Parker 61 -- Recommendation for repair/replacement

[jdclarkson]

I have a great-writing Parker 61 whose capillary filler either needs to be replaced or refurbished. Do any of you have any recommendation as to who can do this well, and how to contact them?

 

Thanks mucho!

Edited February 5, 2009 by jdclarkson

[skybird]

I have a great-writing Parker 61 whose capillary filler either needs to be replaced or refurbished. Do any of you have any recommendation as to who can do this well, and how to contact them?

 

Thanks mucho!

You will get many replies closer to home, but advise from a 61 person - try to get the aerometric converter fitted. Far better idea and lots more capacity.

[OldGriz]

I have a great-writing Parker 61 whose capillary filler either needs to be replaced or refurbished. Do any of you have any recommendation as to who can do this well, and how to contact them?

 

Thanks mucho!

 

Are you sure it needs replacement and not just a major cleaning...

61 Capillary fillers are notorious for needing major cleaning to work... sometimes it takes hours of flushing to get them clean...

They also tend to be rather fussy as to what ink they like .... I had a real nice writer that just would not write well with Noodlers or PR inks... when I switched to Skrip Black or Waterman South Seas Blue it was a fantastic writing pen....

Buy an ear syringe at your local pharmacy and trim the end to fit snug over the cap filler and keep flushing until the water comes out clean...

Then the next day do it again..... you may still see some ink come out...

Flush from the nib end also...

It is a tedious procedure, but generally works well.

 

IIRC, there is not conversion from capillary filler to aero filler for the 61 ..... at least I have never seen one...

The C/C fill 61 was designed that way not converted from a cap filler.

[HesNot]

And IIRC the C/C 61s bodies and parts are not compatible with the cap fillers. I seem to vaguely recall that someone did convert a 61 - maybe even Richard - but it was tedious and not cost effective.

 

I'd clean the dickens out of it as Tom said, and agree with the ink issue.

[jdclarkson]

Are you sure it needs replacement and not just a major cleaning...

 

I'm pretty sure. I have used ultrasonic cleaner and when I use a "blow bulb" full of water at the end of the filler, it blows clear water through the filler and out the nib without resistance. There is some capillary action because I can dip it for about 30 seconds (as recommended) and ink makes it to the feed, but not enough to write for very long.

Edited February 5, 2009 by jdclarkson

[J English Smith]

Long ago, I thought I remembered reading that repacking these with wick material is possible, though difficult. But I don't know a pen restorer who's doing them - do you, Tom?

[OldGriz]

Are you sure it needs replacement and not just a major cleaning...

 

I'm pretty sure. I have used ultrasonic cleaner and when I use a "blow bulb" full of water at the end of the filler, it blows clear water through the filler and out the nib without resistance. There is some capillary action because I can dip it for about 30 seconds (as recommended) and ink makes it to the feed, but not enough to write for very long.

 

I have to ask.. what do you mean by not writing for very long.... how many pages....

Have you completely dried out the pen after the water cleaning... that can take a day or so with the nib and hood wrapped in paper towel and sitting point down..

If the capillary filler has not been totally dried after cleaning you are not getting a full load of ink...

[jdclarkson]

I've learned that an Australian outfit will convert from capillary to converter: http://www.vintagepens.com.au/2003may.htm. I'd really prefer not to do that. I also learned that Victor Chen, of Penoply used to restore capillary fillers, but the only e-mail address I could find for him has bounced.

 

So, still looking for suggestions about repair people.

Edited February 6, 2009 by jdclarkson

[framebaer]

Richard Binder can either replace the capillary filler or convert to a C/C. His wait is long but he has all the parts/special tools for 61's iirc.

[jdclarkson]

I have to ask.. what do you mean by not writing for very long.... how many pages....

Have you completely dried out the pen after the water cleaning... that can take a day or so with the nib and hood wrapped in paper towel and sitting point down..

If the capillary filler has not been totally dried after cleaning you are not getting a full load of ink...

It's not measured in pages nor even paragraphs, but in lines. A few lines. I thought I had dried it, swaddling the nib in tissue paper and putting it, point down, in a glass. I did not, however, wait overnight. I'll try that and see if it makes a difference.

 

I'd really not like to convert this pen to something it didn't start out in life as.

 

[skybird]

I've learned that an Australian outfit will convert from capillary to converter: http://www.vintagepens.com.au/2003may.htm. I'd really prefer not to do that. I also learned that Victor Chen, of Penoply used to restore capillary fillers, but the only e-mail address I could find for him has bounced.

 

So, still looking for suggestions about repair people.

I would highly recommend Peter Ford - Melbourne Vintage Pens.

He will be at the LA Pen Show so it would be easy to get the pen to him, the repair would be good and the postage back would not be expensive.

Peter does all my repair work in Australia.

No I am not related........ ;-)

 

I have an address for Victor which I am about to test.

victor@penopoly.com

 

 

[richardandtracy]

I suspect that the capilliary filler is clogged regardless of the cleaning you've done.

