Bought My First Vintage: Mb 442

[surge]

Hi all,

I wouldn't say I am new to the world of fountain pens. The time and place where I grew up, writing with a fountain pen was mandatory at school. Then the internet came and through my university days, not just fountain pens, but writing itself became sort of obsolete (a little story-telling exaggeration ).

I decided a year or so back that I would spend more time writing at least for work and bought a Starwalker Roller. Of course, I was looking for convenience with some pleasure of 'wet' ink on paper. Some days ago I decided it might be time to return to the fountain pen again. That led me to reading the forums here for some days now and to this first post. Of course, there is something to share as well.

 

And that is the MB 442 I bought on an auction site. Price-wise I suppose it wasn't cheap at 130 USD, but I am quite pleased with it, as overall appearance is quite good. Here are some of the seller's pictures

 

http://i1088.photobucket.com/albums/i340/surge78/MB%20442/164119208_0723cfc8-d539-437c-8501-ce0ca400f007_zps1377616b.jpg

 

http://i1088.photobucket.com/albums/i340/surge78/MB%20442/164119208_8aa2511a-0cba-4f55-8a1b-bbbdeb09b5d3_zps840cb185.jpg

 

http://i1088.photobucket.com/albums/i340/surge78/MB%20442/164119208_222e0a26-0d20-4069-b12f-2cb746ad50cf_zpsb5baf4f1.jpg

 

Of course with online auction purchases, you don't know what state it will be in when it arrives. It came today and this is what is happening as I write

 

http://i1088.photobucket.com/albums/i340/surge78/MB%20442/IMG_1640_zps00111a11.jpg

 

 

http://i1088.photobucket.com/albums/i340/surge78/MB%20442/IMG_1642_zps386af025.jpg

 

I have been flushing the pen for quite some time now waiting for the water to go clear. There was quite a lot of dried up ink. Could have bottled the stuff and sold it

 

Anyway, onto some questions I had:

 

1. I have not been able to find much info on the 442 on the intra-web. Are there some interesting bits to know or is it just your run of the mill old MB pen?

 

2. What else would you recommend I do to when it comes to cleaning the pen for optimal function? I haven't filled it with ink to see how it writes as it is still taking a bath. Is there some sort of checklist that you would follow?

 

3. is there something I can do to improve the look of the pen cosmetically? It still has some signs of age. I use Cape Cod on my watches and thought it might remove some of the light scratches on the plastic body and cap.

 

4. How "strongly" would you recommend that I send it to a pen guy for a complete service before use?

 

Thanks for reading the long post and forgive me if some of my questions are basic.

Edited May 8, 2013 by surge

[Mister K]

What is the filling mechanism for that pen? It has an ink window, and seeing as it is amber colored I'd guess the pen is celluloid so I'd be care in what you'd use to buff the pen body, but you've removed the blind cap to revel a squeeze filler(?).

 

I think your current method of cleaning is pretty spot on, submerge the nib and nothing more. You might try, if you haven't already, circulating some water through the pen. Some use a 10:1 ammonia solution to help clean their pens, or use a premixed solution like JB pen flush. I personally don't think you need to go to those lengths yet.

 

I'd personally fill the pen with some gentle ink, like MB black, and take it for a test spin- to see how it fills and more importantly how it writes. I don't know anything about the filling systems or how it might age. The fact the pen was left with ink in it may bode poorly for its long term health (although I will say old blue ink is much better to find than say old red ink), I'm thinking primarily for any parts that use the expulsion of air as the mechanism through which the pen takes ink. Old ink tends to make these parts much less pliable. Luckily there is a guy here who goes by the name fountainbel that knows everything to know about MBs.

 

I wish I could help more.

[surge]

Thank you Mister K for your help.

 

It has a screw mechanism with a piston travelling up and down. So I thought it would be called a piston filler.

 

Anyway, I have flushed it hundreds of times over the past 2 days and it still gives blue colored water. Anyway, I will keep soaking it for a while as I have some toffee brown MB ink incoming. Will take it for a test run once it's here.

[orfew]

Toffee Brown is a very nice ink. I have used it in several of my MBs.

[surge]

Yep, I saw a very helpful post on the forum comparing the different MB inks. I ordered toffee brown and lavender purple. Can't wait to try them out.

[jar]

Thank you Mister K for your help.

 

It has a screw mechanism with a piston travelling up and down. So I thought it would be called a piston filler.

 

Anyway, I have flushed it hundreds of times over the past 2 days and it still gives blue colored water. Anyway, I will keep soaking it for a while as I have some toffee brown MB ink incoming. Will take it for a test run once it's here.

