What's Your "Cleaner" Ink?

[Flaxmoore]

After running a pen with an aggressive ink, BSB, the 1670s and the like, I like to clean the pen out, then give it a break with a fill or two of "cleaner ink", that is, one mild and easy on pens that may get any lingering crud out that a disassembly missed. My favorite is good reliable Skrip Blue. Anyone else like doing this?

[Sasha Royale]

Which fountain pen mechanism is the subject of this inquiry ? Usually, plain water works for me. In more difficult cases, a 10% household ammonia to water solution, followed by a a plain water finish flush, works great. It takes but a couple of minutes. Then, any ink I please.

[wastelanded]

I find Quink Washable Blue to be good for getting the last bits of old ink out of an old pen after rinsing.

 

ETA: At least it's good for something.

Edited September 28, 2015 by wastelanded

[rdh]

Yep, I wash with tap water, shake dry and either store it or fill it with a new ink. Of course I only use well-behaved inks like Quink, Waterman, Pilot and Aurora.

 

Dave

[Davros]

I like to return to an old favorite, like Diamine Evergreen, but I don't think of it as cleaning.

[WaskiSquirrel]

I don't have an ink for flushing out gunk. (Maybe I could use Noodler's Black?)

 

However, I do like Noodler's Rattler Eel Red as a de-staining ink. It does a great job removing stains from the insides of pens.

[haruka337]

Sailor Jentle Doyou. Seems to clean everything out.

[lgsoltek]

Sailor Doyou:

 

[ink-syringe]

Sailor Jentle Doyou unstained a demonstrator for me.

[Paddler]

Yup. Skrip Peacock Blue cleans 'em out really well.

[sirgilbert357]

Wow. That's crazy. What is in an ink that would clean out a pen like that? Will those inks un-stain a Pli-glass sac too?

[Flaxmoore]

Which fountain pen mechanism is the subject of this inquiry ? Usually, plain water works for me. In more difficult cases, a 10% household ammonia to water solution, followed by a a plain water finish flush, works great. It takes but a couple of minutes. Then, any ink I please.

 

I do this regardless of mechanism. Eyedropper, vac, converter, piston, just seems helpful.

[jthole]

I find Quink Washable Blue to be good for getting the last bits of old ink out of an old pen after rinsing.

 

ETA: At least it's good for something.

Actually I like Quink washable blue!

[wastelanded]

Actually I like Quink washable blue!

I do too, it's a nice light blue. But it fades, even out of direct light: it's like vanishing ink!

[tinkerteacher]

Another vote for Sailor Do You. It got Bilberry out of a TWSBI Mini, which I didn't think was actually possible. Clean as a proverbial whistle.

 

I believe it is down to whatever, banned in the West, super lubricating chemicals Sailor, and or rather their 'Ink Master', puts in Do You. Do You is by far the easiest flowing (but not watery so) ink I have ever encountered.

[PaperQueen]

amberleadavis turned me onto Noodler's Rattler Red Eel for this very purpose.

 

Plus...it's a kickass color.

[amberleadavis]

Thank you, Paperqueen!

 

Paddler, a (perhaps misremembered) comment by NT of Noodlers that Skrip was a great cleaner, convinced me to try Rattler Red.

 

LGSoltek, you've convinced me. I'm trying it on this pen! I've never tried Rattler Red on it, but I will try your suggestion and track the results.

 

[Arkanabar]

Thank you, Paperqueen!

 

Paddler, a (perhaps misremembered) comment by NT of Noodlers that Skrip was a great cleaner, convinced me to try Rattler Red.

 

LGSoltek, you've convinced me. I'm trying it on this pen! I've never tried Rattler Red on it, but I will try your suggestion and track the results.

 

Amber, we mention Rattler Red Eel as a cleaner ink because of your pics of some blue-stained pen before and after a fill of RRE.

 

I don't have RRE. I have Widow Maker, which I vaguely suspect of being one of those staining reds. I have tried a fill of Waterman Purple to deal with staining left in a cartridge after a few fills of Borealis Black, which was mitigated.

[lgsoltek]

Thank you, Paperqueen!

 

Paddler, a (perhaps misremembered) comment by NT of Noodlers that Skrip was a great cleaner, convinced me to try Rattler Red.

 

LGSoltek, you've convinced me. I'm trying it on this pen! I've never tried Rattler Red on it, but I will try your suggestion and track the results.

 

I hope you get good results!

[migo984]

Do-you is my hero ink. It got a nasty Diamine Bilberry stain out of a convertor.