Fairy liquid flush?

March 20

Looking on picking up my first fountain pen,( an Asvine v126). My questions is, should I flush it right away before using it?
I’ve seen some recommendations to use a drop of detergent while flushing, and I was planning on using some fairy liquid.

Would that be ok, or would I flush out all the silicone grease and end up crying myself to sleep?

Edited March 20 by Fountain_pen

March 20

Hello, and :W2FPN:

I have no idea about your specific Asvine pen, but I do the flush that you describe (plain room-temperature water with a tiny drop of Fairy Liquid, then flush again with only plain room-temperature water) to every pen that buy.
I always do it before I ink the pen, so that I make sure that no traces of manufacturing residues are left in the pen to impede ink flow.

I do it to all of my pens, including the few expensive piston-fill pens (Lamy 2000, Pelikan Souveräns) that I own.

Even if you do ever find that a piston needs lubrication, a pot/tube of a few grammes of 100% pure silicone grease can be bought from a SCUBA supplies shop for a few £.
E.g. I bought a 7g tub of 100% pure silicone grease about a decade ago. In those days it cost about £6.50. I believe that the cost might now be up to around £10.

Over the decade, I have used it to re-lubricate the pistons of all seven of my piston-filled pens, and also those of a few converters.
I use iron-gall inks, and so (compared to most people) I have a fairly 'aggressive' cleaning regime for my pens.
At my current rate of usage, I reckon that my 7g tub of silicone grease contains enough of the stuff to last me for 100 years.

Slàinte,
M.

March 20

On 3/20/2025 at 8:09 PM, Mercian said:

Hello, and

I have no idea about your specific Asvine pen, but I do the flush that you describe (plain room-temperature water with a tiny drop of Fairy Liquid, then flush again with only plain room-temperature water) to every pen that buy.
I always do it before I ink the pen, so that I make sure that no traces of manufacturing residues are left in the pen to impede ink flow.

I do it to all of my pens, including the few expensive piston-fill pens (Lamy 2000, Pelikan Souveräns) that I own.

Even if you do ever find that a piston needs lubrication, a pot/tube of a few grammes of 100% pure silicone grease can be bought from a SCUBA supplies shop for a few £.
E.g. I bought a 7g tub of 100% pure silicone grease about a decade ago. In those days it cost about £6.50. I believe that the cost might now be up to around £10.

Over the decade, I have used it to re-lubricate the pistons of all seven of my piston-filled pens, and also those of a few converters.
I use iron-gall inks, and so (compared to most people) I have a fairly 'aggressive' cleaning regime for my pens.
At my current rate of usage, I reckon that my 7g tub of silicone grease contains enough of the stuff to last me for 100 years.

Slàinte,
M.

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Hi, Thanks a lot for your detailed reply. In your experience does flushing your pen with soapy water lead to the pen needing to be re-lubricated sooner? I.e in the few months after your fairy liquid flush?

March 21

On 3/20/2025 at 11:34 PM, Fountain_pen said:

In your experience does flushing your pen with soapy water lead to the pen needing to be re-lubricated sooner? I.e in the few months after your fairy liquid flush?

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First, I advise you to remember that, when you are flushing a new pen, you aren't attempting to de-grease a used motorbike engine

You only need to put a single small drop of Fairy in to a glass of water; cycle that solution into and out of your pen a few times, and then; repeat that cycle of flushing with plain water (to remove all traces of the detergent).

As for the length of time between needing to re-lubricate pistons, I have found that it varies between pens. I haven't noticed any pattern to when a pen's piston will need to be re-lubricated.
E.g. I actually lubricated the piston of my Lamy 2000 when I bought it (in 2020), because it felt fairly stiff before (and after) I flushed it with Fairy. I did that before I put any ink in to the pen. I haven't had to do it again.
If you are only using 'normal' (i.e. dye-based) fountain pen inks, and occasionally flushing your pen with water, you shouldn't need to re-lubricate the piston for at least a decade, and probably longer (unless you move to a high desert, where all things dry-out far more rapidly).

During regular use with 'normal' (i.e. dye-based) inks, none of my pistons have ever dried out.
But I often use iron-gall inks (which are highly-acidic and can deposit precipitates inside the pen) and then wash-out their residues using vinegar (and, very occasionally, detergent), so I expect that I will need to re-lubricate pistons far, far more often than most people do.
My own enhanced cleaning regime is perhaps too 'paranoid' - it is something that is a relatively 'modern' phenomenon. I only do it because I switch between pens and inks often, and I don't want any chemical reactions occurring inside my pens between residues of old ink and the ink that I have just put in to them.

