Proper Filling Techniques?

[Bo Bo Olson]

Higgins non-waterproof drawing ink. I was told it was the correct type of ink for a fountain pen by the owner of an art supplies store.

 

You got lucky I think.

 

A problem is many folks don't know a thing about fountain pens.

 

 

I think those MB bottles have only when made, and lot number; not use before you bought them....at least not in Germany.

 

 

OK there are two basic types of inks, two toned shading inks (mostly non-waterproof, and mono-tone vivid supersaturated inks (mostly waterproof). The latter must be cleaned out of your fountain pen more often than the former. The supersaturated inks are 'high' maintenance inks....if you clean out your pen every three weeks they should be just fine.

 

You need eventually both types of inks.

 

M is medium and don't listen to everyone here being disrespectful of M.

 

MB Toffee is a nice brown shading ink.

With Fine nib I got light with dark trails.

With Medium I got 50-50. Breaking the anti-M prejudice I picked up on this com.

Broad was dark with light trails.

 

Waterman South Sea Blue is a very nice shading ink, a vivid blue-turquoise.

 

You can buy smoothed Pelikan steel nibs from Richard Binder's site for @ $25 so you can have a Fine and a Broad nib also. Besides a good pen that is an advantage of Pelikan pens, that you can easily change your nib, to suit what style you wish to write in.

 

First you should go there.... www.richardspens.com/ ... in it is the basics of fountain pens; nibs, filling systems and good advice on inks. 93% of all I know comes from there. I still go back to review.

 

 

Writing is 1/3 nib width and flex, 1/3 paper and 1/3 ink in that sequence.

The right nib and paper can make an ink really dance the tango.

The wrong nib and paper can make an ink look drab and worthless.

 

A good to better paper costs only a couple cans of coke or starbucks coffee more than poor regular copy paper. Best paper is for later, like semi-flex nibs.

 

There are free templates that allow you to put wide, medium or narrow lines on your paper as you feel the need.

 

 

Remember LA was not built in a day.

 

Take your time, and don't rush off to buy pretty pens until you understand a bit about nibs.

 

Chase the nib, not the make and model. A good nib will have a good pen attached to it; a grand nib a grand pen.

You write with the nib, not the bling.

 

Believe it or not, fountain pens are lots of fun....other wise there would not be so many pen nuts enjoying pens, inks and papers.

Welcome to the nut house, where the nuts are in charge.

[Guest 0micron]

Mineral spirits dissolve shellac ( i think ). They've never dissolved my pens... but maybe yours : /

[txinsk]

Mineral spirits dissolve shellac ( i think ). They've never dissolved my pens... but maybe yours : /

 

I would try an ammonia-based cleaner first. There should be no need for something like mineral spirits. The ink is either water based or alcohol based and a standard cleaner should work fine. The OP has not seen the pen seize up yet so this is easily recoverable. The big worry is if the ink dries in the feed, that would be a real pain.

 

Rick

[Weiss.ar]

I am now selling this pen. The nuances of ink and nib care have made me realize that this a responsibility i do not care for. In 48 hours i have gone through 2 types of inks and haven't been able to find a single damn website that just says "good for fountain pens, non waterproof, black ink".

 

I thought this would be fun, but it isn't. sorry.

[Bo Bo Olson]

Sorry, but didn't you read Waterman, Pelikan inks were recommended and they can be found any where. And on line.

Pelikan Black is very good.

 

Aurora black is even a tad better. It also costs a bit more.

Edited August 14, 2011 by Bo Bo Olson

[Scrawler]

Higgins non-waterproof drawing ink. I was told it was the correct type of ink for a fountain pen by the owner of an art supplies store.

NO NO. I believe Higgins is for dip pens only. If it dries in your pen, it will be almost impossible to clean out.

[thequinox]

I'm not a Pelikan expert, but I believe you have a marble green Pelikan M200.

[Guest 0micron]

I am now selling this pen. The nuances of ink and nib care have made me realize that this a responsibility i do not care for. In 48 hours i have gone through 2 types of inks and haven't been able to find a single damn website that just says "good for fountain pens, non waterproof, black ink".

 

I thought this would be fun, but it isn't. sorry.

 

 

I used higgins black magic in a FP with no problems. This sort of thing is like smoking. One time will not give you lung cancer.

this is ink for FPs

[Weiss.ar]

I appreciate all of the help but I've been to every site you've shown me and I've looked for (googled, amazon.com, and every possible combination I can think of) to find something I want. This experience is more frustrating than Civil Procedure or Property. I don't have the time or money to find these special inks anymore. I thought I would find something in 3 days and I haven't.

