Flow problems

[Ray]

Thanks for contributing, Richard. I knew there had to be a fix for this.

 

Ray

[Ray]

I've found a UK source for Richard's shim packs here:

 

http://www.greenweld.co.uk/acatalog/Shop_Sheet_196.html

 

Look on that page for "Assorted brass sheet metal shims (4 - per pack)"

 

Ray

[tjwarren]

Richard,

 

Thanks for that visual! It never occurred to me to check the nib at an angle, though it makes perfect sense once you do it.

 

A picture can be worth a thousand words...

[Maja]

Thanks, Richard!

[KendallJ]

Well, I have been working on several of my pens, which generally work well, but whose flow characteristics were a bit annoying and I have to say that I have a whole new facet to my repair reproitoire.

 

The concept of "gapping" nib tines has explained a whole bunch of problems I had, for instance:

 

I have XF nib that flows incredibly well, BUT it skips: Issue: tines gapped to wide. FIXED!

 

I have a XF nib that is very smooth, slightly flexy, has good flow, but just a bit stingy. Issue: tines gapped too narrow. Now it writes a smooth, and WET XF line!

 

I had several M pens that acted as though they were starved. Issue: gapped too narrow. Now, nice smooth flow, without being too wet as wider nibs are prone to be.

 

The procedure is a bit touchy, but if you get the hang of it, it's pretty amazing what you can do to modify flow characteristics!

 

Thanks again to Richard, and I know why his pens come to us so well tuned!

[Maja]

Good to hear, Kendall!

 

Now, does anyone know if vellum is as good (or almost as good) for adjusting tine spacing....or should I bite the bullet and order some brass shim stock from the USA?

[Nihontochicken]

Richard (a great name!), though I don't have the flow problems of which you describe (well, as far as I know, I don't really WRITE that much with these antiquated anachronisms! ), I must certainly applaud your freely expressed solutions thereof, which could only serve to potentially decrease your possible remediary income. Your willingness to share knowledge that might serve to lessen your business is quite refreshing. Perchance may you consider running for Congress? Altruism is such a rare commodity nowadays. No kidding.

[Dr.Grace]

Kendall sent me a PM -- please use email (richard@richardspens.com) in the future, as for business purposes I need to archive all my correspondence in a way that doesn't rely on someone else's server -- but now that I'm here...

 

First, a point of clarification: According to Shu-Jen Lin, Taccia's steel IPG nibs do not come from Bock or one of its subsidiaries. They are made by an independent manufacturer in what used to be East Germany.

 

I find with many modern pens, whether they have steel or gold nibs, that the manufacturers have patterned their final configuration after what they've seen on vintage pens. This means that the tine tips are touching, and in most cases that's not the way it should be. There needs to be a tiny space, something on the order of 0.0005" to 0.001" (0.013 mm to 0.025 mm). Vintage nibs have their tips touching because even hard rubber will bend with stress and age, and the downward spring of the nib gradually forces the feed down until the tine tips touch.

 

Simply spreading the tines solves probably 75% of this sort of flow problem. To adjust the spread, you need a couple of "feeler gauges." Visit a hobby shop that caters to model railroaders and purchase a packet of K&S brass shim stock. (People not in the U.S.A. may find this more difficult; the Web is your ticket to the hobby shop, and Google is your map. One source is Walthers, a well known model railroading supplier.) The packet costs about $5.00 and contains four sheets: 0.001", 0.002", 0.003", and 0.005". Cut 1" (25 mm) squares from the 0.001" and 0.002" sheets, and smooth the cut edges by burnishing them against a flat hard surface such as glass. I use a dead bright-polished "51" cap to do this.

 

You can spread the tines by very, very carefully prying the side edges of the nib apart while bracing with a finger on the top surface. Check the gap with a 10X loupe. If you went too far, squeeze the edges back together. Ideally, the 0.002" square will require force to get into the gap. The 0.001" square will be held gently by the tips. For a wetter flow, adjust so the 0.001" square just falls free but the 0.002" square still doesn't want to go in easily.

 

After adjusting the gap, be sure to check the aligmnent and adjust it if necessary. Here is the proper way to check alignment:

 

http://www.richardspens.com/images/ref_info/nib_primer/alignment_checking.gif

Great information, Richard!

 

If anyone's interested, here's a link to buy the shim assortment Richard wrote about:

 

K & S brass shim package

 

Don

[johnr55]

I've had starvation with Quink in my Parker 45's; when I switched to Waterman or Pelikan ink it went away.

[sonia_simone]

If I may revive a very useful older posting, I'm having an issue with my Nakaya Falcon, which was modified for flex (Mottishaw). This is a very fine little pen and I've written hundreds of pages with it very happily. But about 200 pages into my current project, it's started to skip just a little. Always on a downstroke. Could the tines have been pushed a little too close together as I've used the pen? Should I try gently flossing them out and increasing that gap to get it working perfectly again?

