 pound cut from de-waxed flakes and have a dozen or so sacs to replace, but I'm not sure if this is too great a strength for pen work. What do you recommend?

 

Eli