What is on your bench?

[LoveBigPensAndCannotLie]

5 minutes ago, Ron Z said:

You need something to soften the aluminum oxide crystals that have formed.

 

What do you recommend for this? I am assuming this is what is making it harder to unscrew the filler. I haven't had a filler unit that was this tight before.

[es9]

2 hours ago, LoveBigPensAndCannotLie said:

It's been a recurring pattern, I get a cheaper tool and end up needing to get a more expensive one later.

It’s good to learn this lesson sooner rather than later. It’s usually worth ponying up for the better tool. 
 

I have both the new extractor and the wrenches. I like both for different purposes. I find the extractor makes installation easier, especially with lockdown fillers. Also, they are a little more convenient when removing a *really* stubborn filler on a vacumatic; the fact that it holds tension lets you really focus on how much/where you’re applying heat. 
 

That said if I had only one, I would go with the wrenches. They’re time-tested, steel, and cheaper. When I pay a lot for a tool, I want it to last forever. I feel confident the wrenches fit that bill. 
 

Assuming you buy from Dale at Pentooling (his wrenches are great), I recommend not getting the double-sided one. It seems like a good idea, but I found it considerably harder to compress. 

[VacNut]

It was a hard lesson to learn, and it still brings a tear to my eyes; but there is a posting on this topic about breaking a buckskin barrel. Dry heat. Light pressure on the wrench. Repeat.

Put the pen away and come back to it. If the wrench is slipping and stripping the nut, you are likely using too much force. 
If you can remove the hood, and drip naphtha from the other end of the barrel to lubricate the threads from the other side.

Repeat as needed.

[VacNut]

I can’t stand to look. 

[LoveBigPensAndCannotLie]

2 hours ago, es9 said:

It’s good to learn this lesson sooner rather than later. It’s usually worth ponying up for the better tool. 
 

I have both the new extractor and the wrenches. I like both for different purposes. I find the extractor makes installation easier, especially with lockdown fillers. Also, they are a little more convenient when removing a *really* stubborn filler on a vacumatic; the fact that it holds tension lets you really focus on how much/where you’re applying heat. 
 

That said if I had only one, I would go with the wrenches. They’re time-tested, steel, and cheaper. When I pay a lot for a tool, I want it to last forever. I feel confident the wrenches fit that bill. 
 

Assuming you buy from Dale at Pentooling (his wrenches are great), I recommend not getting the double-sided one. It seems like a good idea, but I found it considerably harder to compress. 

 

I don't think the double sided one is in stock. I'm planning on just getting the smaller size one eventually anyways. I don't handle any Maxima/Oversize pens cause I generally stick to "good deals" and cheaper pens. Unfortunately Maximas don't come in "cheap" (although I did find one for a crazy price ages ago, doubt that will happen again). If I ever come across a larger size pen that the vac block can't handle I'll get the larger wrench at that point.

 

Thankfully my pen is a common and easily replaceable black barrel but I would still hate to break it. I'm going to let it dry overnight (took it apart except for the filler and had the nib/collector soaking, cleaned out the inside a bit too) and reassemble in the morning and leave it alone for now. Seems like a pen to come back to later. Worst comes to worst I'll pass it along or trade it as a parts pen. I got the pen for an okay price so I could probably at least make my money back, although I'd prefer to be able to fix it myself.

 

I will say I've come around to the idea of restoring vacumatics. My first few I did not enjoy, but I'm starting to kind of like it. Or at least find it less trying than Snorkels. And there's more of a sense of accomplishment when you put one back together and it works compared to a simpler pen like a lever filler. A vac fil Sheaffer would be even more satisfying but with my lack of patience I don't think I should attempt those.

[FarmBoy]

7 hours ago, Ron Z said:

 

There's an article on my blog, written years ago, showing a drawing of Parker's gauge and the one that I made out of a paint ball tube.  I still use them to test 51s and Vacs after restoring them.  Note that there will be some variation in ink taken in even on a properly restored and working pen because of differences in the length of the breather tube.