Even for me, the interval between lubrication is a long time - I have re-lubricated my M205 twice (I have had it since 2012), but my other piston pens (acquired since 2020) only once each.

For most people, I suspect that leaving the pen unused and 'dry' is the main 'cause' of pistons drying out - I suspect that the lubricant inside the pen might dry-out if the pen is left unused for a long time.

During the era when everyone used fountain pens, and iron-gall inks were in common use, people just used their pens continually. Even the idea of occasionally flushing the pen out with water was uncommon.
E.g. Pelikan started selling piston-fill pens in 1929, and has always sold iron-gall ink for use in its pens.
If piston dry-out were any kind of 'problem', the company wouldn't still be producing piston-fill pens.
Montblanc also used to sell iron-gall ink for use in its piston-fill pens until about a decade ago. Montblanc used to advise users of its iron-gall ink to flush their pen with plain water once every couple of months. A 'warning' that was probably over-cautious, having been written by the company's lawyers (you know, like the warnings on the leaflets that come with prescription medicines).

If you use the Google custom search for FPN that was created by moderator @watch_art...

https://cse.google.com/cse?cx=016372583718073050395:1rsitsemrpo

...you will be able to find several threads that discuss how to re-lubricate pistons, and how often you might need to do it.

If your pen has a removable nib/feed unit it's really easy to do (even for me, and I am a Weapons-grade klutz), and it takes only a couple of minutes.

Do you know if you can unscrew the nib/feed unit from the Asvine pen that you are thinking of buying?
I know that the inks that I like to use require more 'care and maintenance' of one's pens, and so I have only bought piston-fill pens from which I can remove the nib/feed unit easily, without the need to use any special tools.

If you don't intend to use 'high-maintenance' (i.e. iron-gall, or pigment-based) inks in your pen, the occasional flushing of the pen with plain water is probably the only 'maintenance' that you will ever need to do.

Slàinte,
M.

March 21

The fact that you’ve taken the time to write such a detailed response to me is incredible. You have my gratitude.

I plan on only using dye based inks, so given your experiences, I expect I will be ok.

The Asvine pen is easily disassembled and the nib and feed simply screw in.

Thanks again for your reply and I wish you all the best.

March 21

What is fairy flush?

March 21

On 3/21/2025 at 2:32 PM, FarmBoy said:

What is fairy flush?

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When Tinkerbell has to use the facilities.

March 21

On 3/21/2025 at 2:32 PM, FarmBoy said:

What is fairy flush?

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Fairy Liquid is comparable to Dawn dish soap.

I have a relative who is involved in wool textiles testing, cleaning, wear properties, durability and so on. Dish soap is suggested for many of the procedures to clean woollen textiles and carpets but not Fairy Liquid, any other brand of dish soap. Fairy Liquid has properties which are desirable in dish washing but is too rich (whatever that means) for textiles.

One drop in a couple of pints of lukewarm water is probably neither here nor there however.

There are plant based dish washing detergents/washing up liquids made by companies such as Ineos which I would use over Fairy Liquid if you are super-fussy

https://www.ineoshygienics.com/consumer-products/ineos-next-gen-2-in-1-dish-hand-with-pomelo-yuzu

March 21

On 3/21/2025 at 2:56 PM, Beechwood said:

Fairy Liquid is comparable to Dawn dish soap.

I have a relative who is involved in wool textiles testing, cleaning, wear properties, durability and so on. Dish soap is suggested for many of the procedures to clean woollen textiles and carpets but not Fairy Liquid, any other brand of dish soap. Fairy Liquid has properties which are desirable in dish washing but is too rich (whatever that means) for textiles.

One drop in a couple of pints of lukewarm water is probably neither here nor there however.

There are plant based dish washing detergents/washing up liquids made by companies such as Ineos which I would use over Fairy Liquid is you are super-fussy

https://www.ineoshygienics.com/consumer-products/ineos-next-gen-2-in-1-dish-hand-with-pomelo-yuzu

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Ah well, it’s all I have on hand, if the worse comes to worst, I’ll re-grease it years earlier than I was expecting too. Would be a good thing to learn anyhow. Cheers for your reply.