I Broke This Pen And I Don't Know How?

[stringsandpedals]

Hey guys!

So I bought this cheap pen off of ebay, because I'd never had a lever pen before and I wanted to gain some more experience in replacing ink sacs and whatever more there was to fix. But somehow ended up breaking the pen more just by trying to clean it?

So if anyone could tell me what I did wrong, that'd be ace. Also if you happen to know what brand/model it is, that would be great to know.

 

 

Edit: here are some better pictures

http://36.media.tumblr.com/57934c47e82f542e8510e2564b8589a2/tumblr_o5y86nkHp41vo6rxoo1_1280.jpghttp://41.media.tumblr.com/4738b1b282b4da1214d494062533ac15/tumblr_o5y86nkHp41vo6rxoo2_1280.jpghttp://41.media.tumblr.com/2085fdad4f660a56ed04d35614798e91/tumblr_o5y86nkHp41vo6rxoo3_1280.jpghttp://40.media.tumblr.com/9c1c804f5f1f59fba296c9056e1957af/tumblr_o5y86nkHp41vo6rxoo4_1280.jpg

Edited April 20, 2016 by stringsandpedals

[Inky.Fingers]

No fear.

 

First. Read up to get knowledge.

http://www.richardspens.com/?page=ref/fillers/fillers.htm

 

Second. Buy another cheap pen to do it again.

 

Third. Repeat 1 and 2 until you become proficient.

[stringsandpedals]

.

Edited April 20, 2016 by stringsandpedals

[fountainbel]

Hi stringsandpedals !

Sorry to see your damaged pen…

Celluloid - the material of which your pen is made - simply deforms when soaked in hot water

Soaking should occur in cold water or water at maximum 30°C…

Francis

[stringsandpedals]

Hi stringsandpedals !

Sorry to see your damaged pen…

Celluloid - the material of which your pen is made - simply deforms when soaked in hot water

Soaking should occur in cold water or water at maximum 30°C…

Francis

 

Lesson learned. Thanks, though!

Any idea on what brand or model it might have been?

[mmg122]

Celluloid is a really nice material but like Francis said it doesn't get along well with hot (even warm) water. I don't know what brand pen that is but I'm sure someone will come along and identify it for you. Suggest you pick up an unrestored Esterbrook pen to learn about sac replacement and levers. So sorry this happened to you but be assured we've all been there. Esty often has inexpensive unrestored Esterbrooks.

 

Mary

[ac12]

I do NOT recommend soaking a lever filler pen in water, not even COLD water.

Why, because of RUST. Try as you might you will NOT be able to get all the water out of the pen. And where the water is in contact with iron/steel (lever, C-ring, J-bar, or other mechanism), it will start to rust. If you want to clean the inside of the barrel, do it dry, with a cotton swab or 'rat tail' brush.

 

The cap, in general, I would use lots of damp cotton swabs only in the inner cap. With some caps, you don't want to get water between the inner and outer cap. Because water will start to rust the part of the clip that is inside the cap.

 

There is also one pen material that I understand will soften in water. So again, dry cleaning. Better safe than sorry.

 

Do a LOT of research, and ask questions.

There is a LOT of bad info out on the internet, and following some of those could cause you to break a pen. Just because it worked for the guy doing the YouTube video, does not mean that it will work for you, or others. Been there, done that, became very upset.

Edited April 21, 2016 by ac12

[Chi Town]

I very rarely use water any more! I use heat to remove parts from a pen, gentle heat. I use a heat gun from Michaels or that other place in the South of the US, it cost me about 17.00 with a 40% off coupon. The pens that you must stay away from water with are Vintage Conway Stewarts! as they will end up just like the pen in the pictures here.....So in a nut shell? Use gentle heat to take yopur pens apart, and use the rule that if you cannot touch the pen with your finger tips or lip, you've heated it up way too much!