But Parker called it a Guage not a Gauge. 

Listed that way in the catalog and on the stock box in the warehouse. 

There is also a Nib Guage which will eventually make it to a tech talk.

 

I realize there was likely someone in Janesville that couldn't spell but he/she was certainly consistent.

[FarmBoy]

I still use an original Parker Vac Wrench.  It has a few miles on it but still works just fine and it IS the correct thread size for the filler nut.

 

FB

[VacNut]

8 hours ago, FarmBoy said:

I still use an original Parker Vac Wrench.  It has a few miles on it but still works just fine and it IS the correct thread size for the filler nut.

 

FB

At over $250 those original wrenches are hard to find but extremely useful. Keep an eye out for them.

[es9]

 

9 hours ago, LoveBigPensAndCannotLie said:

I'm planning on just getting the smaller size one eventually anyways.

 

For whatever it’s worth, I prefer the smaller of Dale’s vac wrenches. It’s easier to compress and, therefore, easier to avoid over-compressing. 

 

20 minutes ago, VacNut said:

At over $250 those original wrenches are hard to find but extremely useful. Keep an eye out for them.

There’s one on eBay right now in nice condition for $160 obo. 
 

9 hours ago, LoveBigPensAndCannotLie said:

A vac fil Sheaffer would be even more satisfying but with my lack of patience I don't think I should attempt those.

These are indeed tricky and require patience. But just as importantly, they require special tools. Don’t even dream about trying to take off a nib without the special (and expensive) tool Dale sells. Maybe you get lucky, but the odds are very much stacked against you. Also, if you need a replacement part, it might take you a while to find the right one. Sheaffer made tons of tiny variations over time — different feeds, different length plunger rods, different nib collars, etc. Sheaffer vacuum-fillers outnumber other pens at least 2:1 in my box of pens-in-need-of-parts. 

 

That said, they’re really cool pens. They hold a lot of ink with one press and, properly restored, should require little to no service for a very long time. While nothing in my book beats a 51 aero or estie in terms of utilitarianism, I think sheaffer vacuum-fillers are close. While I think vacumatics are prettier, sheaffer’s design also cleans the barrel every time you fill —> much less staining.

[Ron Z]

The nib tool doesn't guarantee that you will get the nib out, but your chances of success go from 50% at best, to pretty darn close to 99% - leaving room for the unexpected.  Francis Goosens quit making them, and Dale got the rights to make and sell them.  

 

Another useful tool that Dale sells is the RZ-B.  Another one of my ideas that I passed along to him (I don't get anything from Dale for this)  This is a drill guide, made  to fit  any of the pens that take the small head gaskets.  That covers at least 2/3 of the pens you'll encounter, including ALL pens that have Triumph nibs.  The tool fits in the end of the barrel and keeps the drill centered, and protects the threads while you drill  out the end of the packing unit.  The large blue ring gives you something to grip, and protects your fingers.  I recommend putting the drill in position first and marking the drill about 3/16 above the edge of the tool so that you don't drill down too far and through the end of the packing unit.

 

This is a picture from Dales web site.

 

[LoveBigPensAndCannotLie]

I think it will be a while (if ever) before I attempt one of these, too many tools needed and I don't trust myself to properly get the packing unit out.

 

I have another dumb question in regards to the vacumatic. Light petroleum distillate (aka lighter fluid) is the same thing as naphtha right? Went to a local store but wasn't sure if this was what I needed.

[Ron Z]

35 minutes ago, LoveBigPensAndCannotLie said:

I don't trust myself to properly get the packing unit out.

 

Well,  you don't remove the packing unit.  You remove the nib and drill the end of the packing unit so that you can push the felt and rubber washers out making sure that you get all of it out, insert an 0-ring and then a retaining washer with solvent to secure it.

 

BUT, if you aren't comfortable restoring them, then by all means don't!  Richard Binder and I played with them for about a year before we decided to accept them for repair.  A thousand or more later with very few (less than a dozen I think), I think that we hit on the right method.

