Refilling an Ink Cartridge

[encephalartos]

Nice hands and voice, CaptNemo How do you keep your hands looking so young? By refilling cartridges and not having to scrub a layer of skin off inky hands :roflmho: ! Thanks so much for the demo. I only have very fine needles to work with and would like a larger one; I'll have to look into this (as well as a decent hand cleaner instead of Ajax!).

 

If you are using Ajax now, Ink Nix might suit you. It's got abrasive in it as well as the

detergent component. If you are interested in younger looking hands, and also need

to take an occasional stain off of your clothes, then I'd suggest Amodex, which is dual

purpose. I haven't tried the garage-type Gojo or similar hand cleaners for fountain pen

ink. They do work for printers ink, but that is not water based.

[captnemo]

Nice work!

I tried to refill some cartridge and was hoping to get better flow (not just capacity) than with converter. In the end, the flow was relatively similar. Do you feel like it improve your flow?

 

BTW did you buy that needle blunt? Or did you "tweaked" it yourself?

 

Bought it blunt. Inkjet printer cartridge refill kits often come with a syringe and blunt needle. That's where the one in the video came from and I've been using the same one for 3 years. Since then I bought three more new ones but my old one is still working fine.

 

Yes. In the pen in the video, switching to a refilled cartridge rather than the Waterman converter ENORMOUSLY improved things. It completely fixed the constant irritating flow problems I had. Noodlers ink is very adhesive and would get stuck up in the converter (because of the smooth shiny sides) so firmly that whacking the pen, even dropping it on the nib, would not dislodge the ink. The plastic in a cartridge is different and the ink does not stick to it at all. Flow is now perfect.

 

The other advantage is that a cartridge has far more capacity than the little converter.

[captnemo]

Thanks for the demo Captnemo. Well done.

 

Thanks. I slipped off camera a couple of times but it doesn't harm the demonstration I don't think. One thing I might have done better is to flush the cartridge with water first so the camera could see the ink flowing into the cartridge. Of course then the video would not be completely realistic. What I filmed was an actual live reload, exactly as I would have done it had I not filmed it.

 

Hopefully it will answer the refill questions that pop up from time to time on FPN. I also noticed that there is no other video like it on YouTube. There is one demo of a converter refill, nothing about refilling a cart with a syringe. But there is now.

[captnemo]

Please feel free to click the video and leave comments / ratings over on YouTube. <nudge, nudge, wink, wink, hint, hint>

 

It looks kind of strange to have a video with lots of views but no comments or rating.

[Sharkle]

Nice hands and voice, CaptNemo How do you keep your hands looking so young? By refilling cartridges and not having to scrub a layer of skin off inky hands :roflmho: ! Thanks so much for the demo. I only have very fine needles to work with and would like a larger one; I'll have to look into this (as well as a decent hand cleaner instead of Ajax!).

 

If you are using Ajax now, Ink Nix might suit you. It's got abrasive in it as well as the

detergent component. If you are interested in younger looking hands, and also need

to take an occasional stain off of your clothes, then I'd suggest Amodex, which is dual

purpose. I haven't tried the garage-type Gojo or similar hand cleaners for fountain pen

ink. They do work for printers ink, but that is not water based.

 

Thank you for the suggestions. I really need something like these because I seem to get ink on my hands no matter how I fill the pen!

 

[captnemo]

Nice hands and voice, CaptNemo How do you keep your hands looking so young? By refilling cartridges and not having to scrub a layer of skin off inky hands :roflmho: ! Thanks so much for the demo. I only have very fine needles to work with and would like a larger one; I'll have to look into this (as well as a decent hand cleaner instead of Ajax!).

 

Hmm, I almost never get any ink on my hands but when I do and I care to remove it, I use household ammonia straight from the bottle. It's quite harmless in my experience. (I also use it along with million of Europeans as a mosquito bite itch stopper. Works great.)

 

Some dyes are quite resistant and they penetrate. In those cases the ammonia will work better than an abrasive. The ammonia reacts with the dye. I remember about a year ago I managed to spill Noodlers Red Black across my palm. The black component did nothing but the red component instantly stained my palm very impressively. (Would that be "manual chromatography"?) But ammonia did the job without any abrasion or harm.

