Don't Just Tell Us About The Pen You're Using, *show* Us! - 2015

[onetake]

Sorry for the dangling participle.

http://c1.staticflickr.com/1/270/19194650141_d052d5ce01_k.jpg

Also, I'm still curious about who makes these pens for Daiso. Anybody have any ideas?

[Feathers]

Oooooh lovely!!! That;s a great pen you have.

[Feathers]

Sorry for the dangling participle.

http://c1.staticflickr.com/1/270/19194650141_d052d5ce01_k.jpg

Also, I'm still curious about who makes these pens for Daiso. Anybody have any ideas?

Sorry, not a clue, but good call using it for your BSB ink How does it write?

[onetake]

Sorry, not a clue, but good call using it for your BSB ink How does it write?

Surprisingly smooth. Don't know that I'd get a full bottle of BSB, but since I got it in a sample pack, I thought I should try it out and see first-hand what the fuss was about. :-)

[SNAK]

 

 

Ohhh David, that pen is right up my alley! I love those semi-hooded, German, oblique-nibbed, piston fillers, and in fact that is one of my focuses/foci for buying pens these days.

I love my MB 22 and the MB 124 (the impulse buy from a couple of weeks ago), they have that look that i just really like, and the size is lovely as daily workhorse pens, isn't it?

[dcpritch]

It is wonderful. I have been using this week an MB 32 and the 12 shown above, with different inks (Diamine Grape in the 32), both with OBB nibs, and they're great. Lightweight, easy to handle, nice in a pocket.

[SNAK]

Wow! Wow! Wow! Wow! That is just beautiful.

How do you change the nibs like that?

Do you have to be selective about which nibs/feeds will fit the TWSBI section?

Do you keep each nib with its own feed or is the feed that of the TWSBI pen?

 

My ignorance probably comes across loud and clear.

I don't have a TWSBI but, now that I have seen your wonderful photo, the deficit will be corrected quickly!

 

Cheers,

David.

I forgot to ask if you had to buy the whole vintage pen to get each nib, or if you sourced the nibs separately.

 

I did a quick pictorial that I hope is helpful. If I missed something, line, Saskia, anyone else, please add on your wisdom!

 

1. Screw your TWSBI 580 or TWSBI Mini apart (this one is Mini). A gripping tool like rubber mat will come in handy later.

 

2. Take the front nib unit, and further take that apart. First take the plastic "skirt" off the black nib housing, it just pops off. Then the next is the trickiest bit. Pull the nib and feed out of the nib housing using a grippy material. The fins under the TWSBI plastic feed is fragile and break easily. Don't be surprised if you break a few fins. If everything comes out good, they will look like this.

 

3. And if everything doesn't come out good, the feed will come out looking like this underneath. It's okay. You will live.

 

4. Instead of the broken TWSBI plastic feed, you will use an ebonite feed from FPR (Fountain Pen Revolution). I recommend the 5.1mm diameter "Guru Flex" feed but something around 5mm diameter is good. The ebonite feeds on the left are the 5.1mm Guru Flex feed with wide channel for heavy ink flow, and the ones on the right are also around the same diameter, but from random Indian pens that I was given or had lying around. The ebonite feed may come with some powder or some dirt on the surface but that's okay, they will wash off fine. I suggest you get a good handful of these feeds, because they are handmade and all slightly different, which is a good thing.

 

5. Line up your replacement nib(s), and decide on the one you want to use. The nib sizes that fit nicely in TWSBI 580/Mini nib housing are vintage Waterman #2 (US and UK), Swan #2 or #3, and random others but I think the Waterman #2 size is the easiest to find (for me anyway). Sellers like Nibs.com and Fivestarpens.com will have a good selection, but you can always go to eBay for parts pens looking for Waterman 12, 52, 52 1/2 etc. If you prefer to use modern nib, the regular Jowo or Bock (or similar) in #5 size usually fit.

 

6. You pick a nib, an ebonite feed, and the nib housing, and try out the fit. Line up the feed and the nib and see if the curvature of the nib and feed are a good match. Keep trying until you find a close match. It helps if you have a good number of feeds and nibs. They are hand made so the same size feed will be all slightly different, and the same #2 Waterman nib will be all slightly different. When you find a decent match, try putting them into the nib collar/housing. You want a good snug fit that will require you to push in with slight force.

*If the fit is too tight you can adjust by shaving off or sanding the ebonite feed a bit, or if the curvatures of nib and feed don't match up perfectly, you can dunk the ebonite feed in hot water to warm it, then take it out and put it together with the nib (heat setting the feed), and the feed will match the curvature of the nib.

You want the nib and feed to end up looking like this in the nib housing. You just need to tweak until you get it just the way you like it.

 

7. Hardest bit is over, so you just need to put the nib unit's "skirt" back on. For TWSBI Mini, it is in one piece (see photo 2), and for TWSBI 580 there is the "skirt" and the "belt", so two pieces. Photo shown below is for TWSBI 580 so the metal belt and plastic skirt are separate. Make sure you align the notches in the skirt/belt and the raised bits under the nib collar rim when you put the skirt back on.

 

8. Showing from Left to Right. TWSBI 580/Mini nib housing (naked), TWSBI 580 nib unit (skirt and belt on), and TWSBI Mini nib unit (skirt on).

