Feed: Plastic V. Ebonite (Hbr)

[sansenri]

I went an looked around to find more info

it seems that a #6 nib should not fit unless you force it in

 

Wing Sung 627, Wing Sung 699, PenBBS F, generic #6

 

picture borrowed here

https://www.writershelf.com/article/wing-sung-699-poor-mans-pilot-823?locale=en

 

Bobje was mentioning in another thread that a Kaigelu 316 nib would fit.

 

PS

Gerry, sorry for hijacking your thread, but ultimately what I'm seeking to do is swap the plastic thread with an ebonite one!

Edited March 7, 2020 by sansenri

[Maccabeus]

I got mine to fit, and it required no forcing at all. It goes in snug, but not so much that I haven't been able to remove and reinstall it or that I was ever worried about cracking the section.

I also apologize for the thread hijack.

If you prefer, I'll be happy to move my post over to this thread instead...

 

Edited March 7, 2020 by Maccabeus

[gmberg]

I went an looked around to find more info

it seems that a #6 nib should not fit unless you force it in

 

Wing Sung 627, Wing Sung 699, PenBBS F, generic #6

 

picture borrowed here

https://www.writershelf.com/article/wing-sung-699-poor-mans-pilot-823?locale=en

 

Bobje was mentioning in another thread that a Kaigelu 316 nib would fit.

 

PS

Gerry, sorry for hijacking your thread, but ultimately what I'm seeking to do is swap the plastic thread with an ebonite one!

Don't be sorry. I'm enjoying the excursion!

[sansenri]

ahah , thanks, Gerry.

 

Thank you Maccabeus, I was forgetting that you sanded off the feed, so ultimately you may have accommodated the nib to fit without forcing. Might be worth trying seeing your positive experience...

As I don't own the 699 I would have to buy one to try (did you get it on Etsy/Alibaba or did you venture on Taobao?)

[Maccabeus]

ahah , thanks, Gerry.

 

Thank you Maccabeus, I was forgetting that you sanded off the feed, so ultimately you may have accommodated the nib to fit without forcing. Might be worth trying seeing your positive experience...

As I don't own the 699 I would have to buy one to try (did you get it on Etsy/Alibaba or did you venture on Taobao?)

I got all three (2 for me, 1 for a friend) from various sellers on eBay. Some even offer speedpack shipping with tracking.

[sansenri]

Approx cost? I've seen very different prices...

[Maccabeus]

Approx cost? I've seen very different prices...

Generally in the $20 USD range, although the one I ordered with speedpack shipping was an additional $5. It was worth it.

Here are links to listings from the vendors that I bought from. YMMV...

Brown and Clear

 

Brown with choices for solid or translucent section

 

Blue

[sansenri]

Thank you.

Since I have a 698 I just checked in case I may try this on the 698,but the Ranga size 6 nib and feed are far too big...

The Wality and Fellowship size 6 nibs will not fit inside the section, even with the Wing Sung feed. The Ranga feed alone will not go in either.

Are the 699 and 698 nibs and feeds different? If they are that would explain...

[Karmachanic]

Thank you.

Since I have a 698 I just checked in case I may try this on the 698,but the Ranga size 6 nib and feed are far too big...

The Wality and Fellowship size 6 nibs will not fit inside the section, even with the Wing Sung feed. The Ranga feed alone will not go in either.

Are the 699 and 698 nibs and feeds different? If they are that would explain...

#5 nib for the 698.

[gmberg]

For those of you who are looking for HBR replacement feeds for modern pens, your best hunting ground would be a major pen show. Look in the boxes of junkers or spare parts for vintage pens. Bring along the nib and section from your modern pen to check the old feeds' size and shape. This way is both cheap, AND you may avoid the necessity of shaping the nib yourself.

 

Just a suggestion.

[sansenri]

#5 nib for the 698.

ah thanks, that explains, so #6 should be much closer

[sansenri]

For those of you who are looking for HBR replacement feeds for modern pens, your best hunting ground would be a major pen show. Look in the boxes of junkers or spare parts for vintage pens. Bring along the nib and section from your modern pen to check the old feeds' size and shape. This way is both cheap, AND you may avoid the necessity of shaping the nib yourself.