 

I just don't want to spend another 10$ on ink and 5$ on shipping to find out that I got something that's going to harm the pen or that writes with the precision of a 2 inch paint brush. Someone else who has more patience than me can enjoy my pen (and I wonder if this is the reason why you can't find fountain pens or fountain pen supplies in local stores - it's time consuming and can be a headache).

 

Thanks for all of your kindness and your attempts to help though. I'm glad you seem to know what you're doing.

 

Cheers.

[Sleepy]

I am now selling this pen. The nuances of ink and nib care have made me realize that this a responsibility i do not care for. In 48 hours i have gone through 2 types of inks and haven't been able to find a single damn website that just says "good for fountain pens, non waterproof, black ink".

 

I thought this would be fun, but it isn't. sorry.

 

Plenty of people have recommended black fountain pen inks. It's simple: buy ink, put in pen. And relax.

[Weiss.ar]

I am now selling this pen. The nuances of ink and nib care have made me realize that this a responsibility i do not care for. In 48 hours i have gone through 2 types of inks and haven't been able to find a single damn website that just says "good for fountain pens, non waterproof, black ink".

 

I thought this would be fun, but it isn't. sorry.

 

Plenty of people have recommended black fountain pen inks. It's simple: buy ink, put in pen. And relax.

 

I wish it were that simple. Probably the least user-friendly websites I've ever been to are fountain pen ink websites. For example:

http://waterman.com/en/style/pens/inks

this website doesn't tell you prices, or whether the ink is non-water proof or not. Further, you presuppose that I am able to find these inks in any of the stores near where I live. I assure you, I can't.

 

I do appreciate the help though. You all are very patient and kind. I just have no clue how you learned what you did. I don't have the time or money right now to figure out what a bullet proof ink is or figure out whether the ink i'm buying will soak up the page and make all my letters look like blobs, or just be bad for the pen.

[Sleepy]

I am now selling this pen. The nuances of ink and nib care have made me realize that this a responsibility i do not care for. In 48 hours i have gone through 2 types of inks and haven't been able to find a single damn website that just says "good for fountain pens, non waterproof, black ink".

 

I thought this would be fun, but it isn't. sorry.

 

Plenty of people have recommended black fountain pen inks. It's simple: buy ink, put in pen. And relax.

 

I wish it were that simple. Probably the least user-friendly websites I've ever been to are fountain pen ink websites. For example:

http://waterman.com/en/style/pens/inks

this website doesn't tell you prices, or whether the ink is non-water proof or not. Further, you presuppose that I am able to find these inks in any of the stores near where I live. I assure you, I can't.

 

I do appreciate the help though. You all are very patient and kind. I just have no clue how you learned what you did. I don't have the time or money right now to figure out what a bullet proof ink is or figure out whether the ink i'm buying will soak up the page and make all my letters look like blobs, or just be bad for the pen.

 

Ok, then quick and simple answers to these problems. Admittedly it can take a little time to build up knowledge of these things, but that's the same with anything new. Don't go to manufacturers websites for information, they're for marketing. If you go here: Google FPN Search you can search google for topics on this forum. That's the best place for information.

 

Not many stores hold fountain pen ink, that is correct. I note in another thread however that you have Quink Black. That is a fine black ink (not what many consider to be the best black ink, but just fine to start with). Stick Quink Black in your Pelikan and get writing. In the other thread you mention that it flows quite heavily. This is likely a function of the ink (fairly wet), the nib (lays down a lot of ink) and the paper ((bleep) paper lets the ink 'feather', or really soak into the page; you do need decent paper to get the best out of a fountain pen).

 

The Quink you have is not bad for the pen, so you are doing no harm putting it in your Pelikan and writing with it; problem one solved.

 

Bulletproof ink is just ink that won't wash off with water, alcohol, bleach etc. These are generally sold by Noodler's Ink company but you don't need to worry about that for now, just enjoy your Pelikan with its diet of Quink.

Edited August 14, 2011 by Sleepy

[Weiss.ar]

I really appreciate your response, Sleepy, and I realize that all of you are very knowledgeable and really enjoy the nuances of a nib, paper, and ink. I imagine you started off knowing very little but managed to find some success after a few tries and maybe a few bucks.

 

I'm just disappointed that this process requires so much minutia, and that even after following advice on this board and buying a bottle of Quink, the results were even worse than when I was using an ink that was actually bad for the pen itself.

 

I don't deny that fountain pens are beautiful to look at, and I'm sure with the right paper and ink and nib you can have a lovely writing experience. But I'm 0 for 2 and on a budget.

