Having Issues With My First Fountain Pen

[antoipod]

Hello membersFPN, this is my first post here. I have been having some issues with my first fountain pen, a Scrikss honor 38. It writes extremely wet for the first few lines but the more I write the dryer it seems to get and becomes nearly unusable because of skipping. It skips even when writing wet but it gets worse the dryer it gets. I noticed that when I suck up only ink into the converter, the pen just dumps ink on the page and writes very wet but writes a decent amount dryer if I suck a bit of air into the converter. I already got a replacement pen, a Pilot Metropolitan, but was wondering if these issues could be easily fixed or were the result of newbie mistakes or if it's just a bad pen. Here are some pictures:

[Sabin]

Just a bad pen...

[ParkerDuofold]

Hello Antoipod,

 

 

It sounds like a classic case of ink starvation... this can be a problem with any cartridge/converter fountain pen. I've experienced it myself a few times.

 

The causes and solutions can be varied; hopefully reading through this thread will reveal the correct solution for you.

 

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/327043-why-do-pens-run-dry-with-plenty-of-ink-still-in-them/?fromsearch=1

 

That said, it has been my experience that loose fitting converters are the usual culprit... also make sure you give the pen a good flush to make sure all the factory oils and debris are cleaned out.

 

Rots of ruck.

 

 

- Anthony

[ParkerDuofold]

Just to follow-up, I've also had some luck switching to cartridges, (much to my chagrin). Cartridges can be re-filled from a bottle using an ink syringe... so not all is lost.

 

 

- A.C.

[Erik Dalton]

Welcome to our group. There are no bad questions here. Just us learning from each other. So, feel free to jump into any of our conversations. You’re one of us now.

 

No, you didn’t do anything wrong. Actually you did a really smart thing by buying the Pilot Metropolitan.

It’s one of the most popular starter pens. They are great, dependable writers. Even experienced pen users will leave their expensive pens behind, stick a Metropolitan into a pen sleeve and then into a backpack or briefcase.(Nib up)

I would check out BRIAN Goulet’s videos on everyday carry pens on YouTube. Best of luck to you.

[77kath]

I’ve had a couple of Scriksses (?), and they don’t behave the way you are describing. I agree that a good flush should help a lot. I like the pens.

[antoipod]

 

That said, it has been my experience that loose fitting converters are the usual

I took a look at the converter after reading your reply and noticed that the end of the converter looks very rough and bumpy, like it was roughly cut. I'll try using cartridges.

[Wolverine1]

Try flushing the pen real well, so that you clean out the residue that might be clogging up your pen. And, go and buy a better quality pen. The Pilot Metropolitan is a good pen, try out the Lamy Safari and Lamy Al-Star pens.

Edited October 14, 2017 by Wolverine1

[Bluey]

I’ve had a couple of Scriksses (?), and they don’t behave the way you are describing. I agree that a good flush should help a lot. I like the pens.

This.

The OP needs to soak the nib part and converter for a few hours in a mix of dishsoap and water, then flush with water.

 

 

Try flushing the pen real well, so that you clean out the residue that might be clogging up your pen. And, go and buy a better quality pen. The Pilot Metropolitan is a good pen, try out the Lamy Safari and Lamy Al-Star pens.

They're not better "quality".

Edited October 14, 2017 by Bluey

[ParkerDuofold]

I took a look at the converter after reading your reply and noticed that the end of the converter looks very rough and bumpy, like it was roughly cut. I'll try using cartridges.

Hello Antoipod,

 

Okay, good deal... hopefully that'll do it.

 

It sounds to me like you're getting air into the system from that chewed-up converter... from the way the flow comes and goes... if it were dirt in the pen, I do not think that would permit very wet flow one minute and then almost no flow the next... that sounds more like an air induced capillary problem, IMHO.

 

However, just to sate everyone's curiosity... including my own... you did give the pen a good flush when you got it, right?

 

Be well and please keep us posted.

 

 

- Anthony

[antoipod]

Hello Antoipod,

Okay, good deal... hopefully that'll do it.

It sounds to me like you're getting air into the system from that chewed-up converter... from the way the flow comes and goes... if it were dirt in the pen, I do not think that would permit very wet flow one minute and then almost no flow the next... that sounds more like an air induced capillary problem, IMHO.

However, just to sate everyone's curiosity... including my own... you did give the pen a good flush when you got it, right?

Be well and please keep us posted.

- Anthony

I tried flushing it with some water mixed with dish soak and then soaked it in the solution for 10 minutes then flushed it with clean water, I also ditched the converter and tried using cartridges. It seems like the wetness and dryness issues are gone but it still skips (although not as often as before). It seems like it skips or stops writing between words or after not writing something for 2-3 seconds, when it does I have to flip the nib over and write a little bit like that to get it flowing again. After looking at the nib with a magnifying glass, it looks like the tines are much further appart that my pilot metropolitan and the feed gap seems to get bigger from the breather hole to the nib.

[Bluey]

I tried flushing it with some water mixed with dish soak and then soaked it in the solution for 10 minutes then flushed it with clean water, I also ditched the converter and tried using cartridges. It seems like the wetness and dryness issues are gone but it still skips (although not as often as before). It seems like it skips or stops writing between words or after not writing something for 2-3 seconds, when it does I have to flip the nib over and write a little bit like that to get it flowing again. After looking at the nib with a magnifying glass, it looks like the tines are much further appart that my pilot metropolitan and the feed gap seems to get bigger from the breather hole to the nib.

10 minutes isn't really long enough, so that's probably why it still skips. Try at least 3 hours.

 

Then we'll deal with the tine gap, if necessary. I have a Pilot FA nib that used to skip and I solved that by closing the tines, but we'll see how the above recommendation goes before doing that.

Edited October 15, 2017 by Bluey

[antoipod]

10 minutes isn't really long enough, so that's probably why it still skips. Try at least 3 hours.

 

Then we'll deal with the tine gap, if necessary. I have a Pilot FA nib that used to skip and I solved that by closing the tines, but we'll see how the above recommendation goes before doing that

I soaked it for 3 hours in water mixed with dish soap but it still skips, just not as much as it used to. It skips maybe 3 times per sentence, which is quite a bit more than my Pilot metropolitan (I seem to have gotten a lemon Metropolitan). How shall I tackle reducing tine gap?

[LizEF]

I soaked it for 3 hours in water mixed with dish soap but it still skips, just not as much as it used to. It skips maybe 3 times per sentence, which is quite a bit more than my Pilot metropolitan (I seem to have gotten a lemon Metropolitan). How shall I tackle reducing tine gap?

 

Here are two videos on the topic:

 

 

 

Not sure, but this video may also address the question:

[frankb3]

how to delete a post?

Edited October 16, 2017 by frankb3

[antoipod]

 

Here are two videos on the topic:

 

 

 

Not sure, but this video may also address the question:

I realized the nib and feed were removable and followed the videos you recommend, it seems like the skipping issue has been resolved. Thx for the help

[LizEF]

I realized the nib and feed were removable and followed the videos you recommend, it seems like the skipping issue has been resolved. Thx for the help

 

Gladly.