I just got the estimate for straightening a nib that I messed up while trying to repair it.

How much damage have you done?

OR

How much have you paid to fix your mistake?

Me? $25.00... but well worth it, IMHO.

Been lucky so far but almost pulled the feed out of a Omas Bologna last week while trying to.....ahhh, never mind. Frightening stuff, this amateur repair business. Bet that would have been a 35 - 40 dollar repair.

Never actually broken a pen of mine. I cracked a cap in half once, through over-tightening. But luckily, it was a banded cap, so a complete disaster was averted.

I understand the basics of FP's, just like I understand the basics of cars. I do cleaning and some general maintaining, but when it comes to repairs I let the experts do it - both pens and cars. Regarding FP's, if I ever get the chance to sit down with a repair person to learn the essentials of repair, then I will attempt repairs.

So far - just shipping.

There's one exception in that I have paid with my ego on one pen "repair" that should have been easy and I somehow bunged up. A very good friend saved my backside on that one without charge and I still feel guilty.

Bent the interior stem of a Waterman Edson by forcing the wrong end of an ink cartridge againts it. Stanford replaced the whole nib/feed assembly free of charge.

Dropped my Visconti VG on it's nib tip and bent it.Cost me $25 as well.

Jim

Dropped a VP nib on my tile floor, so I reground it into a cursive italic for a total of $20. Who knows, I may never have discovered the world of cursive italics.

No fair, most of you did your damage by pure accident, as in dropping the pen. I messed up the threading on a perfectly good red celluloid Esterbrook barrel by hitting it with a buffing disk on my Dremel tool. I'm holding onto it thinking that someday I'll be able to straighten or re-cut the threads, but they're a mess.

Then, after about two weeks of trying and not being able to remove a stuck section in a Waterman Taperite, I used more aggressive heat on it, from a heat gun. I thought I was being fairly gentle, and was trying not to apply so much heat that I couldn't hold it, but at one point I saw that the barrel had gotten soft. Uh-oh. I don't think it caused any permanent damage, but I wouldn't be surprised if it's not quite straight. (And still the section was stuck. I finally got it out a few days later.)

So far I only use, clean, and paper bag 'em.
I have bought a pen in bits for a couple of bucks that I could play with, that has put me off from trying anything silly!

On two different occasions, about $50-$60 after trying to repair the nib. Both times, I ended up paying for a replacement nib and to have it swapped. I've made a promise not to touch the nib ever again, unless it's for very light adjustment (e.g., aligning the tines with my nail). I still don't know what I was thinking when I tried to make the repairs myself... it really makes you appreciate the skills of people like Richard Binder and Ron Zorn.

I haven't got the bill yet for snapping the cap on my oversized vac in half (take it easy on me Ron! ).

I have a good idea how much this will cost, but I'll remain silent.

As part of a pen restoration, a Duofold Jr. needed a new nib. I requested an insanely sensitive fine italic nib. Nibmeister gave me what I wanted and I can't do a thing with it. I might as well have dropped the pen nib-down.

Live and learn.

I've broken 4 pens attempting repair or improvement. 3 related to removing the section (I think it was glued). (I've saved the parts in case I offer it up for repair). One was a destroyed sac nipple attempting to "chip off" the old shellac (which may not have been shellac).

I also have a "51" that I dissembled and haven't gotten put back together. All the parts are in a baggie and I'm just waiting to send it to some repair-person when along with some other repairs (that I haven't yet identified).

Andy

I have a funny story that involves a burgundy speedline vacumatic maxima. I had just gotten the pen and was trying to remove the section to fix a feed problem. I worked on it for two days cajoling and gently encouraging some movement using ultrasound, heat, and kind words. Okay, so I realized that that wasn't going to work so I took it to my favorite pen repair friend. He picked up a section pliers and started twisting really hard. I was going insane thinking "its going to break and I just got the thing."

Most of the time we all know when enough is enough so I told my friend that it's really okay to stop now. I'll give it more time and work it out slowly, but Noooo there was no stopping my buddy. I clearly remember the third time I told him to STOP when we both heard the cracking of celluloid. He looked at me with the broken section and nib in the pliers in one hand and the barrel in his other hand. AARRRGGGHHH.

Many years later he passed away and I still think about this one story as an endearing part of being friends.

So, the moral to this is: If you're going to fix pens, make sure you break them yourself.

I've dropped a few pens while trying just to flush them out. Had just opened a nice little vintage Balance Junior when the neighbor's cat came into the house to visit and jumped up on my arm. The cap hit the floor and the edge cracked off. And then about a month later I was flushing out a vintage Waterman with a flex nib when the the smoke alarm went off in my home and startled me so much I dropped the pen on the bathroom floor. The nib cracked and the pen now has a stiff replacement nib. I don't even try to repair my own pens. I can do enough damage just cleaning them out.

I ruined the nib of my first FP (a Sheaffer Imperial) while trying to repair it. Didn't learn the lesson and a couple of years later I killed a Parker Arrow. But that was about 20 years ago, and now I take my pens to my trusted penmeister whenever they have a problem.

I ruined the nib of my first FP (a Sheaffer Imperial) while trying to repair it. Didn't learn the lesson and a couple of years later I killed a Parker Arrow. But that was about 20 years ago, and now I take my pens to my trusted penmeister whenever they have a problem.

I dropped my new Parker reissue and broke the section, cracked the body and destroyed the nib. Cost: $350.00, Swear words used: Priceless.