 

Thanks for your help and I hope you enjoy using your pens and inks and papers.

 

Cheers.

[raging.dragon]

Then, there are probably plenty of people here that would be interested in buying your pen.

[thequinox]

The reason you have a fine writing instrument is because it is above a thirty cent BIC. If you want a thirty cent BIC then the best of luck to you. Everyone here can have you up and using that pen in under ten minutes, but like everything good in the world, it will take a few minutes to figure out.

 

I think you should sleep on it and decide what you want to do tomorrow. You have a GREAT pen there, worth about a hundred dollars. It will last you forever and will be a joy to write with. You can get Parker Quink in any Staples, but if you want to get into inks and experiment go to GouletPens.com and order some samples or a bottle of Waterman like everyone has said.

 

I really hope you give it a second chance, but if you're really that demanding of instant satisfaction than no luxury item of merit will likely appeal to you.

Edited August 14, 2011 by thequinox

[Bo Bo Olson]

LA was not built in a day.

 

The first time I had sour, dirty tasting, to warm Bordeaux. I was very disappointed in I had just bought 15 bottles of the c*rap.

 

May I recommend normal nice Bordeaux at 12 degrees centigrade....and it was supposed to be tart, and earthy tasting....and had all sorts of under tastes; I had to learn about.

The wine was good I just didn't have any experience with other than Beaujolais, a friendly happy little wine. A great little 'ball point' under wines.

 

When you clean and empty your pen for the final time, set it in a cup wrapped a paper towel for a day, so you can sell the pen clean.

 

Ball point pens, roller ball, and gel pens are boring, there are not all sorts of nibs and inks and papers. We have fun, that is why we are here.

 

You complained it wrote like a paint brush. Yep, gel pens are I read....never used one ... never will, can some times be very narrow. You can buy a very narrow nib for that Pelikan, in the nib screws out, easy.

 

A ream of good to better paper costs two cans of coke or cups of coffee more than regular 'poorer' 80 gs/m copy paper. You should have 90 gs/m paper as a starter.

 

I suggest seeing this pen sat so long, that you keep it another few months and read some before you make permanent decisions.

 

It will be permanent. You will never again own a fountain pen.

You will take one 'bad' experience that you have over built and wallow in it.

 

I'd send you to Richard Binder's site, but it would be a waste of your time to learn any thing.

Edited August 14, 2011 by Bo Bo Olson

[liapuyat]

I'm sorry, but you've had people mention perfectly good brands of ink - what did you not find in your online search? There is a fountain pen ink forum, Inky Thoughts, in FPN, they can also help you. It is worth the trouble, believe me

[OcalaFlGuy]

You can lead the horse to the Noodler's but you can make him like FPs....

 

 

At least we won't have another nOOb Kamikaze Fleabayer outbidding us.

 

 

OP, Try anything with a Uniball refill in it, I'm sure you'll be just fine with that.

 

Bruce in Ocala, FL-he probably would have ended up liking all the pens *I* wanna buy anyway.

[Shangas]

If he can't be persuaded by a forum full of nutcases like us, I don't think anything will.

 

Personally, I don't understand what his hesitancy is about.

[FLJeepGuy]

OK... one last go at it here...

 

You have what many consider to be a top quality fountain pen that has the potential to serve you for many years to come. You're new to the fountain pen world and used an ink that's not friendly to fountain pens. No harm, you got it cleaned out quickly enough that it didn't have time to set up and clog the works. Before totally giving up, you really should give the pen a chance with the right ink.

 

You said you want a nice black and that you're having a hard time finding a store that carries suitable inks so I would suggest trying the following links. You should be able to get a bottle for very little money and in the case of Nordic, minimal or no shipping.

 

Goulet Pen Company Swabs of Black Inks - Look for Waterman, Diamine, and Pelikan as good starting points.

Nordic Pen Imports - Check both Diamine and Rohrer & Klingner

 

You've also mentioned that the pen puts down too much ink and/or to thick of a line. This is controlled mostly by the nib. Check the nibs for a marking like F, M, B, or other designation. It sounds like you would be happier with a fine (F) nib. Check yours and see what it says. Luckily Pelikan nibs are easily swapped out (albeit for a cost), but it's not the end of the world and you might find someone on here who would swap with you.

 

Yes, fountain pens do require more work to use than other types of writing instruments, but ultimately they can be much more rewarding. If ultimately you decide it's too much work and it's frustrating you, then maybe fountain pens really aren't your thing. You'll get a nice price for that Pelikan if you do decide to sell it. I'd certainly recommend giving it a chance before giving up.

Edited August 14, 2011 by FLJeepGuy