This is getting frustrating.For the second time in a year,my Stipula Florentia had developed this disintigration at the collar where the feed/nib meets the end of the pen.Not sure why.Is it a reaction between the ink and the plastic?Or maybe just really inferior quality holders?
I don't want to send it in to Stipula for a 3 month stay just for that.
The other option is buying a bag of these from someone and continually replacing them.

Anyone else had issues like this?

I will try to post pics later.

Jim

Do you mean the collar that gets pushed/screwed into the barrel and holds the feed and nib? I had a crumbling collar once with my Galileo when I bought it. Needed to be replaced. There was some nasty brownish ink in the pen. But I don't know if that was the cause. Which ink do you use in your Stipula?

Also, can one buy these collars just like that?

Please post pics as that will help to identify yor problem.

Yes indeed.That same collar.I have tried different inks.Usually browns to match the celluloid.Perhaps one of them is too acidic.
As i'm at work i'm not able to take pics yet.As soon as i get home tonight.
The ink right now in it is Noodlers Kiowa Pecan.

Jim

You know I had the same ink and despite its beautiful color, I never put it in one of my expensive celluloids. In these pens I only use Diamine or Waterman inks.

I know that there is a guy out there somewhere (found him once online) who categorizes all inks according to different specs (e.g. pH, durability in sunlight etc.) You might be able to find out if your ink is a problmatic (i.e. acidic) one.
In turn, why don't you just use some unproblematic ink in it for a while and see if it happens again. Richard Binder has a good ink article on his web site that you should look up: "The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly" If your problem really is caused by the ink (which is still just a hypothesis), you'll find that, according to this article, Noodler's is not one of the most unproblematic inks. But if you use this ink only part-time, that does definitely not make the case of identifying the culprit easier.

Also, is the disintegration of the collar more of a chemical nature or could it also be that stress causes it to come apart? Does the collar bcome brittle or what does it do?

The plastic is coming off in chucks.Not sure if switching inks now will be a cure.But i will give it a shot.
The one good aspect is that the ink is not leaking uncontrolled through the disintegrated part.So it writes fine.

Thanks for the tips.
Jim

Remember, Noodler's ink is pH neutral - so it won't be those. What other brown inks do you use?

I have not used any other inks in this pen.Just Noodlers.So now i'm stymied.
The ring has fallen away completely now.You can see that in the middle pic.
Maybe that outer ring was purely aesthetics. To complete the look at the nib.????






The saving grace i that i have no leaking.Just irritating!

Jim

Looks pitiful and also makes me angry every time I see an expensive pen betray such quirks.
In the second picture, the collar appears to be corroded.

Theoretically, I think ink can do such things. But I'd guess that takes a long while until such damage happens... You haven't had that pen longer than a half year, have you?

Noodler's is pH neutral, so they say. Has anybody ever tested this? Maybe some litmus paper would show if that is true. Or does the color of the ink cover up the results (maybe a chemist could jump in here and tell us what would be cheapest way of testing ink). When they claim "neutral," that would mean a pH of 7. I used to have a pretty nice test kit with specially coated dip slips. If I had them here in the U.S., I'd be happy to send you some, but alas I don't.

Jim, how did you get the first collar repaired? You said it happened before. I'd get it repaired a second time and then abstain from the ink and then see if it reoccurs. If not, you know it was Noodler's. If yes, then it's a problem with the material Stipula has chosen.

I personally am very suspicious of Noodler's as I have not had good experiences with the inks (besides their fantastic colors). But as this is only within the realm of supposition and speculation, I will not claim anything here that I cannot prove (and I know many people really love these inks).
Jim, you could also ask the Pelikan guy Rick Propas (member here on the board). He has had problems of Noodler's clogging up vintage pens, I believe. If he's never seen corrosion with Noodler's then you can feel better. And if he has, you can maybe better assess your situation.

Thanks for the input Wolfgang.
It does look pitiful.To obtain another insert i found a very inexpensive Stipula on ebay and bought it mainly for the part.And it has worked well for about 5 months.Till today.Funny,i use mainly Noodlers inks and have had no other issues with the many other pens i have.Not one problem.So unless it is the material Stipula has chosen,i'm not sure how it could be the ink.And the soft plastic used by the insert could be the same as used in the converter,etc.Not sure.
To get it repaired,i'm not sure what i want to do next.Between the last pen purchased(for the part) and another,i would have put too much money into it.
It is a stunning pen and i don't want to get rid of it.it writes well,even with this issue.And another thing i noticed this time and the last,is that the only part to have a problem is at that junction of the collar and the celluloid.None of the other parts of the plastic further down have corroded at all.

Possible the pressure of writing and flexing the nib may have a bearing on things?It is a bit flexible.
Or,if one were to screw it in too far and push it past the point it should go,maybe.

I have cleaned it out and filled it with Mont Blanc's racing green to see if any more issues crop up.

Jim

To my knowledge, Rick Propas suggests inks other than Noodler's and Private Reserve because of clogging issues - not anything like corrosion. People do not keep their pens clean and then return the pen to Rick when the ink flow stops or such - Rick wastes time cleaning their pens for them and then sends them back. So, I believe the disclaimer is in place to avoid the housekeeping work people should be doing themselves.



If inks were corroding PLASTIC, we would hear about it. This looks more like a fatigue or manufacturing weakness/fault.