[brainiacmomma]

Nice hands and voice, CaptNemo How do you keep your hands looking so young? By refilling cartridges and not having to scrub a layer of skin off inky hands :roflmho: ! Thanks so much for the demo. I only have very fine needles to work with and would like a larger one; I'll have to look into this (as well as a decent hand cleaner instead of Ajax!).

 

If you are using Ajax now, Ink Nix might suit you. It's got abrasive in it as well as the

detergent component. If you are interested in younger looking hands, and also need

to take an occasional stain off of your clothes, then I'd suggest Amodex, which is dual

purpose. I haven't tried the garage-type Gojo or similar hand cleaners for fountain pen

ink. They do work for printers ink, but that is not water based.

 

Thank you for the suggestions. I really need something like these because I seem to get ink on my hands no matter how I fill the pen!

 

 

Hello,

 

My name is Alexis. Captnemo is my dad. Just to let everyone know who I am.

 

Anyhoo, I always seem to get the ink on my hands also. So I am glad to hear all of these suggestions. My dad sent me the blunt needle and the pens and the ink and, and, and, LOL. Just kidding. I did buy a bit myself. But some of my pens would leak on me too. I never thought to use Ajax, but I am allergic to that stuff. Where would I buy these other products that have been mentioned? Please Help! :embarrassed_smile:

 

Thanks!

Lexi

[captnemo]

Hello daughter! Household ammonia does the trick for me. I use it straight out of the bottle. Straight household ammonia that you get in the supermarket is only 2 percent concentration. Industrial cleaning ammonia that janitors use is 10 percent and I would dilute that before using it, but the stuff in the supermarket is fine for ink removal and also to stop the itching and disinfect insect bites. It works on mosquito bites, spider bites, and bee stings. Just wet your finger(s) with it and rub it in hard into the bites. The itch will stop almost immediately and stay gone for several hours.

[PaulGeo]

Thanks for the video... it is very helpful

Edited March 10, 2008 by PaulGeo

[captnemo]

Thanks for the video... it is very helpful

 

You're welcome. I'm very glad it's helpful. Sometimes it's useful to see something done rather than to just read about it.

[RitaCarbon]

That's how you do it! Nice!!!!!

 

I have syringes without needles that came with the Private Reserve ink mixing kit. Do I need needles for them to refill standard cartridges?

 

I was able to refill Pilot cartridges without any problem, but they are obviously wider.

Edited March 10, 2008 by RitaCarbon

[captnemo]

That's how you do it! Nice!!!!!

 

I have syringes without needles that came with the Private Reserve ink mixing kit. Do I need needles for them to refill standard cartridges?

 

I was able to refill Pilot cartridges without any problem, but they are obviously wider.

 

Yes, you need the needle for international cartridges. The hole is not very big. And for Sheaffer cartridges the hole is even smaller.

 

The needle is also necessary to get down inside the cartridge and "hose off" the sides, from the bottom to the top, round and round, if you want to change colors. Some inks cling to the sides of the cartridge. That's why you can't see the ink filling in the video. Glacier Blue is coating the whole inside of the cartridge. Just rinsing the cartridge from the top would take forever to clear out all the old ink. With a needle you can get in there and jet-blast the sides. I have a little move I do where I put the needle against the side and while squirting, I rotate the cart round and round, and also retract the needle simultaneously. Then I use the syringe to suck out all the liquid and I have a pristine clean cart to fill with another ink.

[Ann Finley]

Thanks, captnemo, for adding to our resources for FPNers!

 

We'll see about getting this pinned for newbies--but in order to avoid too many pinned topics we'll have to decide if perhaps to have a topic for links to "useful information" or some such way of combining things.

 

Best, Ann

[rogerb]

I agree, Ann, we don't want to have too many stickies...with all respect, although this is a very useful guide for the 'less practical', it is exactly how I'd envisaged doing it if I ever tried, and it isn't 'brain surgery', is it?

[captnemo]

Thanks, captnemo, for adding to our resources for FPNers!

 

We'll see about getting this pinned for newbies--but in order to avoid too many pinned topics we'll have to decide if perhaps to have a topic for links to "useful information" or some such way of combining things.