 

Just a suggestion.

you are probably right, but there is so much info on FPN that hunting down the right feed for the right pen eventually tends to be feasible exercise, especially since after buying the next relatively cheap Chinese pen we are all here tinkering in the attempt to make it write like a much more expensive pen...

 

btw, not the best moment for a major pen show, I'm currently confined at home due to the covid-19 curfew...

[Christopher Godfrey]

Gerry, back to your OP: I have written about this several times, elsewhere (Pilot threads); but it bears re-iterating. Years ago, I bought a Pilot Custom 743 direct from Japan (I think they were unavailable here, back then) with the large FA 15 nib. Supposed to have been very flexible, it gave me but trouble from day one, tram-lining and refusals to start! Was I annoyed? Was I disappointed? Is the Pope Catholic? Ha!

 

I made enquiries among the Japanese pen pages and someone wise kept on at me to try different inks and papers; but nothing seemed to work and so I threatened to sell the pen. ...then, serendipitously, I encountered a post that someone had written about ebonite feeds: aha! I went into the pages of Flexible Nib Factory, ordered a two-channel, black feed of the correct size and Joey was prompt to mail it out.

 

The fitment was the work of but a few moments and...hey, presto! Immediate and beautiful transformation! As a lover of vintage flex (Pelikan, Osmia, Waterman, etc), I can honestly tell you that this is now one of my favourite fountain pens (among about 60!) It is dependable, well-behaved and flexes really well -- perhaps I am able to get an dry stroke if I am playing hard -- but only momentary.

 

Aside: timotheap wrote: which...got me wondering why Conklin would have wanted to offer their Omniflex without a feed that could actually keep up>

 

+1! Another optimistic try at modern flex for me: I'm still working at this one, looking for a proper solution.

Edited March 25, 2020 by Christopher Godfrey

[gmberg]

I went into the pages of Flexible Nib Factory, ordered a two-channel, black feed of the correct size and Joey was prompt to mail it out.

 

 

Chris

I had no idea about the FNF. . What a wonderful service! I don't usually take an interest in modern pens, and since I have a a supply of vintage feeds, Japanese ebonite rods, and a lathe , I never thought to go out of my shop looking for a feed. The FNF, however, might save me a bundle of time in the future. Thanks for the tip. Now that I'm "sheltering in place" (and my place includes my workshop ), I may just try fitting some more ebonite feeds onto some of my less cooperative modern pens.

 

 

.

Edited March 25, 2020 by gmberg

[Christopher Godfrey]

Gerry, I have just had the same sort of success with my large F-C 19, into which I have this minute installed a JoWo#6 flexible nib/feed unit from Joey Grasty: transformation! At present, he is out-of-stock in the smaller sized unit which I shall need for my F-C 65.

 

I am tickled pink: at last I may start to use and enjoy another previously-on-permanent-vacation pen!

Edited March 28, 2020 by Christopher Godfrey

[trmsw]

For people with experience turning pens, how feasible would it be to make a replacement section for a Wing Sung 699? I'm thinking mainly of how hard it would be to get the diameter and threading right?

The reason I ask is that I tried putting a Zebra G nib and ebonite feed in my 699 and it works really well, except that as they are narrower than the original ones I had to wrap them in a plastic tube to get a snug fit, and it's not so easy to get them out to clean or replace the nib.

Maybe I could fill the section with epoxy it something and then drill out a smaller hole?

Or even, but I have no idea how, adapt the section to take Jowo nib units...

[gmberg]

Maybe I could fill the section with epoxy it something and then drill out a smaller hole?

 

The two easiest options would be

1. coat the I.D. of the section with epoxy, then use a reamer to widen it a bit to fit your narrower feed.

2. make a bushing of ebonite to reduce the section's I.D.

I like number 2 because the bushing's ebonite can be fitted better to the feed by adding a little heat, much like ebonite feeds were "press fit" to the nibs with heat..

 

[trmsw]

I think a bushing that thin would break too easily as the difference in diameter is less than 1mm