 

 

Remember that it took decades for all that ink to dry in there. Patience is your best friend.

 

A few things to do before trying ink:

 

• fill with a mixture of water and a few drops of liquid detergent. Let that mixture sit in the pen for a half hour or so. While it's soaking, put the pen piston side down in a glass. Wrap a paper towel loosely around the piston knob and make sure there is no leakage.
• repeat that process until you see significant improvement in flushing.
• if there is any sign of leaking, stop and get the cork and seals replaced.

[DrCodfish]

I second Jar's comment, cleaning a pen in this condition is like losing weight: It took a long time to gain that 20 pounds, it is reasonable to assume that it will take a long time to slim down. Time is your best asset and fortunately, it's free. Often times impatience costs.

 

And congrats, that is a cool looking pen.

 

By the way, that bit about checking the piston filler for leaks is spot on, don't ask me how I know this.

[surge]

Jar and DrCodfish,

 

I did indeed use a little bit of detergent and warm water as there were stains on the ink window which were not coming out with just water. Glad to report it worked

 

And that is a neat tip to check for a leaking piston. I shall do that straight away.

 

I also googled the model and found that it was only made between 1952 and 1954. It also had "14k gold nib, nib size KM - medium balltype tip, a manifold nib for carbon copies in the accounting department." I am not quite sure what that means, but I guess the nib was shaped to be easy for writing as a "daily beater".

 

But I am a bit pleased to note that it was only produced for a couple of years making it on the rarer side. I don't know if anyone else has had this one in the past and can chime in with their thoughts on how it writes.

Edited May 11, 2013 by surge

[kazoolaw]

As I recall, the 442 is not a common pen: $130 is an excellent price.

 

"Manifold" nib means that it is stiff enough to use to press down on paper, with carbon paper beneath, to make copies.

 

The balltype nib means the tip is rounded, like a ball, as opposed to being an italic or stub. The ball nib makes is possible to exert pressure at whatever angle you hold the nib, and makes a uniform width line.

 

You did well.

 

gary

[DrCodfish]

Excellent! I would say a great pen for your re-introduction to FP: sturdy enough to take the knocks, unique enough that you will be the only one you know who has one, and still not something you had to mortgage the farm for. And yet, vanilla enough that after a while you may yearn for something with a little more flair and you will have this as your base line to compare others by. Get it clean so we can see a writing sample with that luscious brown ink!

[surge]

gary, thanks for sharing your knowledge and encouragement.

 

DrCodfish, yes, I think 442 will be a good one to start with. I also have a 146 incoming; well, at least I think it is a 146. The auction description did not mention the model number or nib size, but looking at the pictures, it seems like a 146. I'll know in some days.

 

By the way, it seems the piston area on the 442 is not leaking. It has been standing wrapped in a paper towel for a couple of hours now and no sign of moisture.

 

Will definitely post some writing samples soon.

[stephanos]

This is an old thread, I see, but not many people have posted about the 442, so I thought I'd keep it all together rather than starting a new thread.

 

I have recently bought a 442 (curiously, for just a little less, delivered, as the OP paid almost exactly 2 years ago). Everything seems in good working condition. BUT I can see some gunk in the barrel through the amber-coloured ink window and would like to clean it out. Then, while I'm at it, I would disassemble the nib and feed to remove any crusty old ink.

 

It looks like the barrel can be unscrewed - see gold ring in the first picture for the obvious join. So I was thinking of soaking and then applying heat, before trying to unscrew it. Does anyone have any advice and/or dire warnings? Thank you.

[KAC]

Tech repair details aside, it's a nice pen. Vintage MB are, in general, quite beautiful which, in my estimation, represent an unadorned and classic style (contrast with many modern embellished versions of the nice, old ones). Your pen harkens back to the glory days of the MB line.

[niksch]

It looks like the barrel can be unscrewed - see gold ring in the first picture for the obvious join. So I was thinking of soaking and then applying heat, before trying to unscrew it. Does anyone have any advice and/or dire warnings? Thank you.

 

That's the obvious joint, but not the real one. The section, the piece you hold to write with, is a simple cover. The join is the combination of the nib, ink feed and the hollow cylindrical part that holds them together (brain cramping for the name!) and the barrel. The section piece merely hides the joint.

 

So, you really need the tool for a 252 that turns out the nib & feed. Yes, you'll need to apply some heat also.

[stephanos]

Thank you, Niksch, for helping me avoid making an error. I'll take it nice and slow (and wait until I have more time to devote to it).

KAC, I agree - it's a very lovely pen.