 

Best, Ann

 

 

You're welcome. It was fun and this seemed the right place to put it.

 

Yeah, I dunno if it needs to be pinned, per se. People can find it via a search.

 

One idea maybe, is the have a pinned index of HowTo posts. Some of those posts might be buried deep in some thread somewhere but links to individual posts buried deep in a thread are no problem. Maybe the first post of the index could be a list of links to HowTos that people have written.

 

Eventually I would hope FPN will have a whole bunch of HowTos and pinning them all is clearly not possible. I'm sure there are a bunch of HowTos out there on the board already. An pinned index can solve the problem.

[MYU]

I like that idea of having a "How To" section, with a small index at the front. I think it would be immensely helpful. Good video on the cartridge refill there, Capt'n. One thing I noticed is that an ink bubble formed at the mouth of the cartridge. If you ever do a remake, perhaps mention about clearing it by swirling the tip of the syringe in the cartridge opening. My first time trying a refill (sometime last year) resulted in a little ink back splatter, because I didn't clear the opening. Also, very important to do the fill gradually, as the level can rise faster than you anticipate. I got a little dose of that as well. I realized afterwards that it would be a good idea to do a dry-run with water once or twice, to get the feel of it and then go for the ink.

 

~Gary

Edited March 19, 2008 by MYU

[captnemo]

I like that idea of having a "How To" section, with a small index at the front. I think it would be immensely helpful. Good video on the cartridge refill there, Capt'n. One thing I noticed is that an ink bubble formed at the mouth of the cartridge. If you ever do a remake, perhaps mention about clearing it by swirling the tip of the syringe in the cartridge opening. My first time trying a refill (sometime last year) resulted in a little ink back splatter, because I didn't clear the opening. Also, very important to do the fill gradually, as the level can rise faster than you anticipate. I got a little dose of that as well. I realized afterwards that it would be a good idea to do a dry-run with water once or twice, to get the feel of it and then go for the ink.

 

~Gary

 

Yeah, Noodlers inks are more prone to blowing bubbles and quite strong ones I might add. At the start of the video, after I shake the bottle and take the cap off, you'll hear me make a sotto voce comment about clearing the bubble and see me use the cap to clear the nice bubble at the mouth of the bottle. I do it that way to trap the tiny particles of ink that go flying as much as a foot if you just pop the bubble in the open.

 

And the bubble at the mouth of the cartridge is also characteristic of Noodlers. I was actually a little annoyed at the bubble and didn't say anything about it on the video. You just work the needle around and in and out until it pops. That only happens with international cartridges. I fill Sheaffer carts a lot more often and because of their design they never blow bubbles.

 

If you don't have much experience with syringes, your advice about practicing with water is a good idea. Syringes can easily get away from you and move with a jerk. It takes some practice to produce a smooth flow.

[Ink Stained Wretch]

No Academy Award for cinematography, but...

Great contribution to YouTube! Of course no one in the People's Republic of China or Pakistan will be able to see it.

 

I do it basically the same way, but when the cartridge is not completely clear I need to hold the cartridge up with a small light in back of it so that I can see the level of ink as it rises. Otherwise an it's really easy to have an overflow. Also, I never lay down the cartridge horizontally, at least not intentionally. I use a plastic clothes pin to hold it.

 

I knew as soon as I posted this someone would need to know what a ramekin was. I wasn't going to answer the question unless someone asked.

 

This is a ramekin. Available in most major cities, cost $2.

I get glass ones from Fishs Eddy in Manhattan for 30¢ to 40¢ depending on the size.

 

Oh, I get it. Yeah, sometimes if I'm doing a lot of it, I'll grab a low-profile drinking/cocktail glass from the cupboard for water, especially if I'm using the syringe to flush cartridges with water and "hose off" the internal sides before changing ink colors. But just for casual refills I turn on the tap and use my hand to cup some water under the stream and cycle the syringe a couple times that way. The problem with a glass or a ramekin is that some ink gets on the ends of things and will taint the water. I'd rather use continuously running water.

