Lamy 27 Piston Removal

[soapytwist]

I've got one that's ejecting ink from the knob when filling. I'm not sure if ink is getting past the piston, or if it's a small hairline crack in the barrel that is letting the ink escape. I want to remove the piston to check and repair, but I remember reading somewhere that the piston isn't removable in the same way the the Lamy 2000's can be removed.

 

Can someone give me some pointers?

 

[RevAaron]

It may depend on how old the pen is, if it's an earlier or later 27. I do know that later 27s and Ratios can have their pistons removed rather easily in the same manner as the 2000's piston. The 27 and Ratios I've done this with have squared off blind caps and are made of a lighter (and imho, cheaper) plastic than the earlier 27 models.

 

Without trying it out on the pens I have at home, I can't say for sure... but I'll hazard a guess. If the piston knob is hidden under a removable blind cap, then you need a special tool- a spanner/spaced screwdriver should work, though you'd need a long one. The same design is used in other early Lamy/Artus/Orthos pens with a removable blind cap.

 

If the piston knob is the blind cap- that is, there is no removable blind cap, you just twist the knob to operate the filler- then you would be able to take out the piston assembly in the same way as the 2000's. I happen to have a Lamy 99 demonstrator with me at work, and it looks that way to me.

[soapytwist]

It's an earlier, round-ended one, but the knob has that tell-tale loose half turn when unscrewing before the piston engages, so I think it must be as per the 2000. I think I'll take the bull by the horns and see how I do...

[soapytwist]

Thanks RevA - it was as per the 2000. It came off with difficulty (especially as it was being turned against a barrel I suspected had a crack in it). The barrel was just scratched not cracked, so the piston seal must be at fault. The trouble is it won't just slide out like the 2000 one does! I'll continue my efforts tomorrow night...

[RevAaron]

I've been away from the computer for the last couple days- bah! I checked when I got home, I was going to tell you the same. Except the 27s with a removable blind cap, it looks like you can unscrew it like the 2000. I tried it on a few pens.

 

The piston won't slide out really easily, though it shouldn't take *that* much force. The threads that the piston unit attaches to often hold the piston in some, requiring a little pull. Sometimes it helps to continue with the anti-clockwise rotation.

 

Hopefully, all the piston will need is a little cleaning and some silicone grease!

[chezriley3]

It may depend on how old the pen is, if it's an earlier or later 27. I do know that later 27s and Ratios can have their pistons removed rather easily in the same manner as the 2000's piston. The 27 and Ratios I've done this with have squared off blind caps and are made of a lighter (and imho, cheaper) plastic than the earlier 27 models.

 

Without trying it out on the pens I have at home, I can't say for sure... but I'll hazard a guess. If the piston knob is hidden under a removable blind cap, then you need a special tool- a spanner/spaced screwdriver should work, though you'd need a long one. The same design is used in other early Lamy/Artus/Orthos pens with a removable blind cap.

 

If the piston knob is the blind cap- that is, there is no removable blind cap, you just twist the knob to operate the filler- then you would be able to take out the piston assembly in the same way as the 2000's. I happen to have a Lamy 99 demonstrator with me at work, and it looks that way to me.

[sirksael]

The piston should slide out like the 2000, if it doesn't it means it is probably stuck on dried ink or worse. Basically, all Artus and Lamy pison fillers (since the removable blind cap) are the same. What I did have on some of them is that the thread on the piston was stripped, if that is the case it'll need replacing.

[Ernst Bitterman]

I've a 99 that had a similar disinclination to hold a charge. I seem to recall having to use a probe to push the piston out, but it's been long enough that I can't remember whether it ended up going out the front or the back. I foun that the seals on the piston had become deformed, probably through lack of use; a mess of silicon grease more or less took care of the problem, but I wouldn't mind finding a replacement, or perhaps adding in an o-ring like the Schrieber-refit Walitys use.