Capulet Ed Conversion Possible?

[monanza]

Hi,

 

I have been reading so many good reviews about the Capulet that I need to try one out for myself. While browsing photos of the pen, I noticed that the barrel and nib section do not appear to have any metal parts to corrode with prolonged exposure to inks. Futhermore, the barrel on the walnut finish (which happens to be my preferred finish at this time) appears to be a single piece. So it seems that with minor effort, the pen is a viable eyedropper host.

 

So my question to owners of the pen (and of course to Mary): is the ED conversion possible or am I off my rocker? Of course filling the barrel with ink is only a small part of the story, a major concern being wetness and ink flow control. So, I appreciate any insight you can give me.

 

Anyway, ED conversion notwithstanding, I shall be ordering a walnut Capulet soon.

 

Cheers.

[Mary Burke]

Good idea but maybe a little messy. When Conway Stewart makes modern eyedroppers, they include a rather thick rubber ring that tightly secures the barrel to the front gripping section to reduce any ink leakage. The other point is that the back end is another piece, and this is why we were able to make the second generation fo the Montague and Capulets with contrasting black cap and barrel stoppers.

 

I am sure you will still enjoy your Capulet

 

Kind regards,

 

Mary

[monanza]

Thanks Mary,

 

The pen should be here tomorrow. Definitely will be using o-rings or silicon washers with silicon paste to maintain an acceptable seal and will watch for leaks on either end of the barrel. I'll post my experience with it either way.

 

Cheers,

Mo

[monanza]

OK experiment so far a success. I acquired a Walnut Montague with Broad point and set it up as an eyedropper.

 

To start, I inspected the pen and observed that the grip section threads are fine and closely spaced. What's more interesting is that there are roughly twelve or so threads (did not really count them) and it takes four full turns to seal the barrel to the grip section. I also observed from casual inspection that the Walnut barrel is a single piece and does not appear to use a stopper. I meant to shine a torch into the barrel to see if I can positively determine which it is but I forgot and filled the barrel before doing it. Although, normally I would use silicon paste and an o-ring or two to ensure a proper seal, I decided to test the pen au naturel.

 

I filled the barrel roughly four fifths full with Conway Stewart Kingsand (ochre). I tightened the barrel just a tad more firmly than if I had been using the supplied converter. I am happy to report that after two days of desk duty (but only a few minutes of writing) the pen exhibits no leaks at any of the seams. The nib and feed also perform smashingly and do not hemorrhage or leak ink. The pen writes a nicely shaded, smooth line with moderate wetness (a little drier with the nib belly up). I just now opened the barrel and inspected the threads to find only the first three are wetted with ink. So I doubt the pen will leak at all even without additional sealants. I will take the pen to work this week and see how well it holds up to vibration and general daily use.

 

Although, it is somewhat early to tell for sure, it seems the Montague and Capulet is a good candidate for an eyedropper conversion. Note that this applies only to the Walnut finish. I do not know how other finishes will fare with their barrel stoppers. Also, as the barrel empties and the amount of air increases, long writing sessions may sufficiently increase the air temperature leading to wetter lines or even leaks. We'll just have to wait and see how the pen behaves on empty (or nearly so).

 

Cheers.

[warblerick]

Sounds to me like an accident waiting to happen, but good luck to you. Hope you don't get any staining of the barrel.

 

Is this just an experiment, or do you prefer eyedroppers so much that you would risk a really nice pen over it?

[monanza]

It's an experiment. It is risky but, hopefully, the worst that will happen is a stained barrel. The barrel is opaque enough that it should not be too bad. Also, I used Kingsand, which would not look abhorrent if indeed it stained the barrel (on the inside). Anyway, I clean my eyedroppers before every fill.

Watch me eat these words when something does happen.

I like eyedroppers but not on opaque barrels (I can just see myself absent-mindedly opening the pen while full). Once I am satisfied with the conversion, I will clean the pen and (probably) go back to using the converter.

 

Oh, and if I failed to mention it, this is a great pen at a decent price. I like CS size 7 nibs very much.

 

Cheers.

Edited October 20, 2013 by monanza

[RMN]

If you take it with you, be sure to carry it in a separate container, unless you want Rohrschach-blots in your shirt-pocket..

 

 

D.ick