Needle Converter Filler

[danamark]

Anyone try one of these https://www.ebay.com/itm/New-Fan-Mu-Fountain-Pen-Ink-Bottle-Converter-Filler-Needle-2-2mm-2-7mm-3-2-3-7mm/312833056979?_trkparms=aid%3D111001%26algo%3DREC.SEED%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D40719%26meid%3D59a3a4d42add45d3af0bf32e858e3b50%26pid%3D100675%26rk%3D1%26rkt%3D15%26sd%3D312833056979%26itm%3D312833056979%26pmt%3D0%26noa%3D1%26pg%3D2380057&_trksid=p2380057.c100675.m4236&_trkparms=pageci%3Aa8f6d806-2fef-11ea-922a-74dbd18080eb%7Cparentrq%3A7721b9c116f0ad30584b5421ff81878e%7Ciid%3A1

 

They seem to come in different models, example for the Pilot.

Would using one wear out the converter, like refills off empty cartridges, that get loose after a few fills?

 

I hope I posted this to the correct forum.

[Karmachanic]

I use the blunt needle that came with the 5ml syringe.

\https://www.ebay.com/itm/5Pcs-5ml-Syringe-Crimp-Sealed-Blunt-Chemical-Needle-Tips-For-Liquid-Glue-Oil-Ink/222969265328?hash=item33ea00fcb0:g:puAAAOSwJTta8BBR

[BaronWulfraed]

  On 1/5/2020 at 7:23 PM, danamark said:

Would using one wear out the converter, like refills off empty cartridges, that get loose after a few fills?

 

My view: ANY activity that requires removing/inserting a converter and/or cartridge is going to lead to wear on the mouth of the converter/cartridge and the section nipple.

[Newton Pens]

  On 1/6/2020 at 7:21 PM, BaronWulfraed said:

My view: ANY activity that requires removing/inserting a converter and/or cartridge is going to lead to wear on the mouth of the converter/cartridge and the section nipple.

yep

[Karmachanic]

Sounds like pure friction to me!

I accept converters/syringes as expendables. Like me they eventually wear out.

Edited January 6, 2020 by Karmachanic

[Runnin_Ute]

Why make things more difficult than it needs to be?

[bemon]

  On 1/5/2020 at 7:23 PM, danamark said:

Anyone try one of these https://www.ebay.com/itm/New-Fan-Mu-Fountain-Pen-Ink-Bottle-Converter-Filler-Needle-2-2mm-2-7mm-3-2-3-7mm/312833056979?_trkparms=aid%3D111001%26algo%3DREC.SEED%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D40719%26meid%3D59a3a4d42add45d3af0bf32e858e3b50%26pid%3D100675%26rk%3D1%26rkt%3D15%26sd%3D312833056979%26itm%3D312833056979%26pmt%3D0%26noa%3D1%26pg%3D2380057&_trksid=p2380057.c100675.m4236&_trkparms=pageci%3Aa8f6d806-2fef-11ea-922a-74dbd18080eb%7Cparentrq%3A7721b9c116f0ad30584b5421ff81878e%7Ciid%3A1

 

They seem to come in different models, example for the Pilot.

Would using one wear out the converter, like refills off empty cartridges, that get loose after a few fills?

 

I hope I posted this to the correct forum.

Yeah definitely. I have the Pinider version. The one you showed us looks like it might fit more converters, but I use the Pinider Snorkel for every converter I can get it to fit. I can get a full fill with one draw and it's always considerably less messy for me.

 

I'm sure over time the converter will wear out from always removing it from the pen's section, but for the added convenience of using the snorkel I really don't care about the cost of a $10 converter. I'm about a year into using it with no fit issues on my GVFC or my Pilot VP.

Edited January 7, 2020 by bemon

[thudthwacker]

  On 1/5/2020 at 8:58 PM, Karmachanic said:

I use the blunt needle that came with the 5ml syringe.

\https://www.ebay.com/itm/5Pcs-5ml-Syringe-Crimp-Sealed-Blunt-Chemical-Needle-Tips-For-Liquid-Glue-Oil-Ink/222969265328?hash=item33ea00fcb0:g:puAAAOSwJTta8BBR

 

Hm? (Opens pen case, gets out international standard converter and the needle from the blunt-tip syringe.) (Pops the converter onto the end of the needle; fit seems good.) Well, what do you know. Looks like you just saved me either four or fifteen dollars. Thankee! Can't wait to get home and see if it works with my Lamy converter, too.

