I picked up a snorkel for $10 on eBay. I believe it's an aqua (pastel blue) Snorkel Sovereign. Looking at it, it looks ok, except for the cap dent, etc. mentioned in the description. The nib is slightly out of alignment, otherwise looks good. But then I tried operating the filler mechanism ...

I should mention this is my 2nd snorkel & I've done little fountain pen repair, although I intend to start.

When I turn the blind cap, the snorkel only goes out about 1/8". Then when I turn more, the plunger just pushes the blind cap out; I've tried pushing the blind cap down while turning, but it just won't resist the outward pressure, at least at the pressure I was willing to apply. I can push down & turn the blind cap, pulling in the snorkel. I haven't tried actually filling it. Also, turning the blind cap has a tendency to turn the section, unless I hold it in place.

I took the pen apart. The barrel popped off, under spring pressure. There was no spring around the sac protector; perhaps this is stuck in the barrel, explaining why the barrel popped off? The sac looked ok through the little holes in the protector, but I don't know if it really is ok.

Any ideas what the problem(s) could be, and what to try next?

Thanks!

Dave

Dave you need the spring. If it's not in the barrel I would be surprised, given you said it popped off. Sometimes it is not seated properly and doesnt provide the right spring tension.

If the snork only extends a bit, and slight pressure won't get it to extend all the way, then my gut feel is that the sack protector is catching on the section somehow.

Do this first. Take the pen apart, except for hte sack protector and the section/nib. Here are all the parts you should have.



First, test and see if you can extend the snorkel tube manually, by pushing the sack protector into the section. The grooves at the crimped portion of the sack protector must alight iwth the grooves inside the section. Sometimes one groove is wider than the others.

If it extends freely, then something was wrong in the assembly (probably the spring) and you can try reassembling, and extending with the filler. I find that usually reassembly is all that was needed. The spring should seat cleanly on that little ring on the sack protector.

If the tube cannot extend even manually, then you have a problem either with the crimps catching or with the point seal, which you may have to replace. Soak the nib/section, and lubricate the base of the snork tube with silicone grease and try again.

Any chance you can post pics?

Article on the snork mechanics here may be of some help as well.

http://www.enter-net.de/auktion/artikel/snorkel4_e.htm

What Kendall said...

I would put my money on the orientation of the sac protector - it must slip fully into the section. I've seen 4 positions where the , two barely insert at all, one inserts perhaps 1/2 way, and only one position allows the grooved end of the SP to fully enter the section (fully means that the slightly larger end of the sac protector that has the ridges / grooves completely enters the section).

It sure does sound like an assembly misfit of one type or another.

Gerry

the ebay seller probably took it apart and couldn't make it work once back together - hence the decent price
wayne

Wayne - interesting theory! Hopefully, a nice simple fix & I come out way ahead on this! I've really grown to like this color. The inside of the pen looks impeccable (i.e. clean & shiny). Now if only it would work ! I had hoped to play with it by now, trying everybody's ideas, but it's been a crazy week!

Kendall - thanks for the article link ... great article.

Thanks all for your suggestions. I'll let you know what I come up with.

Dave

Well, I've made some progress. The problem with the snorkel extension was in fact the orientation of the sac protector in the section ... good guess! So now the snorkel moves in & out just the way it's supposed to. But now the problem is the pen won't fill.

A couple of things I did notice. The snorkel was encrusted in dried ink; but it dissolved in water very quickly.

he spring keeps getting stuck in the barrel, when I take the barrel off.

One time when turning the blind cap, the section inadvertently turned, so it was then partially unscrewed. When I took the barrel off, the sac protector was in the same position where I found it ... it could explain how it got there.

In my other snorkel the section end of the spring sits INSIDE a little rim. In the new one, the spring can't fit inside the rim; I think what I'm seeing is the rim is both small & filled with some material.

I do hear a pfffst sound after depressing the blind cap. But I don't feel any air pressure on my finger when blocking the barrel end & moving the blind cap up & down. If I did it right, the pen failed the blow test ... no bubbles.

Any suggestions for what to do next?

Thanks!