 

9. Screw the nib unit back onto the pen, and you have done it! The pen is ready to be inked up and used.

Edited June 27, 2015 by SNAK

[gylyf]

I've fondness of blue pens. This is one of the nicest shades of blue I've seen in this thread!

 

Thank you! It's hard to tell from the picture, but the barrel and cap are actually two different shades, with the barrel being slightly lighter.

[Frank C]

Thanks for posting this. I have wondered how to upgrade a TWSBI for some time. I'm not sure if I'm willing to try it, yet, though.

[line]

 

I'm digging this tight shot.

 

 

Me too!! I'm really enjoying seeing these Frankenpen hacks too, changing out the nibs etc. It's like another world of FPs has opened up to me.

 

 

 

...

 

And as for Line's Conway Stewart, I can see why you need that ink capacity. With that Monster to feed, you probably go through a gallon or two in a single letter.

 

And gorgeous ink, by the way, what is it??

 

Thank you people! Yes, this monster drinks heavily

As for the ink:

 

http://i1359.photobucket.com/albums/q794/china_line/Mobile%20Uploads/6fd1e98d-0c67-4819-97f8-2a30c462b35c_zpsok04urvf.jpg

Trying to take photos of wild fountain pens is like taking photos of dogs; you say "sit" and they start moving around. On this photo the monster nib refused to show it's best side!

Edited June 27, 2015 by line

[line]

 

 

 

4. Instead of the broken TWSBI plastic feed, you will use an ebonite feed from FPR (Fountain Pen Revolution). I recommend the 5.1mm diameter "Guru Flex" feed but something around 5mm diameter is good. The ebonite feeds on the left are the 5.1mm Guru Flex feed with wide channel for heavy ink flow, and the ones on the right are also around the same diameter, but from random Indian pens that I was given or had lying around. The ebonite feed may come with some powder or some dirt on the surface but that's okay, they will wash off fine. I suggest you get a good handful of these feeds, because they are handmade and all slightly different, which is a good thing.

 

Thank you for thorough instructions, Snak! On my frankenTWSBIs the feed and ink ajustment has been an issue. I ended up using a tiny plastic wedge between the nib and the section to tighten up around the nib. The Fountain Pen Revolution feeds are probably what I was looking for, not knowing it until now.

 

By the way, those rose gold TWSBIs look gorgeous!

Edited June 27, 2015 by line

[the_gasman]

I did a quick pictorial that I hope is helpful.

 

SNAK, that is fabulous. Even the pictorial guide is a work of art — beautiful.

It was just the way I read a newspaper — completely mesmerised by the pictures.

Wonderful.

Thanks so much.

 

Cheers,

David.

[line]

 

 

 

 

Gorgeous: the pen, the ink, the nib, the handwriting! You are the reason why I started going for broad nibs. Obliques are my favourites among broad nibs, but I've started testing out stubs too now.

Edited June 27, 2015 by line

[Houston]

I just looked at the Vanness1938 web site and they have the l'amant ink in stock.

 

Thanks, Sinistral! Turns our it was also available through Amazon, for about the same price. Killer delivery, but I was going to have to pay that, anyway, as I live in the UK.

 

Really appreciate you spelunking for me.

 

All the best,

 

--h

[dcpritch]

Gorgeous: the pen, the ink, the nib, the handwriting! You are the reason why I started going for broad nibs. Obliques are my favourites among broad nibs, but I've started testing out stubs too now.

Oh gosh, that's really nice of you, and I'm glad to have been able to show someone at least a little of why I like wide nibs. This is no secret, but stubs are my fave, and especially flexible stubs. Yet I can get along fine with obliques, it just takes more purposeful writing on my part.

[Feathers]

 

SNAK, that is fabulous. Even the pictorial guide is a work of art — beautiful.

It was just the way I read a newspaper — completely mesmerised by the pictures.

Wonderful.

Thanks so much.

 

Cheers,

David.

Agree wholeheartedly. I totally dig the rainbow effect of the stuff underneath the nibs. So pretty

Thanks for posting such a thorough explanation, SNAK. It was so clear, that I actually think I might be able to try it myself.

[Houston]

 

Thanks, Sinistral! Turns our it was also available through Amazon, for about the same price. Killer delivery, but I was going to have to pay that, anyway, as I live in the UK.

 

Really appreciate you spelunking for me.

 

All the best,

 

--h

 

And, now, it turns out that Amazon has made me frown. They cancelled my order hours after I had made it, having discovered there was no stock. So, back to Vanness I went, and they were most helpful.

 

Even after my raid, they've still got a couple of bottles of Bung Box L'Amant left.

[Frank C]

 

And, now, it turns out that Amazon has made me frown. They cancelled my order hours after I had made it, having discovered there was no stock. So, back to Vanness I went, and they were most helpful.

 

Even after my raid, they've still got a couple of bottles of Bung Box L'Amant left.

 

Did you get any other colors? I really like several of them.

[J85909266]

[atomic_doug]

http://s12.postimg.org/bkt8yg4bh/IMG_4726.jpg

 

Montegrappa Fortuna White in ruthenium trim with a medium nib, inked with Namiki black.

 

A very distinctive and stark-looking pen. Extremely smooth writer, particularly for a steel nib.