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Question About Montblanc Oblique Nibs, Inks And Paper


gerigo

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My question is whether the combination of ink and paper have an effect on how the nibs, especially the really wide ones, perform?

 

I am relatively new to the world of Montblanc oblique nibs. My OBBB in the 149 is my newest acquisition. After it returned from the nib swap, I filled it with what I had in the office, which was a single bottle of Organic Studios Join or Die sepia. It performed beautifully. I had absolutely no problems and the pen would write at the drop of a hat. Yes I had to make sure I held it at the right angle but it was not particularly finicky, and would write easily. I use Rhodia for my nice pens, primarily to enjoy the performance of the pen and also a little bit of nice writing.

 

My second fill I tried Iroshizuku inks, both Yamaguri and Fuyugaki. Wow, the pen now has completely transformed. It just refuses to write on Rhodia. It would just glide along the paper, almost like there is little to no resistance. No ink would come out of the nib. I really have to struggle with the right angle to get the pen to write if at all. If it does, the ink appears very watered down, and diluted. Almost like it had sat in the sun for too long. At this point, I thought maybe I somehow damaged the nib during the cleaning process. Except the nib would write at the drop of a hat with more absorbent paper, like Moleskine with the same ink.

 

I had the same problem with my OB nib on my Boheme. I originally thought I did not quite know how to use an oblique nib. Except that now the Boheme is filled with Noodlers Golder Brown, and it writes easily.

 

Any one experience the same situation? Do these wider nibs require a much more saturated ink in order to operate optimally, so that there is resistance on very smooth paper?

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Yes I have similar problems with my Rhodia and Clairefontaine. It feels like the paper is too waxy or oily and the ink is not laying down a solid line sometimes. It is more apparent at the bottom of the page and with certain inks. I don't think it's hand oils either.

With cheap office paper I never had this problem but all I got was an ink with no depth. It also laid down a thicker line too, so much that it made my 149 B's uncomfortable to write with on the office paper. Just too fat and no line variation. It was like writing with a fat felt tipped marker.

Just the opposite with the Rhodia and Clairefontaine - good saturation, shading and line variation but skipping and resistance on the nib

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mango, the issue you are experiencing at the bottom of the page very well may be hand oils. I just did an experiment a week or so ago and posted the results here on hand oils vs paper. It appears that the more absorbent the paper, the less of an impact hand oils have. Of course, ink and nib width are factors too. I did the test on 4 different papers ranging from super absorbent low quality office paper up to Clairefontaine/Rhodia type coated paper using 3 different nibs (F, M, and Broad) and 3 different inks.

 

I would most certainly agree that coated, non absorbent (or less absorbent) paper like Rhodia and Clairefontaine are causing your skipping woes. But I also think the ink plays the larger factor, not necessarily in saturation, but in surface tension. Inks with high surface tension will want to stay in the pen and more heavily rely on the wicking action of the fountain pen to transfer ink from pen to paper. Since the nib is wider, more ink is being pulled and requires more "force" to pull it from the pen. When you write with a B+ nib with low surface tension ink on non absorbent paper, things should go smoothly. The ink isn't clinging to the inside of the pen, and wants to flow freely, making up for the non absorbent paper, which isn't really inducing flow as much as office paper. Likewise, put high surface tension ink in an F nibbed pen and you shouldn't have a problem either, a smaller volume of ink is leaving the nib and requires less encouragement from the paper to do so.

 

 

Hope you find this helpful

 

 

TMG

Edited by TheModernGent

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Can't comment on that particular ink/pen/paper combination, but I've got an oblique medium nib on my Hemingway. With some/many/most inks, it skips on cheap, coated paper (like legal pads) but otherwise it writes nicely on standard papers. I believe part of the problem with nibs of that type is the interaction between the coating on the paper and the geometry of the nib itself. As I understand it, fountain pen nibs work by capillary action and the nib actually "cuts" a small track into the paper as it writes. If there is less force (pressure/unit area) as would be expected with a broader nib-to-paper surface, anything that reduces friction (e.g., coating) will cause the nib to skip.

 

With the usual disclaimers,

KAC

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Thanks guys for the explanation. I figured it had to do with surface tension so thanks to TheModernGent, KAC for the explanation.

 

I wonder whether it has something to do with the amount of water the pen holds upon flushing. I can actually see a huge bubble of water through the ink window that I can't get out of the pen. When I re-ink the pen without trying to dry out the pen, the inks become quite diluted. That's when all the problems started.

 

I wonder whether I should try to flush out the current ink into the ink bottle, and reink it directly with more concentrated ink? I will try and see what would happen.

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You're most welcome :D

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I've used Iro ink and many others in my 149 O3B on Rhodia with no particular issues. Haven't tried the Clarefontaine yet.

Smith Premier No. 4
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I've used Iro ink and many others in my 149 O3B on Rhodia with no particular issues. Haven't tried the Clarefontaine yet.

Colrehogan, how do you dry the nib before inking? I have a lot of water held in the feed and ink chamber after flushing, which I think is causing the problem.

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Thanks guys for the explanation. I figured it had to do with surface tension so thanks to TheModernGent, KAC for the explanation.

 

I wonder whether it has something to do with the amount of water the pen holds upon flushing. I can actually see a huge bubble of water through the ink window that I can't get out of the pen. When I re-ink the pen without trying to dry out the pen, the inks become quite diluted. That's when all the problems started.

 

I wonder whether I should try to flush out the current ink into the ink bottle, and reink it directly with more concentrated ink? I will try and see what would happen.

I don't think the bubble you see is water, given that water is a major constituent of ink. I suspect it's actually air and it shouldn't make any difference with writing.

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My experience with Rhodia is somewhat similar. My 149 with an EF nib writes perfectly on Rhodia, as easily and smoothly as on any other paper. However, my 146 with a B nib doesn't seem to like Rhodia paper. It feels sticky and dry and must be pressed down harder to start, and it tends to skip. On cheap paper it writes like a dream.

My handwriting looks best on Rhodia, the line variation being most pronounced, but that feeling of difficult writing is so annoying that I'd rather use cheaper paper instead.

Edited by Vlad Soare
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I have a Montblanc OB nib also and get the same watered down look with Diamine inks no matter what the paper. Writes smoothly with no skipping or other problems.

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Colrehogan, how do you dry the nib before inking? I have a lot of water held in the feed and ink chamber after flushing, which I think is causing the problem.

If I am planning to ink after flushing, I would dab it on a paper towel, then wrap it in a paper towel and put it in a beaker nib down for a few hours to make sure that any water is wicked out. I have to hide the pens when I do this - otherwise my cats would have the pen(s) on the floor.

Smith Premier No. 4
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My question is whether the combination of ink and paper have an effect on how the nibs, especially the really wide ones, perform?

......

Short reply, yes nib, paper and ink all three matter, not equally maybe, but they all matter.

Enjoy your pens

Have a nice day

Junaid

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