[VacNut]

Depending on where you are located, lighter fluid may not be the same as naphtha. The mfrs had to change the formulation to comply with the local VOC laws. There is a forum topic on naphtha. The general consensus is the older lighter fluids are equivalent, but the newer formulations are not.

naphtha is available in most hardware stores.

[FarmBoy]

15 hours ago, VacNut said:

At over $250 those original wrenches are hard to find but extremely useful. Keep an eye out for them.

There is a one listed now at under 200.  Note it is a Universal Wrench which is for the Aerometric 51s which is...harder to find.

 

 

[Ron Z]

10 hours ago, VacNut said:

naphtha is available in most hardware stores.

 

Maybe. It's getting harder to find in the USA.  You won't find it in a big box home store.  You are more likely to  find it in a paint store like Sherwin Williams. 

[GlenV]

On 1/5/2024 at 1:13 PM, Ron Z said:

 

Well,  you don't remove the packing unit.  You remove the nib and drill the end of the packing unit so that you can push the felt and rubber washers out making sure that you get all of it out, insert an 0-ring and then a retaining washer with solvent to secure it.

 

BUT, if you aren't comfortable restoring them, then by all means don't!  Richard Binder and I played with them for about a year before we decided to accept them for repair.  A thousand or more later with very few (less than a dozen I think), I think that we hit on the right method.

That is very cool Ron that you pioneered these drill out repairs, I think that tool would be very helpful.  unfortunately I have drilled too far a couple times ....ugh, but my real problem with these is not the packing unit as much as the nib unit connector rarely in good usable shape . I wish Sheaffer would have thought to make it easier for us trying to restore them 80 years later..

[Ron Z]

Actually Nathan Tardiff and David Nishimura first came up with the original idea of drilling out from the inside.  Back in 2006-2007 Richard and I looked at different ways to do it, and decided that pulling the packing unit came with too much risk of damage.  We killed a number of pens in the process.  After over a thousand of the pens (I know how many bulk 0-rings orders I've placed!) I'm convinced that is the best way to restore the pens.   David started selling the kits with the 0-ring and retaining washers.  I ended up looking for the right rubber to use when I found that the urethane rubber David had been selling failed after a short period of time.  There have been some refinements in tools to make it easier to fix the pens - the nib removal tool, the tool to insert the 0-ring and retaining washer, and now the drill guide.  It really was a number of people that brought us to where the pens are regularly repaired and in use, where before they were considered to be unrepairable.

[LoveBigPensAndCannotLie]

I made the mistake of buying too many pens to fix up and now I am a little bit overwhelmed. Currently have a Parker 61 soaking, this one is taking a while. I gotta say, Parker 61s are kind of underrated pens.

 

The filling system is finnicky and the plastic is admittedly kind of crappy but they're attractive well built pens with nice nibs (IMO, better than P51 nibs) and they go for so cheap. I have a couple and I don't think I have ever paid more than $20 for one (including two rainbow cap ones, not including a test market/"prototype" one, that was more expensive).

[VacNut]

I am not really sure what Parker called this pen in their advertisements but it likely was not called by its popular name: Crystal Vacumatic. There is also demonstrator  and vacuum filler versions of this pen.

I bought this as a parts pens with a questionable barrel and a broken feed. It was missing the entire cap and nib, but had the all important end cap with jewel and tassie. The filler unit is clean and functional. It is an American pen.

 

It took a bit of cleaning with the Rapideze cleanser and q-tip to remove the grime. The threads are sharp as is the mfr imprint. 
The barrel is the typical amber-colored but has seen little use. The “unambered” barrel is more straw-colored rather than crystalline.

I am still searching for an appropriate nib to match the American mfr. 

It’s no longer an original pen, but that’s fine by me as the replacement parts are appropriate. 
A worthy pen to put into the Vac Crystal Box.

 

[FarmBoy]

Please fix the clip.