What is on your bench?

[LoveBigPensAndCannotLie]

2 hours ago, Ron Z said:

Looking at you picture, I would expect to find something on the end of the lever to hold the pressure bar.  They often rot off or get broken off.  Best to just replace with a modern one and move on.   Dale Beebe sells mini pressure bars that might work.  On occasion I have to take one of the two piece pressure bars, take the bar off and shorten both spring and pressure bar to fit a pen.  Be gentle and avoid putting pressure on the edge of the barrel with tools.  Hard rubber can be brittle so you don't want to stress the barrel and break it.  Been there, done that, and have had to learn the lesson a couple of times!

 

I would think so too but there's absolutely nothing else in the barrel, everything that came out of the pen is in the picture. Other than the sac fragments, but they did not have any metal bits broken off. The bar itself is a little grungy but does not have have rough edges where it would have broken off. I am so confused.

 

I've unfortunately cracked a hard rubber barrel before butting a pressure bar in, although that one wasn't the end of the world because the area where the "pins" go in (it was an early Conklin lever filler) was cracked on one end (I got it this way) so the lever wouldn't stay in anyways.

 

Are there any alternatives? I do not think the modern replacements will fit. Not just lengthwise but also widthwise, the opening of the pen is very narrow so I don't think the bar will go in.

 

[Ron Z]

How long is the inside of the barrel?  The mini pressure bars are designed for small pens.  I store them in a small Altoids tin. 

 

They're 1.7" long, and when folded so that the main part and tail form a U, the outside dimension 0.17", and could be squeezed tighter. Width is  0.135".  If they're a bit long to fit in the barrel you can cut them off with a pair of tin snips, and deburr with a fine file or wire wheel. Round the ends a bit so that the corners don't bite into the sac.

 

Just a question.  Do  you have a pair of digital calipers?  They don't have to be expensive.  I've used the 4" ones from Harbor Freight day in and day out.  They're $20, and are more than accurate enough for the work we do on pens.   I use and abuse them, and every few years of heavy use, will buy a replacement.    I consider it to be an essential tool even if you aren't doing lathe work.

[gweimer1]

I also offer these, which can be trimmed down to about 1.9" long.

 

https://www.etsy.com/listing/1566567943/replacement-j-bars-for-lever-fill?click_key=baf634f6009838a6ef495be9ee6d582a04d9994d%3A1566567943&click_sum=101cf641&ref=shop_home_active_14

 

[LoveBigPensAndCannotLie]

Ah, I should probably get digital calipers. I've been mostly eyeballing things or measuring with a ruler or tape measure, which will only take you so far. 

 

1 hour ago, gweimer1 said:

I also offer these, which can be trimmed down to about 1.9" long.

 

https://www.etsy.com/listing/1566567943/replacement-j-bars-for-lever-fill?click_key=baf634f6009838a6ef495be9ee6d582a04d9994d%3A1566567943&click_sum=101cf641&ref=shop_home_active_14

 

These look promising, I will look into getting a few.

[FarmBoy]

12 minutes ago, LoveBigPensAndCannotLie said:

I've been mostly eyeballing things or measuring with a ruler or tape measure, which will only take you so far. 

Probably good to a 1/16th or so. 

[liberdom]

A few days ago, while cleaning the barrel of my Parker 51 Aerometric, the screw part broke. I'm trying to reattach it using a solvent.

Right now, it looks like this.

When combine the two, it looks like this

And I also got a Sailor Trident NOS, but it doesn't even last 3 days with the cap closed. After hearing claims that the pen nib dries easily due to its design, I tried to slightly open the pen nib using a brass sheet, but I succeeded in holding it for more than 5 minutes with the cap open, but there was no change at all with the cap closed. I probably need to disassemble the cap, but I can't find any information about it, so I'm leaving it on the desk.

[FarmBoy]

How did the 51 Cap break?

[DnzUlc]

Yesterday repaired an Aurora 88 piston, today a Lady Patricia lever box but finally found my match. Any help from my more experienced senpais would be welcome. 

 

 

I believe this is an Italian overlay Waterman 42 safety pen. Usually there is a section at the bottom of safety pens which we remove first either with removing the pin or soaking and heating. This one is a one whole piece without any segment. What is the correct first step? Should I try soak and heat, then turn the bottom turning knob counterclockwise? Or should I directly start hammering the big pin below the writing of 42?

[liberdom]

18 hours ago, FarmBoy said:

How did the 51 Cap break?

51 has a broken barrel. It's the Trident that has the cap problem, not the 51.

[FarmBoy]

I think I meant the barrel. Seems like an odd failure. 

[liberdom]

There was a trace of dried ink on the inside of the barrel, and when I tried to clean it with water and a tissue, it cracked and broke.

