Edison Collier Advice

[Kleinzeit]

Hi,

 

I am a fountain pen newbie. I have an Edison Collier in light blue/silver antique marble. I was wondering how I could stop what seems to be ink creeping between the nib feed and the section. The light blue section is getting stained with black ink at the top especially. Would silicone grease stop this? And how would I clean off the ink stain? This has made me pause when I considered turning it into an eyedropper. The ink is Diamine Havasu Turquoise.

 

Thanks very much for any advice.

 

[twdpens]

Do you fill the pen through the nib in the usual way? Switching to filling the converter out of the pen would remove the possibility of ink getting between the nib collar and the front section by capillary action when dipped. Silicone grease around the collar may help seal it off, but if you do this make sure you don't get any on the nib itself.

 

As for cleaning, remove the nib and soak the front section in, for example, ammonia solution. Rinse off and give it a good wipe inside with a paper towel.

 

If you are concerned about the staining the pen material when in contact with ink I think that turning it into an eyedropper is a bad idea.

 

HTH,

 

Martin

[bgray]

Hi,

 

I am a fountain pen newbie. I have an Edison Collier in light blue/silver antique marble. I was wondering how I could stop what seems to be ink creeping between the nib feed and the section. The light blue section is getting stained with black ink at the top especially. Would silicone grease stop this? And how would I clean off the ink stain? This has made me pause when I considered turning it into an eyedropper. The ink is Diamine Havasu Turquoise.

 

Thanks very much for any advice.

 

 

First off, I received your email and I'll respond to that in a little more detail.

 

Martin at the Writing Desk's comments above are right one, and I'll add a few more items.

 

By your description, I assume that your material is Silver Marble? A lighter colored material with some blue highlights?

 

What you are seeing is pretty normal for any fountain pen which you are filling from a bottle. However, since the material is slightly translucent, you are seeing ink where you might not normally with materials that are opaque.

 

Do as Martin suggested - removing the converter, unscrewing the nib, and cleaning with an ammonia solution is a good way to get rid of your stains. If these stains persist, we have strategies, and I'll cover that in the email response.

 

From here, if you want to avoid this in the future, rather than filling from the bottle, remove the converter and fill to it directly. Then place the converter on the back of the section. If your feed has no ink within, you might need to advance the converter plunger to get ink to the feed (an advantage of bottle filling is that the feed is already saturated and ready to write immediately).

 

I don't think that silicone grease is really going to be a solution to this unless you apply it heavily to the point of where it will smear out the top, creating a seal there. However, in doing this, you'd have to be really careful, as any silicone grease that gets into the feed could certainly create some real problems. I'd avoid this if you are unsure. I'd also avoid eyedropper conversion if you don't want stains at all (some people don't mind stains, and consider it to be "character")

 

If you are thinking eyedropper conversion and you want zero risk of staining, then this will work best with an opaque material.

 

Let me know if this helps and keep me updated.

 

Brian at Edison

 

Edited March 6, 2017 by bgray

[Kleinzeit]

Dear Martin and Brian,

 

Thanks so much for your detailed replies. I have cleaned the section and filled the converter using the method Brian outlined and the situation is much better. I'd just like to say that this is a FANTATSTIC PEN and the ink was really a minor thing which has been resolved. It is not a factor and not noticeable with the Persimmon Swirl which I got from Martin. As you mention it is just the top of the collar of the silver/marble Collier which is slightly translucent.

 

I really appreciate the professional advice and look forward to many happy writing sessions with the pen. It is light, perfectly balanced and a wonderfully smooth writer - not to mention really beautiful! Thanks for the amazing pen craft-ship and helpful feedback!

 

A superb pen!

[bgray]

Dear Martin and Brian,

 

Thanks so much for your detailed replies. I have cleaned the section and filled the converter using the method Brian outlined and the situation is much better. I'd just like to say that this is a FANTATSTIC PEN and the ink was really a minor thing which has been resolved. It is not a factor and not noticeable with the Persimmon Swirl which I got from Martin. As you mention it is just the top of the collar of the silver/marble Collier which is slightly translucent.

 

I really appreciate the professional advice and look forward to many happy writing sessions with the pen. It is light, perfectly balanced and a wonderfully smooth writer - not to mention really beautiful! Thanks for the amazing pen craft-ship and helpful feedback!

 

A superb pen!

 

No problem! Enjoy!

[amk]

Oh dear, I think I see another hopeless Collier addict in the making.

 

Not that I'm addicted - I only have four - I could give it up tomorrow, it's not a problem, I can handle it.... :-)

[Kleinzeit]

Yes, the addiction has started...They are really wonderful pens. I am hoping to get a Beaumont soon. And sometime I would I like to try their pneumatic filling pens. Nice to know that there is someone else out there with an impossible problem!

[OmegaMountain]

I'd just like to take a moment to say how great the service is here from Edison. Not many manufacturers would take the time to answer a question like this personally. I have one Edison and love it as well and this makes me even happier to have bought one. Glad you were able to address your issue, Kleinzeit.