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Repair Rant Of The Evening...

TimGirdler

By TimGirdler
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TimGirdler Extremely Rare

TimGirdler

Posted
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So, I get this Sheaffer Imperial.... It's a client's pen.... It's a touchdown filler.... I get it apart.... And then....

 

The sac was shellaced in.

 

No, the sac wasn't just shellaced to the nipple. The sac appears to have been shellaced before the filler sac guard was put on. How the pen EVER worked, I do not know. But, the bead of shellac around the hole in the top of the sac guard (with the sac still there) is a tell-tale sign.

 

For the love of all things good and holy, PLEASE don't shellac sacs to sac guards!

 

Oh the HUMANITY!

 

Blessings,

 

Tim

Tim Girdler Pens  (Nib Tuning; Custom Nib Grinding; New & Vintage Pen Sales)
The Fountain Pen: An elegant instrument for a more civilized age.
I Write With: Any one of my assortment of Parker "51"s or Vacumatics

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Hooker56 Vintage

Hooker56

Posted
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Kind of like a belt AND suspenders, eh Tim? :D

"Not a Hooker Hooker, but rather a left-handed overwriter."

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Komitadjie Extremely Rare

Komitadjie

Posted
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Dang, that's gonna' be fun to get out!

 

In my noob-ish mind, the only things that come to mind are:

 

Soak it for a while in a petrochemical solvent.

Burn it out with controlled heat. The latex would go LONG before the steel sac protector..

 

So, how do you ACTUALLY tackle that problem? :lol:

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JonSzanto Antique

JonSzanto

Posted
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Pampers AND Depends. You can never be too careful.

"When Men differ in Opinion, both Sides ought equally to have the Advantage of being heard by the Publick; and that when Truth and Error have fair Play, the former is always an overmatch for the latter."

~ Benjamin Franklin

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mhosea Collectors Item

mhosea

Posted
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If a little bit is good, then a lot must be better, right?

The last VS I restored was supposedly NOS, but whoever put that sac on certainly subscribed to the "more is better" philosophy. They actually managed to plug the breather tube with shellac.

I know my id is "mhosea", but you can call me Mike. It's an old Unix thing.

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SteveE Extremely Rare

SteveE

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Maybe plunk it into a cup full of alcohol. That should dissolve the shellac but not hurt the metal parts or the section.

 

Of course, try the alcohol on some hidden piece of the material first, just to be sure.

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flighter51 Mint

flighter51

Posted
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I agree with removing thesac protector tube and soaking it in alcohol. No effect on the metal and the sac is toast anyway. Never seen that particular variant but then I spent my weekend cussing at my own repairs.

 

Best of Luck and Happy Pen Hunting,

 

Fern

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pen lady Collectors Item

pen lady

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I've had to simmer a sac protector on the stove to get an old sac out. Not because of shellac, just total gummed-up ossification! It worked pretty well though.

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mhosea Collectors Item

mhosea

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I'm sure Tim doesn't need any help figuring out how to clean it up.

 

Incidentally, this shellac-happiness should still work though, at least some if not all that well. Air pressure is still increased inside the sac protector through the vent holes on the side. Even if you tried to shellac the sac's sides to the collector, it would probably still work (despite, apparently, your best efforts to screw it up) because most likely only one side would really "stick". :)

I know my id is "mhosea", but you can call me Mike. It's an old Unix thing.

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TimGirdler Extremely Rare

TimGirdler

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UPDATE:

 

I had considered a number of courses of actions--some have been mentioned here already.

 

But, the sac protector literally began coming apart in my hands while trying to remove even the smallest amount of the sac. So, I've sourced a replacement part.

 

In the final analysis, I don't know if it was the shellac I saw in the protector or if the sac failed and the ink rusted through the protector or some combination thereof, but the part is dead and needs to be replaced.

 

Blessings,

 

Tim

Tim Girdler Pens  (Nib Tuning; Custom Nib Grinding; New & Vintage Pen Sales)
The Fountain Pen: An elegant instrument for a more civilized age.
I Write With: Any one of my assortment of Parker "51"s or Vacumatics

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mhosea Collectors Item

mhosea

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I think shellac should have protected the metal rather than rusted it. I'd blame the ink for the rusting.

I know my id is "mhosea", but you can call me Mike. It's an old Unix thing.

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TimGirdler Extremely Rare

TimGirdler

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I think shellac should have protected the metal rather than rusted it. I'd blame the ink for the rusting.

 

Agreed. But, I still can't explain the bead of adhesive-ish stuff around the hole in the back of the sac guard by just thinking it was ink. It has to be shellac, I'm thinking.

 

Blessings,

 

Tim

Tim Girdler Pens  (Nib Tuning; Custom Nib Grinding; New & Vintage Pen Sales)
The Fountain Pen: An elegant instrument for a more civilized age.
I Write With: Any one of my assortment of Parker "51"s or Vacumatics

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mhosea Collectors Item

mhosea

Posted
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It has to be shellac, I'm thinking.

I assumed so. No reason why we can't have shellac where it shouldn't be, a failed sac, and ink rusting a sac protector all.

I know my id is "mhosea", but you can call me Mike. It's an old Unix thing.

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