[JinhaoMaster]

If I may revive a very useful older posting, I'm having an issue with my Nakaya Falcon, which was modified for flex (Mottishaw). This is a very fine little pen and I've written hundreds of pages with it very happily. But about 200 pages into my current project, it's started to skip just a little. Always on a downstroke. Could the tines have been pushed a little too close together as I've used the pen? Should I try gently flossing them out and increasing that gap to get it working perfectly again?

 

 

First, see if the tines are too far or close THEN take appropriate action.

[Dr.Grace]

I'd give it a good cleaning and see if that helps. Maybe the feed is a little clogged.

[dmc]

Thanks for the info Richard.

 

I came to this part of the Forum, to look for some ideas on replacing the Nib on my Parker Latitude. It had suddenly started writting real scratchy after removing some lint from the tines. I must have squeezed the tines together, when I removed the lint. After reading half of your post and just a little effort tinkering, to relieve the pressure on the tines my Parker writes smoothly again.

 

Thanks again...

[GrahamFP]

I see this is an old and faded topic (run out of virtual ink perhaps) but just to relate an experience with a MontBlanc Meisterstuck pen that I gave to my wife many years ago.

 

Some years ago I sent it away for a repair. They came back and said they'd done the repair but now it would need a service. I responded (In my ignorance and poverty) that as they had just replaced the nib why should it need a service? So back it came and guess what? It suffered this 'running out of ink problem, a real pain and my wife just took over the pen she gave me.

 

Well since having just bought a Sheaffer Snorkel, I looked at her Mont Blanc with new eyes. I noticed that the nib was not sitting centrally to the (whatever you call it) feeder assembly. I held the nib side to side and tentatively tried to - and succeeded - twist the nib to a central position. Try that... Problem apparently fixed, well my wife's written two letters - no problem. So just a thought from a definite beginner and amateur in this field

 

BUT - SHE STILL PREFERS the Sheaffer touchdown that I got and serviced yesterday, I knew it! It has a lovely smooth nib and ink flow and - Madam says - "It's more a feminine pen, of course you can keep it if you wish," Goodbye pen, hello E-bay;-)

[Bo Bo Olson]

Being as old fashioned as a Silver Dollar, I'd a couple of snide remarks for the C/C folks...thankfully I read the thread through....and it can and might even happen to me, a Piston and sac' guy.

 

I've read about using shims, but mostly that was scraping a slit, or so I remember.

 

This has been copied to my nib repair file.

Thanks Richard, and thanks everyone else because a few of the problems/solutions ended up in this file too.

 

Perspective, comes from experience, yours or someone else's.

[ershen]

 

I find with many modern pens, whether they have steel or gold nibs, that the manufacturers have patterned their final configuration after what they've seen on vintage pens. This means that the tine tips are touching, and in most cases that's not the way it should be. There needs to be a tiny space, something on the order of 0.0005" to 0.001" (0.013 mm to 0.025 mm). Vintage nibs have their tips touching because even hard rubber will bend with stress and age, and the downward spring of the nib gradually forces the feed down until the tine tips touch.

 

Simply spreading the tines solves probably 75% of this sort of flow problem. To adjust the spread, you need a couple of "feeler gauges." Visit a hobby shop that caters to model railroaders and purchase a packet of K&S brass shim stock. (People not in the U.S.A. may find this more difficult; the Web is your ticket to the hobby shop, and Google is your map. One source is Walthers, a well known model railroading supplier.) The packet costs about $5.00 and contains four sheets: 0.001", 0.002", 0.003", and 0.005". Cut 1" (25 mm) squares from the 0.001" and 0.002" sheets, and smooth the cut edges by burnishing them against a flat hard surface such as glass. I use a dead bright-polished "51" cap to do this.

 

You can spread the tines by very, very carefully prying the side edges of the nib apart while bracing with a finger on the top surface. Check the gap with a 10X loupe. If you went too far, squeeze the edges back together. Ideally, the 0.002" square will require force to get into the gap. The 0.001" square will be held gently by the tips. For a wetter flow, adjust so the 0.001" square just falls free but the 0.002" square still doesn't want to go in easily.

 

 

Wow ... great information Richard!

[thedeacon]

I know this is an old post, but wow did it help me out. After reading Richard's instructions, and shopping all over town for the correct brass metal stock, I managed to turn a dry writer into a pen that is a pleasure to use. Since it was my first nib adjustment I did make sure to use a pen with an easily replaced nib (Monteverde Invictus). With a little patience, determination and effort I managed to achieve my first nib adjustment. Yet again, FPN saves the day!

[georges zaslavsky]

I did one of my first nib adjustment on a 1979 MB 149 which had a not so good ink flow almost 6 years ago, now it is a real pleasure to write with

Edited May 8, 2013 by georges zaslavsky

[kmeredith923]

Question: how does one accomplish these adjustments with hooded nib pens like the Hero 907 and it's ilk. It was purchased before I was educated on the difference between Asian nib sizes compared to US/European sizes. I was silly and bought an EF that's like trying to write with a darning needle and stops flowing if you put it down for more than 37 seconds and then takes at least 2 minutes using every contortion I can think of to get it to write again. (Had I realized how fine that nib was I'd never have wasted my Diamine Eau de Nil on it since it just looks black. Medium nibs or bust from here on out!)