Edited January 8, 2020 by thudthwacker

[thudthwacker]

  On 1/8/2020 at 5:49 PM, thudthwacker said:

 

Hm? (Opens pen case, gets out international standard converter and the needle from the blunt-tip syringe.) (Pops the converter onto the end of the needle; fit seems good.) Well, what do you know. Looks like you just saved me either four or fifteen dollars. Thankee! Can't wait to get home and see if it works with my Lamy converter, too.

In summary: the needle from my blunt-tip syringe can't be affixed to a Lamy converter. And, while it fits on the end of a standard international converter and successfully filled the converter, since the syringe needle goes outside the converter end, there was a bit of ink left behind in the needle when I removed it, so a slight mess resulted (that's why I put down paper towels). So, in all, I think the Pineider snorkel is a somewhat better solution for me. And, since it's on sale at PenChalet and I've got a birthday coming -- and, as others have noted, though the snorkel seems a little expensive for what it is, you'll likely only ever have to buy it once -- I didn't feel bad treating myself.

[torstar]

a few years ago i walked up to the counter at the pharmacy and told the woman i was a fountain pen enthusiast and needed syringes to fill cartridge and ED pens, she gave me 6 or so of the real deal, real cheap as well. still use them.

[thudthwacker]

Alas, the Pineider snorkel isn't as useful as I'd hoped. Works great with my Lamy and Sheaffer converters, which is great. Doesn't fit any of my international standard converters -- not the ones that came with my Jinhao (and, yes, they say that they don't work with Jinhao -- I assumed some Jinhaos come with a proprietary converter; all the ones I have are international standard, unless I'm mistaken, and I know for sure that I've used standard international cartridges with Jinhaos a number of times), not the ones that came with my FPR pens, not the ones that came with my Nemosine pens. So I'm not sure what they mean when they say it works with "most" international standard converters.

[torstar]

  On 1/6/2020 at 7:21 PM, BaronWulfraed said:

My view: ANY activity that requires removing/inserting a converter and/or cartridge is going to lead to wear on the mouth of the converter/cartridge and the section nipple.

 

I remove them all the time to fill by syringe, I am careful and haven't ruined anything for 4 decades now.

[A Smug Dill]

  On 1/28/2020 at 9:42 PM, thudthwacker said:

Alas, the Pineider snorkel isn't as useful as I'd hoped.

Thank you for letting us know of your user experience!

 

  Quote

Doesn't fit any of my international standard converters -- not the ones that came with my Jinhao (and, yes, they say that they don't work with Jinhao -- I assumed some Jinhaos come with a proprietary converter; all the ones I have are international standard, unless I'm mistaken,

 

I have plenty of Jinhao converters as well as Rotring, Faber-Castell, Diplomat, Pelikan and Schmidt "international standard" converters, and if I'm not mistaken, the bore of the mouth on the Jinhao converter is 2.6mm (to fit Chinese-made pens), whereas the German "international standard" converters have a 2.4mm bore.

 

You can almost always successfully fit an "international standard" cartridge (from Pelikan, S.T. Dupont, Diamine, etc.) onto a Jinhao or other Chinese-branded (e.g. Delike) pen, because the plastic at the mouth will stretch by 0.1mm on every side to accommodate the thicker nipple on the feed. However, I have ruined a Faber-Castell converter by fitting it (successfully) onto a Chinese-made Daiso-Hauser fountain pen; that mouth on that converter will no longer form a tight seal around the nipple of a Bock or Schmidt nib housing.

 

  Quote

and I know for sure that I've used standard international cartridges with Jinhaos a number of times), not the ones that came with my FPR pens, not the ones that came with my Nemosine pens. So I'm not sure what they mean when they say it works with "most" international standard converters.

I don't have a Pineider snorkel — my order for one was (thankfully?) cancelled, after the retailer failed to fulfil it within some eight or nine weeks after taking my money — with which to measure, but if I'm not mistaken, the two steps on the unyielding stainless steel connector are meant to accommodate converters with either 2.4mm bore (i.e. "international standard") or 3.2mm(?) bore (for Parker, Aurora and Lamy). The benefit of it being unyielding metal is that it won't wear out as easily as, say, the item shown in the photos of the initial post. The arguable disadvantage is that it is unforgiving, and not designed for maximum compatibility across all brands; notably, as a "Western" product, it doesn't go out of its way to accommodate a lot of major Asian fountain pen brands. Goulet Pen's product page for the Pineider Snorkel states,

It is compatible with most standard international converters, as well as many brands including Aurora, Cross, Kaweco, LAMY, ONLINE, Parker, Pilot, Schmidt K5, and Sheaffer converters.