 

When you flush a capilliary fill there is a tendancy for the ink near the feed to be flushed out, and the bit in the outer section of the filler to be unaffected. Also, if the writing is for so short a time, it suggests to me that the collector is full of dried ink.

This will probably be need to be dismantled to clean it properly.

 

The innards of the capilliary P61, and how to dismantle it, are shown in my post here:-

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/in...showtopic=39324

 

Hope this helps,

 

Regards

 

Richard.

 

[jdclarkson]

...

The innards of the capilliary P61, and how to dismantle it, are shown in my post here:-

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/in...showtopic=39324

...

Richard.

 

Thanks, Richard. What an amazing article! Disassembling it myself, though, will be the last resort, since I am a bit of a bungler. If it is clogged, would repeated soakings/flushing with ammonia-water solution eventually get it clean?

[OldGriz]

...

The innards of the capilliary P61, and how to dismantle it, are shown in my post here:-

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/in...showtopic=39324

...

Richard.

 

Thanks, Richard. What an amazing article! Disassembling it myself, though, will be the last resort, since I am a bit of a bungler. If it is clogged, would repeated soakings/flushing with ammonia-water solution eventually get it clean?

 

It is worth a try.... worst case scenario it still goes to a restorer

I would flush and then let it sit nib down in the ammonia solution overnight and then start flushing again.

The overnight soak will allow any clogged ink to hopefully dissolve so it can be flushed out..

Do remember to follow the ammonia solution with clear cool water flushing.... and then a drying period

[jdclarkson]

...

I would highly recommend Peter Ford - Melbourne Vintage Pens.

He will be at the LA Pen Show so it would be easy to get the pen to him, the repair would be good and the postage back would not be expensive.

Peter does all my repair work in Australia.

No I am not related........ ;-)

 

I have an address for Victor which I am about to test.

victor@penopoly.com

Thanks. I'll be at the Pen Show on Friday, so I'll look for him. I'll also whip out an e-mail to Victor at that address.

[jdclarkson]

...

I would flush and then let it sit nib down in the ammonia solution overnight and then start flushing again.

The overnight soak will allow any clogged ink to hopefully dissolve so it can be flushed out..

Do remember to follow the ammonia solution with clear cool water flushing.... and then a drying period

 

OK, will try that. Is there any advantage to simply having the nib in the ammonia solution instead of submerging the whole assembly (section and filler) and letting it soak? Any down side to the "soak the whole thing" approach?

[Rowingbiker]

The following procedure is my "favorite" (even though I have a syringe).

 

I leave the entire pen (without the barrel obviously) in water and remove the inky water by carefully blowing at the end of the capillary. Then I shake/flick the pen in tissue paper until nothing comes out anymore. Repeat for as many times as necessary to get only colorless and clear water (sometimes it takes a couple of days). To my mind, a sign of the capillary filler "coming back to life" is when you see bubbles coming from the nib when you put the shell in the water.

 

Then, in my experience, the first fill after a thorough cleaning requires leaving the rear end of the capillary in the ink for 30 minutes rather than 30 seconds.

And I agree with some of the knowledgeable ones: try a "watery" ink. I have several capillary 61s and they thrive on waterman's blue-black (and Quink works too).

 

Regards, Rob

[jdclarkson]

The following procedure is my "favorite" (even though I have a syringe).

 

I leave the entire pen (without the barrel obviously) in water and remove the inky water by carefully blowing at the end of the capillary. Then I shake/flick the pen in tissue paper until nothing comes out anymore. Repeat for as many times as necessary to get only colorless and clear water (sometimes it takes a couple of days). To my mind, a sign of the capillary filler "coming back to life" is when you see bubbles coming from the nib when you put the shell in the water.

 

Then, in my experience, the first fill after a thorough cleaning requires leaving the rear end of the capillary in the ink for 30 minutes rather than 30 seconds.

And I agree with some of the knowledgeable ones: try a "watery" ink. I have several capillary 61s and they thrive on waterman's blue-black (and Quink works too).

 

Regards, Rob

Thanks, Rob. Even now, I get only clear water when I blow water through the filler. However, when I run it through the ultrasonic, the water turns cloudy. Not grey, not washed black from in, but simply cloudy. I am soaking in the ammonia-water solution now. I will blow clean water through it later and let it dry for a few days.

 

I use mostly a mix of Waterman Blue and Waterman Black, so ink should not be an issue.

[Wardok]

Jim Marshall and Laurence Oldfield's fantastic book, PEN REPAIR, has a couple of pages on converting a Capillary to a Converter (page 76) as well as how to fix a Capillary. Well worth getting a copy if you don't have one. There will probably be a pile at some of the pen shows, if not you can get them on E-bay or from the authors own websites:

http://www.penpractice.com/

http://penpencilgallery.co.uk/

 

[jdclarkson]

I'll be at the L.A. Pen Show and have "Pen Repair" on my list of things to get.