Pilot Con-50 Question

[essayfaire]

A while ago (time gets funny in Covidland) I purchased a 3-pack of what was reported to be Pilot Con-50 converters.  I wanted to replace the Con-40s that had come with some of my pens that will not fit a Con-70.  This morning I attempted to place one in one of my Vanishing Points; though it fit in the pen I could not close the pen correctly and ended up swapping back to a Con-40.

 

Am I wrong in thinking a Con-50 should fit?  I bought these from a spot @ASmugDill had mentioned - are they perhaps not actually Con-50s?  I've attached a picture.  

 

I love Pilot Capless except for the lousy converters!  Thanks.

 

[Karmachanic]

Yes, theoretically the Co-50 should fit.  But it doesn't fit my VP either.

[essayfaire]

1 hour ago, Karmachanic said:

Yes, theoretically the Co-50 should fit.  But it doesn't fit my VP either.

If you don't mind my asking, did yours come from an all-purpose merchant or a pen specialty store?  Or perhaps it was one from an older Pilot?

 

At least I know it isn't just me.  Thanks.

[Karmachanic]

 

[A Smug Dill]

2 hours ago, essayfaire said:

Am I wrong in thinking a Con-50 should fit?

 

I just checked, and I have CON-50 converters in four of my Pilot Capless Vanishing Point pens right now. Needless to say, they're work fine.

 

All mine say “PILOT JAPAN” in bas-relief near the mouth on the clear tube.

 

2 hours ago, essayfaire said:

I bought these from a spot @ASmugDill had mentioned - are they perhaps not actually Con-50s?

 

There seems to be plenty of low-end Pilot fountain pens, including many models and retail packages not seen in either the Japanese domestic market or Western regional markets, so I believe there are production facilities in mainland China servicing mainly the Chinese market; the ones you ordered on AliExpress are probably made in China. Still, the converters should all be made to the same specifications.

 

The CON-20 converters I ordered on AliExpress (quite likely from the same seller you used) work fine in my Pilot Capless pens.

 

2 hours ago, essayfaire said:

This morning I attempted to place one in one of my Vanishing Points; though it fit in the pen I could not close the pen correctly

 

From the thread referenced earlier:

[Karmachanic]

I can get a Con-50 to "fit" my VP (I've tried three), but it is a struggle to remove. I get seven A5 pages out of the Con-40. It's become my IG pen.

[awa54]

If you want trouble free operation *and* maximum ink capacity, just remove the little seal disc from a used Pilot cartridge and refill it with bottled ink, using a blunt tipped syringe, disposable pipette or eyedropper.

 

You can even replace the seal, if you're handy with such things, effectively making "genuine" Pilot carts in any color you like.

[essayfaire]

This is all quite interesting, especially the old thread.  The VP I am trying to fit was recent enough that it should be the "newer" design, and had been shipped with everyone's favorite converter, the Con-40.  I might be able to force it closed, or alter it, but as this pen is a LE I really shouldn't.

[awa54]

5 hours ago, essayfaire said:

This is all quite interesting, especially the old thread.  The VP I am trying to fit was recent enough that it should be the "newer" design, and had been shipped with everyone's favorite converter, the Con-40.  I might be able to force it closed, or alter it, but as this pen is a LE I really shouldn't.

 

1) rinse used Pilot cartridge with clean water and allow to dry

2) use tweezers or fine nose pliers to gently remove seal disc from throat of cartridge without scratching, or crushing the edge where it seals to the cartridge wall

3) using your favorite bottle ink, fill cartridge to just below the shoulder where it widens to the diameter of the cart mouth (a blunt tipped syringe or disposable pipette is suggested for transfer/filling)

4) place seal disc in the mouth of the filled cartridge carefully, ensuring that it sits flat in the opening

5) using any flat ended tool that fits closely in the cartridge mouth (round bamboo chopstick, dowel, the plastic twist knob of your CON-50, etc.), slowly press the disc in until it's about 2mm from the inner end of the cartridge throat, ensuring that it stays level

6) use these MAXIMUM INK CAPACITY cartridges in your finicky, but collectible VP without fear of damage or malfunction  (you may want to skip the most pigment dense inks for best function, YMMV)

 

note: refilled carts will dehydrate more quickly than factory carts, but if used within 6 months to a year of filling, show no adverse signs of dehydration

[A Smug Dill]

15 hours ago, essayfaire said:

The VP I am trying to fit was recent enough that it should be the "newer" design, and had been shipped with everyone's favorite converter, the Con-40.  I might be able to force it closed,

 

This is how much of the clear part on the CON-50 converter you'll see, when it is properly seated in the Pilot Capless nib assembly:

[essayfaire]

On 11/10/2021 at 8:09 AM, A Smug Dill said:

This is how much of the clear part on the CON-50 converter you'll see, when it is properly seated in the Pilot Capless nib assembly:

 

That looks like what I habitually get with the CON-40s.  I will try again my next re-ink, and if still does not work, I will take @awa54's suggestion and empty out a cartridge so that I can use the inks I like.  I'm tired of the small capacity, and the VP is a bit of a pain to fill to begin with because of how immersed it needs to be.  I had tried a PIneider snorkel but it never fit my VPs properly, either.

[awa54]

2 hours ago, essayfaire said:

That looks like what I habitually get with the CON-40s.  I will try again my next re-ink, and if still does not work, I will take @awa54's suggestion and empty out a cartridge so that I can use the inks I like.  I'm tired of the small capacity, and the VP is a bit of a pain to fill to begin with because of how immersed it needs to be.  I had tried a PIneider snorkel but it never fit my VPs properly, either.

 

If you do wind up having to resort to cartridges, just remember that you only need to put the seal disc in if you want to have filled carts at the ready (or need to transport reserve ink in an easily carried form), they will also hold fractionally more ink and be easier to insert without the disc in place, if you're just filling up at your desk

[essayfaire]

1 hour ago, awa54 said:

you only need to put the seal disc in if you want to have filled carts at the ready

I hadn't even though of putting them in to begin with.  Whoops.

[A Smug Dill]

3 hours ago, essayfaire said:

I'm tired of the small capacity, and the VP is a bit of a pain to fill to begin with because of how immersed it needs to be.

 

I actually find the Pilot Capless easier to fill than many of my other pens from a Diamine 30ml bottles (of which I have easily over six dozen opened) and Pilot Iroshizuku 15ml bottles, not to mention 2ml sample vials of ink we tend to send around in the letter post in Australia.