[Ron Z]

I would guess that the crack was already there, you just didn't see it.

[FarmBoy]

Looks like an Aerometric barrrl with a recess. If I was guessing, blue. 
 

Relatively easy part to source. I’d estimate a 15-20 part. 

[VacNut]

On 11/22/2023 at 1:01 PM, DnzUlc said:

Yesterday repaired an Aurora 88 piston, today a Lady Patricia lever box but finally found my match. Any help from my more experienced senpais would be welcome. 

 

 

I believe this is an Italian overlay Waterman 42 safety pen. Usually there is a section at the bottom of safety pens which we remove first either with removing the pin or soaking and heating. This one is a one whole piece without any segment. What is the correct first step? Should I try soak and heat, then turn the bottom turning knob counterclockwise? Or should I directly start hammering the big pin below the writing of 42?

Isn’t that the knock out pin at the bottom of the pen? There are guides on this forum with three methods to replace the cork on the 42 pens

[DnzUlc]

14 hours ago, VacNut said:

Isn’t that the knock out pin at the bottom of the pen? There are guides on this forum with three methods to replace the cork on the 42 pens

Thank you

[eckiethump]

On 11/22/2023 at 9:01 PM, DnzUlc said:

Yesterday repaired an Aurora 88 piston, today a Lady Patricia lever box but finally found my match. Any help from my more experienced senpais would be welcome. 

 

 

I believe this is an Italian overlay Waterman 42 safety pen. Usually there is a section at the bottom of safety pens which we remove first either with removing the pin or soaking and heating. This one is a one whole piece without any segment. What is the correct first step? Should I try soak and heat, then turn the bottom turning knob counterclockwise? Or should I directly start hammering the big pin below the writing of 42?

This could be a very difficult pen to dismantle and service, unless there is a break in the overlay. The barrel end taper would preclude normal unscrew of the barrel end mechanism. I have serviced probably a few hundred safety pens and the overlay ones tend to be the most challenging. Albeit Waterman general construction of safety pens are the ones that carry less risk of failure.

Might be a bit "off the wall", given you say there is no joint ? Heat, patience and "wiggle" out the turning knob. Remove the over lay to service pen. The pressing in of the new seals means you need to support the helix internally to apply pressure.

Random thoughts not having handled one in this configuration, I'd be interested in other comments ?

et

[eckiethump]

On 11/22/2023 at 1:25 PM, liberdom said:

A few days ago, while cleaning the barrel of my Parker 51 Aerometric, the screw part broke. I'm trying to reattach it using a solvent.

Right now, it looks like this.

When combine the two, it looks like this

And I also got a Sailor Trident NOS, but it doesn't even last 3 days with the cap closed. After hearing claims that the pen nib dries easily due to its design, I tried to slightly open the pen nib using a brass sheet, but I succeeded in holding it for more than 5 minutes with the cap open, but there was no change at all with the cap closed. I probably need to disassemble the cap, but I can't find any information about it, so I'm leaving it on the desk.

Small parts such as this I have had success with ZAP capillary "glue", quite evil, but effective stuff.

et

[LoveBigPensAndCannotLie]

Need some advice on an issue I'm having with a lever-filler I recently restored. I am having intermittent burping issues. I know people say that burping is a common issue with vintage pens, especially eyedroppers and lever-fillers but personally I haven't experienced it much with the pens I've restored and I've probably restored near a hundred lever filling pens by now.

 

I am thinking it might be one of a few different things. The first thing I noticed is that it usually only happens after the pen has been resting for a few minutes and I uncap it. It's a slipcap so I am guessing maybe I am uncapping it too vigorously and the vacuum caused by this is pulling ink out of the pen.

 

Other than that, I bought sacs from a new source recently (I've gotten other pen supplies/tools from this source before, just not sacs) and half the sacs I got were bad, with disfiguration and holes in them. The ones that were fine seem thicker than usual. So I have a feeling the sac might be bad...

 

I wanted to give this pen as a gift to someone but I don't want to do that if it has an issue. 

 

[LoveBigPensAndCannotLie]

I am now almost 100% sure it's the sac that's faulty. Really disappointed, I bought this from a "trusted" supplier in the community and half the sacs I got were bad. 

 

I think I'm probably just gonna toss the rest of the sacs that I got in that shipment in the trash (no point in risking it and then having to resac pens) and just buy direct from Pensacs.com every time from now on. I was lazy before and would get them from other sources if I was buying other parts or tools as part of the same order but never again.

[GlenV]

makes sense would be a leaky sac you could test them probably for leaking like fill with water and blow into it??  I've rarely bought a sac with a hole in it maybe once or twice, did get  51  vac sac with no pellet