I run tap water into the cartridge. It can be a hassle sometimes to get the water to go into one but persistence pays off. I used to use the syringe to wash out the cartridges but I figured that I was really using up the syringes that way. So I wash them out and then soak them in order to get all of the ink out that can be gotten out. I have enough empty cartridges that I can leave a couple of cartridges to dry while I use other empties to refill.

 

Good grief folks - all you need is a Duo button filler and you don;t have to go through all this nonsense.

George S figured this all out c 1910.

I think that refilling cartridges is the most efficient method for getting ink into a fountain pen. You can be absolutely certain about how much ink you've gotten into that cartridge. You don't have to be concerned that you might run out later on because you thought you'd gotten plenty of ink into the pen but you didn't. You also don't have to wipe off the nib and section this way, so you not only don't have that hassle but you don't waste as much ink.

 

Nice work!

I tried to refill some cartridge and was hoping to get better flow (not just capacity) than with converter. In the end, the flow was relatively similar. Do you feel like it improve your flow?

 

BTW did you buy that needle blunt? Or did you "tweaked" it yourself?

 

Bought it blunt. Inkjet printer cartridge refill kits often come with a syringe and blunt needle. That's where the one in the video came from and I've been using the same one for 3 years. Since then I bought three more new ones but my old one is still working fine.

I bought my 3 mL syringes and blunt needles here. And I later bought some 1 mL syringes here.

 

I get the 1½ inch long ones because it's good to get as deeply into the cartridge (and the ink bottle!) as possible.

 

For a simple refill the 3 mL syringe and 19 gauge blunt needle, they cost less than the 18 gauge ones, are fine. But I mix inks and sometimes I do the mixing right into a cartridge. So I use the 1 mL syringe to measure out the minute ratios of ink in a mixture. For this task I also use the 27 gauge needles I got from the above source. The amount of "windage" in the 3 mL/19 gauge combination can be large enough to make accurate measurements difficult.

 

I've had to retire one syringe so far because it just got used too much and was getting very balky, the plunger did not operate smoothly. I also keep a different syringe/needle for every Noodler's waterproof ink because I don't want to accidentally mix inks. Some of those syringes have a bit of the color of the waterproof ink on the inside wall, I clean them scrupulously but there's no stopping some of that ink from staining the plastic.

 

One thing I noticed is that an ink bubble formed at the mouth of the cartridge. If you ever do a remake, perhaps mention about clearing it by swirling the tip of the syringe in the cartridge opening. My first time trying a refill (sometime last year) resulted in a little ink back splatter, because I didn't clear the opening. Also, very important to do the fill gradually, as the level can rise faster than you anticipate. I got a little dose of that as well. I realized afterwards that it would be a good idea to do a dry-run with water once or twice, to get the feel of it and then go for the ink.

Arrrrggghhh! Bubbles :bonk: ! They show up at the most inconvenient times. And I have to watch for them or they'll appear very suddenly and decorate the kitchen table. Bubble avoidance is a priority. In order to get around that, if I'm mixing more than a single cartridge's worth of ink, I'll do the mixing into a glass shot glass. It's nice to not have to worry about bubbles. Of course you also have to make sure that you've filled the syringe up with more ink than you're going to squirt into the cartridge. I've at times been so concentrated on the level going into the cartridge that I haven't noticed that all of the ink is out of the syringe and if the tip of the needle is in the ink in the cartridge, always happens just at the top of the cartridge, I end up blowing bubbles that way too.

[Sailor Kenshin]

I use industrial syringes---but good grief, that needle in the video is looooonnnnng!

[Melnicki]

INSULIN SYRINGES: I know I've said it elsewhere, but I have settled on Insulin Syringes, as I feel they are superior to all the other types. They hold 1 cc total (that's 1 mL, typically what a standard cartridge will hold), they are slim (and thus fit nicely in a travel pen-case without taking up too much room), and their needle is incredibly thin and short. I don't know the gague, sorry. I use ones from BD.

 

These last two points (short and thin needle) are important for two reasons:

-- they take only one flush of water to be cleaned out.

(other syringes take multiple flushes of water, and thus more time)

-- they retain the least amount of liquid in the needle.

That means that you don't have to worry about wasting ink, nor about residual water/ink diluting the color of the next ink you fill with.