 

It does not fit Jinhao, Montegrappa, Platinum, Sailor, Waterman, or the Monteverde Clear, Mini, and Threaded converters.

 

Note: The converters that came with my FPR Himalaya pens are threaded.

 

I just had a look at three Nemosine converters alongside a Faber-Castell, a Diplomat and a Pelikan converter, and the bore should be 2.4mm (but I'm just eyeballing them, not measuring the bore with an instrument), so the Pineider Snorkel should work with it. However, if the problem you have there is that the Pineider Snorkel is loose and will fall off when used with the Nemosine converter, the first thought that comes to mind is that you may have used the Nemosine converter in question in a Chinese pen, and has thus stretched out its mouth beyond 2.4mm at rest.

[thudthwacker]

I performed a few more attempts after ASD's valuable comments:

 

1) My Himalaya came with a threaded converter, but the Darjeeling is a standard international, no threading.

 

2) I retried my Nemosine converters, which were too small to fit on the snorkel. Or, more precisely: the narrow part of the snorkel pipe is too wide for the converter mount; the wider part of the pipe is too narrow. I haven't used the converters that came with the Nemosines with anything but the Nemosines; I haven't used my Jinhao pens in some time.

 

3) I haven't had the opportunity to try a Pilot converter, as we only have the one, and it's in my wife's (in-use) pen.

 

As mentioned, the Lamy and Sheaffer converters fit and work wonderfully. I'm going to try the Pilot as soon as it's available, and may more carefully retry the Jinhaos -- if they've got wider mouths than the Nemosine-supplied converters, they may work with the snorkel if I try a tiny bit more force.

 

(Amusingly, the pens I'm using most these days are my relatively-new Platinums, which of course do not (and were never meant to) work with the snorkel. The Lamys and Sheaffers are in frequent rotation, thought, so the snorkel will still see its fair share of use.)

[ethernautrix]

I've just ordered 50ml bottles with blunt needle tips (applicators). Going to try using one for refilling cartridges -- no need to rinse the syringe. Good lord, I get lazier and lazier.

[torstar]

  On 2/10/2020 at 7:07 PM, ethernautrix said:

I've just ordered 50ml bottles with blunt needle tips (applicators). Going to try using one for refilling cartridges -- no need to rinse the syringe. Good lord, I get lazier and lazier.

the syringe can get gummed up by dried ink if you leave it long enough, then you have to clean it

[ethernautrix]

  On 2/11/2020 at 9:16 PM, torstar said:

the syringe can get gummed up by dried ink if you leave it long enough, then you have to clean it

It's always something....

 

 

Hey! But the syringe bottles arrived today, and the applicator (where the syringe sits) looks small enough to fill, say, Pilot cartridges, if not other brands.

 

I haven't opened the package and experimented with the syringe bottles yet. I have three pens inked: one vac, one ED, and one c/c, and the c/c is full. (Filled it yesterday.)

[A Smug Dill]

  On 2/12/2020 at 3:57 AM, ethernautrix said:

But the syringe bottles arrived today, and the applicator (where the syringe sits) looks small enough to fill, say, Pilot cartridges, if not other brands.

 

It depends on the specific "type" of bottle you got, I suppose. If you bought something like this:

Source: Amazon.com

 

or this:

Source: Amazon.com

 

then you should be able to fit a 14-gauge or finer Luer-lock syringe needle onto the bottle. A 14-gauge needle will fit through the mouth of an international standard cartridge or converter, which is why I try to supply a 14-gauge plastic blunt needle tip and a 1ml syringe (except where prohibited by the recipient's national postal regulations) when I send ink sampler sets.

[inkstainedruth]

My solution is to just use converters on c/c pens and refill the "normal" way -- nib and feed stuck in a bottle of ink, and then use the mechanism on the converter (I prefer piston-style ones over the cheapie slide converters for my Parker c/c pens, and pretty much all the other modern ones are also piston-style converters, except for the squeeze style Pilot Con-B converters and the equivalent on some cheap Chinese pens).

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[thudthwacker]

  On 2/12/2020 at 7:05 PM, inkstainedruth said:

My solution is to just use converters on c/c pens and refill the "normal" way -- nib and feed stuck in a bottle of ink, and then use the mechanism on the converter (I prefer piston-style ones over the cheapie slide converters for my Parker c/c pens, and pretty much all the other modern ones are also piston-style converters, except for the squeeze style Pilot Con-B converters and the equivalent on some cheap Chinese pens).

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

 

I tend to make more of a mess when I use that method, and somehow regularly manage to miss some of the ink on the section and end up with blotched fingers. I recognize that's on me. (Literally and figuratively, as I consider it.)