Sailor 1911 L <F-Nib>: Ink Flow Issues After Flushing

[UnCupoDeCafe]

TL;DR Version: Flushing a brand new Sailor 1911 Profit Large with a 1:10 ammonia-to-water solution caused the ink flow to decrease significantly (yes, I thoroughly flushed and dried the pen after cleaning).

 

Full Version (the most salient bits are underlined for ease of reading):

 

Dear FPN,

 

I've been a lurker on this forum for many, many years.

 

Thank you very much for creating, and supporting, such a treasure-trove of knowledge and camaraderie!

 

I recently purchased a Sailor 1911 Large in a Fine Nib.

 

Upon receiving the pen, I immediately inked it with Diamine Mediterranean Blue using the stock Sailor converter.

 

The pen wrote beautifully with that characteristically medium-wet Sailor line.

 

As a matter of habit, I eventually flush all new fountain pens (including their converters) with a mixture of household ammonia and water (I strive for a 1:10 ammonia-to-water ratio but usually end up using less ammonia and more water).

 

My experience has shown that this improves ink flow (sometimes significantly) and removes manufacturing residue.

 

After flushing with ammonia, I followed-up with tap water, then distilled water, and finally let the pen dry (nib-down) on a Kleenex for several hours.

 

After flushing my Sailor, I've noticed that it’s started to write with a significantly drier line. The feed delivers ink consistently but the nib isn’t laying it down as thickly as it used to.

 

Why might this phenomenon be occurring and what may I do to remedy the situation?

 

I really enjoy this pen—especially when it wrote wetter.

 

Thank you ahead of time for your help!