How To Clean The Inside Of A Fountain Pen Cap?

[Justcurious]

How do you clean it out? I can't seem to clean out all of the ink, there have been a few pens that I have that I can't seem to clear out all the ink out of the cap.

[Justcurious]

Double post

Edited April 1, 2015 by Justcurious

[Justcurious]

Sorry about the bad photo quality but this is what I'm talking about (darker spots) I've tried to use tissues but so far it's been hopeless

[huy3825]

Um a quick dunk in the sink with dishwashing liquid should do the trick and if you're scared of it rusting just blow dry it using a hairdryer

Maybe use a cue tip with ethanol?

Edited April 1, 2015 by huy3825

[ac12]

I use a damp Q-tip for that.

For more ink I use a square of toilet tissue that I roll up like a cigarette.

 

Do NOT soak the cap. If water gets between the inner and outer cap, you will never get it all out. And that could cause the prongs of the clip to rust.

Edited April 1, 2015 by ac12

[Buzz_130]

I agree with ac12--a Q-tip works wonders for the bit of ink inside the cap. I usually start with a dry tip to soak up the larger drops of ink, and then I'll switch to a wet tip to clean out any dried ink in the cap. Fortunately, I don't have to do this often!

 

Buzz

[Chrissy]

I usually use a Q-tip for that sort of job.

[StrawberryJam]

Do NOT soak the cap. If water gets between the inner and outer cap, you will never get it all out. And that could cause the prongs of the clip to rust.

 

Sooo....let's say that someone might have done that (or hey, let's blame it on a previous owner of the pen!) -- and now the cap is showing some "rust" between the inner and outer cap. Any suggestions on how to fix? Do I need to disassemble the cap?

[Portia_of_Belmont]

Can't help with fixing the rust, but sealing the cap in a container of rice for a couple of days might help draw the water out that's trapped. It's not something I've tried with a FP cap, but it's a trick that works with waterlogged electronic devices. So, why not?

 

*Edited to correct typos.

Edited April 1, 2015 by Portia of Belmont

[ac12]

I would try to put the cap into a DRY environment. The low humidity hopefully would draw out the moisture.

 

With other methods you are fighting the behavior of water to stick between 2 close surfaces. And how to draw it out from between there. If you can't make contact with the water, then you can't draw it out with a dry tissue or similar. You "might" be able to suction it out, using a small tube at the edge of the inner cap. But I would not want to be sucking on that tube...YUK.

 

Once you have rust, you need to disassemble it to get to the rust and clean it off.

[lionheartlee]

I've been using q-tips like the above posters...I once mixed Noodler's blueerase and a drop of Levenger's Cobalt blue...beautiful color but some of the wettest ink ive ever seen. took 4 q-tips!

[Sasha Royale]

Are you sure it is ink and not rust or corrosion ?

Insert a Q-tip to absorb moisture. Repeat. Repeat.

Eventually, the Q-tip will show not signs of moisture.

A touch of oil, applied with a Q-tip, might aid the prevention of rust.

However, compatibility with the pen material is a concern. Which

model fountain pen is it ?

 

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Next topic : How do I get rice out of my fountain pen cap ?

[Justcurious]

Are you sure it is ink and not rust or corrosion ?

Insert a Q-tip to absorb moisture. Repeat. Repeat.

Eventually, the Q-tip will show not signs of moisture.

A touch of oil, applied with a Q-tip, might aid the prevention of rust.

However, compatibility with the pen material is a concern. Which

model fountain pen is it ?

 

********************************

Next topic : How do I get rice out of my fountain pen cap ?

It's a Montblanc Starwalker, given I've only had it for about 2 months I would like to think it isn't rust, I've tried using q tips and tissue paper but no luck.

[Tweel]

My Starwalker has similar spots, which I can see are actually little pits. That part of the cap appears to be brass, so it might not be rust per se. Possibly it's even an artifact of the fabrication process and is stable. I'll keep an eye on it, and if it starts to bother me I might rig up some sort of spanner (note the slots on each side of the part's rim), remove the part (which appears to retain the clip and derby) and clean it up.