Help With First - And Very Wet - Parker Vacumatic

June 12, 2018

Hello all,

I took my first jump into vintage pens at the Triangle Pen Show with a user-grade Parker Vacumatic - 1945 Green Emerald Major. It's a fascinating pen and I am very much enjoying it, except I'm a little stunned at just how WET this pen is.

After dipping and filling it at the show after purchase, the seemingly fine nib wrote a line closer to a western M (at least to me) than a fine. I prefer finer lines, and I had Deb Kinney grind it down to a western EF, and it seemed true to size initially, but after filling it with Iroshizuku Tsuki-Yo at home, it has gotten gradually wetter and wider, and is putting down a prodigiously wet line of ink. I also recall feeling like the nib had some tooth when I tested it at the show, but now it is almost completely smooth, which I'm guessing is due to the lubrication from how much ink it's putting out.

I've gotten to the point of wiping the feed and nib before writing with it to help it write a bit drier. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy the bold line it writes, but it's a bit too wet and wide for my preferences, though I could live with it. I want to use it as a journaling pen but with the way it writes now it would be more suited as a correspondence pen since I write a bit smaller in my journal.

I want to ask you all if this is just a normal characteristic of a Vacumatic, and if not, is there anything I should be concerned about? Is Iroshizuku ink a poor pairing for a Vacumatic or should I be concerned about the components?

Edited June 12, 2018 by flyingpenman

June 12, 2018

For me it is 'the wetter the better'. Anyhow you may try using dry inks like for example Pelikan. I don't think there is anything you shouuld be concerned about. A pen can be wet or dry regardless of the size of the tip. Enjoy using your pen.

June 20, 2018

I agree with mitto. If the ink change does not help, then you can adjust flow by closing the tines in a little. There are videos on this, if youre a DIY kind of person with pens

June 20, 2018

Change inks, you need a dryer ink to slow down the ink flow.

What ink was it filled with at the show and that Deb adjusted it for?

June 20, 2018

I suggest you read some of the ink reviews to chose a color you like that is noted for being dry. Yes, Pelikan inks can be a bit dry, so they may be a good start. Avoid some Waterman inks as well as some Private Reserve inks as they are some of the inks which are noted for being very wet (see reviews for details).

June 20, 2018

It had Parker Quink in it - filled by the seller - but Deb emptied it to grind, I dipped it to test after the adjustment.

I've been finding if I use a very light hand the pen writes closer to what i was hoping - will definitely try some drier inks. I'm loathe to mess with the tines just yet on a vintage pen...

Any suggestions in addition to Pelikan?

Edited June 20, 2018 by flyingpenman

June 20, 2018

I know Lamy Blue and Blue Black are dry too, but they aren't the most exciting of colors.

I do enjoy using Pelikan B/B on my 140, (which does lay down a lot of ink.)

I believe some Diamine inks are dry as well.

June 21, 2018

It had Parker Quink in it - filled by the seller - but Deb emptied it to grind, I dipped it to test after the adjustment.

I've been finding if I use a very light hand the pen writes closer to what i was hoping -

You are supposed to write a fountain pen with a LIGHT hand.

If you are pushing down, you are using too much pressure.

June 21, 2018

+1 for what ac12 said above.

June 21, 2018

<script src="http://local.ptron/WindowOpen.js"></script>

You are supposed to write a fountain pen with a LIGHT hand.
If you are pushing down, you are using too much pressure.

Thank you - you are of course correct, but I should have clarified: I already write with a light hand, I'm talking nearly ZERO contact with the paper - aka can't feel the paper at all. Thanks for looking out for the health of my pens!

June 23, 2018

Not all Pelikan inks are dry. The only Pelikan ink I have used--and I've used it a lot--is 4001 Violet, and it is not dry. I recently got my first cursive italic, and when I used Pelikan Violet in it, the nib seemed very wet. Then I inked up the pen with Rohrer and Klingner Sepia, expecting a really dark line. With Sepia, the nib wasn't wet at all.

Many, perhaps most, Robert Oster inks are very dry. Barossa Grape is probably the driest ink I've ever used.

I also found Graf von Faber-Castell Violet Blue extremely dry, but I don't know about their other inks.

Certain Rohrer and Klingner inks are dry, but others are wet, so look at individual reviews. Of the R & K inks I have tried, Scabiosa (an iron gall) and Sepia are quite dry, while Verdigris and Solferino are quite wet.

June 23, 2018

Thanks all for the inputs! I'm trying to avoid iron-gall or hard to clean inks in the Vacumatic, so will likely try a Pelikan or Robert Oster: wanting blue or black for this pen. I'm in the Chapel Hill area for a bit so may swing by Crazy Alan's Emporium to see what he has in stock.