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51 Vacumatic - Should Old Ink Sacs *always* Be Replaced?


unigami

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I posted a (rather long) topic the other week about my very first 51, "Leon" an aerometric, and a lot of you warned that it wouldn't be my last. Well you were right. I couldn't resist getting a nice vacumatic too.

 

It arrived today. It is a 1948 and it's in even better shape than than my first one. I would say it was gently used. I'm soaking it and pumping it and getting ink out. The plunger is working freely and everything seems good.

 

My question is: what is the risk of not taking the pen apart and replacing the ink sac?

I'm not afraid to take the pen apart, since I've done that with my first one, but if I can get it to run clean after using the soaking method described in the pinned topic on this forum, and the pen writes well, why not use it until the sac fails? I assume it will fail during filling, and when it does it won't be a huge catastrophe, I'll just have to take it apart then and there will be more stray ink involved than if I were to do it now.

 

So, I'm interested in your opinions on this. It this a matter of "if it ain't broke don't fix it" ?

Sometimes life is merely a matter of coffee and whatever intimacy a cup of coffee affords. - Richard Brautigan

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I got away with leaving an old sac in a '45 for a few months, so it's not impossible that it will keep working. However, when I did strip it down, the rubber was more like leather, and on the very verge of cracking at the fold that represents the leading edge of the diaphragm at rest. The crack could easily have presented as a mere pinhole, allowing sufficient compression to fill the pen but not acting as a perfect barrier while the pen is riding in your pocket. Thus, waiting for failure could be inviting a gentle seeping of ink into the space occupied by spring and aluminum fitting, where it might lurk through a couple of fillings which seem on the outside entirely successful. By the time you see ink on the filler stem, corrosion has begun to make a home in your pen.

 

(cue Berhard Herrmann string section)

 

Unless you know when the last refit was done, it's best to assume there hasn't been one, and the original rubber is cranky at having been left cooped up like that for so long.

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It's mainly pens, just now....

Oh, good heavens. He's got a blog now, too.

 

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I never trust a Vac diaphragm even if the pen is working. Because a diaphragm has to unroll and the roll back up as the pump is activated it is stressed more than a sac on a lever fill pen, especially if it is stretched a bit at the end of the stroke. Better off to replace it than wait for it to fail.

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It all depends in how much you will be using the pen. If it will be a daily user, then replace the diaphragm before beginning with it. But if you want to use it for a while and then change for another pen, (and another...), then you can begin using it without restoring. Keep an eye on ink appearing in places not intended to do so, like the blind cap threads.

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Here's my take.

 

Your "found in the wild" Vac has made it's way to you.

 

And you don't even get to play with it? Christmas morning and you have to wait until Dad gets some batteries?

 

:angry:

 

I'd try a couple lever presses with water just to see if it looked like it was taking it up. If so, get most of that out and do a regular fill with it. *Keep the pen at home. Light desk duty.* But not for long.

 

At least play with it for awhile. So how it writes. What adjustments need to be made with flow? Smoothing issues?

 

After a day or so do a writing sample with it to include with the pen when you send it in for the new diaphragm.

 

Do a clear handwriting pic post for the Show your pen, writing and ink thread. Since you're probably going to have the pen officially restored, you'll have a decent Before pic to compare it to when it comes home.

 

So, yeah, don't put it into full, away from home use without a new diaphragm, but go ahead and have a little fun with it first.

 

Bruce in Ocala, Fl

Edited by OcalaFlGuy
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It is safer to replace the diaphragm than to not replace it, that's obvious.

 

That said, several years ago I bought a 51 Vac junker on ebay with a wrath of God gold filled cap and a nib with the tipping stubbed off. I replaced the nib with a nice NOS fine 14K nib. Then I inked the pen, and it worked fine, and it has worked perfectly since. I consider this to be very lucky, and I don't put it in a shirt pocket. It stays at home, in a pen jar. Still writes quite well and fills. Exception that proves the rule, but why not get some more mileage out of the old sac? It depends on how much risk you will accept. The experts have wisdom and safety on their side, though.

"Don't hurry, don't worry. It's better to be late at the Golden Gate than to arrive in Hell on time."
--Sign in a bar and grill, Ormond Beach, Florida, 1960.

 

 

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Thank you for the replies. The comment about a potential pinhole going undetected and allowing corrosion to develop is a very good one, so I've decided to replace the diaphragm.

 

I'm going to try and do it myself, even though it means investing in a few tools but I think it will be worth it in the long run. I'm pretty good at doing intricate work like this and I enjoy learning new skills and the satisfaction of doing things myself. I really have to thank the FP community for the wealth of information that is out there for people like me who are interested in learning!

Sometimes life is merely a matter of coffee and whatever intimacy a cup of coffee affords. - Richard Brautigan

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If you buy the tool, it should be easy to change the diaphragm. I have changed at least three, and I used a piece of rubber to grip the threads on the filler unit under the blindcap and unscrew it. No sealant is needed to replace the filler unit. I bought a few brass filler units with sac attached, and also unscrewed one filler unit and resacked it. I reasoned that at 65 (then) there was not enough need for me to justify the tool, since I don't plan on doing any more, even though this was enjoyable.

"Don't hurry, don't worry. It's better to be late at the Golden Gate than to arrive in Hell on time."
--Sign in a bar and grill, Ormond Beach, Florida, 1960.

 

 

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