Dave

I came across a picture of different "rims" on the section. It seems my newer snorkel has the rim Sheaffer first used; my older snorkel has the newer rim, which is by far the more common.

Dave

So now the snorkel moves in & out just the way it's supposed to. But now the problem is the pen won't fill. I do hear a pfffst sound after depressing the blind cap. But I don't feel any air pressure on my finger when blocking the barrel end & moving the blind cap up & down. I tried the blow test; if I did it right, the pen failed the test ... no bubbles.

Any suggestions for narrowing down the problem? Is it time to bite the bullet & restore the entire filling system (which I've never done, but am willing to try)?

Dave

1. are you sure the sack is still pliable? you should be able to get a read on that by poking through the holes of the sack protector with a BLUNT object.

2. the pffft is the pressure building up and being released in the touchdown mechanism. Doesn't tell you anything about the sack. But it does tell you the TD mechanism is at least building up some pressure.

3. If pressure is building and the sack is pliable, then probably the snorkel tube is plugged.

At a minimum I think you'd have to take the sack protector off of the assembly so you just have the sack, nipple, and snork tube. taking it off is a little touch as you want to loosen up the crimped section just a little with a screwdriver. The tube may pull out inadvertently and if it does you'll need a small ring hook to screw into the rubber section and pull it from the protector.

You can check just the sack assembly by dipping the snork tube into water and squeezing the sack manually. Bubbles, and suckage, good. No bubbles: plugged snork tube.

Only way to unplug is to pull the tube and soak the tube by itself. If it is plugged, soaking the whole sack assmbly wont allow fluid to work its way through the tube. You can tell if its clear by blowing through it. I had one tube plugged on one of my snorks. didn't clear until I did this.

Regarding the spring problems. is the face that the spring mates up with on the sack protector a lip or does it look more like a cup. The photo above is a sack protector unit with a lip. The cup has an edge that the spring sits inside of. The problems you mention arent' a big deal, but indicate that the spring is binding in some way with the body of the pen. i find that the ends of the springs where the steel band tapers to a point sometimes bind up the spring, either shrinking or expanding the next diameter. This could be part of what is causing your problems. Id' worry about it after you get hte filler figured out.



Top: lip
Bottom: cup

For the cup, the spring must seat inside it freely. Sometimes this is tough to make happen. If you twist the spring tighter, the diameter will shrink and you can get the leading edge of the spring into the cup. If it is seated well, your problems may disappear.

Kendall,

It definitely looks like a lip, not a cup

Thanks for the detailed instructions!

Dave

Thansk Dave. If you do pull the tube, please remember that the orientation is important for the tube to feed ink properly, so when you reinsert it, you'll have to make sure it lines up properly in the nipple.

Well...

My own rule about any new old pen is that one should fully service the filling system unless you are absolutely sure it was done properly by the seller and even then I'm pretty picky about how things are put back together in most cases do a full overhaul.

With Snorkels, everything must be 100% for the pen to work properly and it is well worth it to have the pen thoroughly cleaned, all the seals replaced, and a fresh ink sac installed. because the pen goes "pffft" that means that it is building pneumatic pressure within the barrel (which it needs to fill) but I'd still replace all the seals at the blind cap as well.

After that you probably won't have to worry about servicing the pen for a few decades and I have even seen 40 year old MIB Snorks work perfectly.

A little silicone grease placed on the filler where it inserts into the section will help it slide more easily as will a touch of silicone grease on the filler and snorkel tube will improve performance as well. The filler has to be able to slide freely within the section for the pen to function properly so this needs to be checked before the pen goes back together.

The section needs to be shellaced in place once the final reassembly of the pen is completed to keep it secure and sealed.

I figure a properly restored Snorkel should fire water at least a metre and then you know that all the seals are working as they should.

Keep us updated on your progress and I look forward to hearing about a successful restoration.

One of the causes I found for the snorkel tube hanging (I belive it catches on the spring)up or not coming all the way out is the lip of the tube will occasionaly get a very tiny small, need to look at through a loup
curl, to the outside. it has happened to me twice. I took a fine piece of emery paper sanded it down and then it worked.
Ron Meloche