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Showing results for tags 'reduce tine gap'.
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Hi all, I recently bought a used Parker Urban that was made in 2011 (i.e. it's a 1st series Urban). It has a 'Fine' nib that hard-starts all the time and writes like a broad nib that has been stubbed. By looking at its nib through a loupe I have found that the nib has not been re-ground poorly, but that it does have an enlarged gap between its tines. So, I would like to reduce the gap between its tines. Narrow it. Decrease the size of the gap. Ideally, as evenly as possible all along the slit. And I have no idea about how to try to do that. The feed is only a friction fit, and I have managed to pull the nib & feed out of the grip section. Now I need to know how to go about trying to get the nib's tines closer together. The nib is the same stainless steel nib that Parker puts on the Parker Vector (and put in the old series of Jotter). It is (unlike, say, the Z50 nib on a LAMY Safari) curved, so that it wraps around the feed. Because the nib is steel, trying to squeeze the tines together with my fingers has no effect whatever on the nib (although it does hurt my fingers). I was just about to try to squeeze them together with a pair of narrow-nosed pliers, but then I remembered that I am a ham-fisted and short-tempered klutz, and decided that the sensible thing to do is to ask all y'all for some advice before attempting this delicate operation. So, do any of you have any 'top tips' for how to go about attempting this? Are there any things along the lines of "DON'T try to do 'x'..." that I need to know? Do I need to leave the nib wrapped around the feed whilst futzing with it? Or should I take it off, so that I don't break any of the plastic feed-comb's 'fins' off? Should I wrap e.g. rubber bands around the jaws of the pliers? SHOULD I just cross my fingers, grit my teeth, and try to squeeze the tines together V-E-R-Y G-E-N-T-L-Y? My thanks to you in advance for your answers. Cheers, M.