Sounds like a good theory.And after thinking about it,if the pen isn't leaking,it continues to write well and i have no more problems,i will leave it alone.Maybe when a show comes up or i have the heart to send it away for a fix,it will be done.
Thanks for all the advice and suggestions.At least i know that the problem is out there with pics for all to see.

Jim

This is very simply a case of screwing in the nib/feed assembly too tight. I know from experience, and talking to a Stipula representative.

Essentially, the little lip on the collar indicates where you should stop putting force on the nib/feed assembly when screwing the nib/feed assembly back into the section.

It also helps in preventing ink from getting between the nib/feed assembly and the section itself.

BTW, you do not find this lip on the collar of retractible Etrurias, because it makes the nib/feed assembly too wide for the retraction mechanism.

Is "removing" this collar a problem? Not in my opinion, as it isn't present on all Etruria nib/feed assemblies. However, you need to be a little more careful when screwing the nib/feed assembly back into place. You can't easily go too far, but exertign too much force may corrupt the threads of the section.

So, you could in principle just remove the lip, and maybe smooth the area where it tore off (with some fine mylar, or other polishing stuff), and continue using the pen, no problem. Just don't screw the thing in with too much force.

Anyway, HTH, warm regards, Wim

Thanks for the info.I thought with the first one that was the issue and so i made sure not to tighten with this second one.In fact,one could twist it rather easily.
And still it did this. I will try to find one of the pieces again(wonder if Stipula or ? might sell them separate) and try once more.In the mean time,i will try what you have mentioned.So far it writes perfect and is not leaking in any way.Maybe more of an aesthetic issue.

Thanks again wim.

Jim

Jim,
The problem lies not with Stipula, but with Bock. These Bock collars are unfortunately nearly impossible to find by themselves (without also purchasing and nib and feed, that is). They're also fairly fragile: I've had a couple develop cracks merely from having the nib and feed pushed too deeply into the collar. Rather than purchasing a nib unit from Stipula, however, look into buying a Bexley nib unit from Richard or John M. They're identical, and the Bexley units are considerably cheaper, though not inexpensive in themselves.
My concern is that from the pics you posted, the collar seems almost too big for the pen. Anyway, good luck with your pen. Best,
David

Thanks David.I will give that a shot.I did a comparison with the new one and the old one taken out of the new Florentia and they were identical.
But maybe the original was the wrong one.
If Richard or John have them i will inquire.

Thanks again to everyone for the tips.

Jim

It is indeed a problem with the nib manufacturer, The same thing happens to Levenger True Writers and some other pens that use the same basic nib assembly - and there are a host of them out there. The pressure of the inner cap against the edge of the collar causes them to crack and break. The problem is exacerbated by the fact that the end of the section is tapered, so the collar takes all of the pressure.

It is possible to trim the end of the collar so that it's flush with the section and let the section take the stress (as it should IMO). Simply replacing the collar will expose you to the same problem next time.

Which is,in effect,where it is at now.That collar had come off and now one sees no black ring on the top.
And since it still writes flawlessly and with no problems,i will leave it alone until a solution comes along or i can find a replacement from Richard or
John.

Might not hurt to send Stipula an email.Certainly won't do any further damage.Although i won't hold my breath.

Thanks for the tip Ron.Much appreciated.

Jim

So, can anyone provide a list of which Stipula pens have this collar? Do either the Etruria or the Novecento have this collar?

I can't vouch for all of the Novecentos, but all modern ones, including the Aqua and the Rex have it for sure. The Crescent filler models have permanently affixed collars; you can pull nib and feed, but not unscrew the nib/feed assembly (due to the different filling mechanism).

Etrurias: all but the retractible versions have this collar. With older versions it is not a problem, the (older) fixed piston fillers that is, because they have a slightly different design lip/flange, with slits to hold it in place with a special tool. With these models the collar is fixed to the piston filler with a special kind of non-hardening (not completely anyway) resin or rubber.

BTW, I have only encountered this problem with nib/feed assemblies that I have handled myself, as in, screwed in too tightly very likely. I have never ever seen this with any of the Etrurias or other large nibbed Stips where I haven't removed the complete nib/feed assembly by screwing it out (and in again). Once a crack develops, it will go. Of my 32 Stips, 31 have a collared nib/feed assembly, and 28 have a collar with lip. Of those 28 I have 3 now without a collar, the last one to suffer was the Nuda, when I cleaned it to refill with a new ink. The collar was fine after removal of nib/feed assembly, but after screwing it back in tightly, the lip cracked and warped, as in Jim's photographs. Not immediately, mind you, but a week or so later I noticed.

BTW, there is a way to prevent this from happening, when removing nib/feed, but that requires pulling the nib and feed from the collar while still attached to the pen. The nib/feed only fits one way into the pen, due to a notch in the feed, but requires practice to slot back in properly, as having the nib just a little too far from the feed causes ink flow problems. However, no problems with cracking collar lips.

So far, I haven't had problems with any of the collar lips of pens where I pulled nib and feed only. However, this introduces other risks.

Do notice, that unscrewing the nib/feed assembly and putting it back in, is not a design feature for easy cleaning, which is what most of use probably use it for. It is only there to fit a new nib in a new pen more easily. It was not designed to cope with the stresses of multiple removal and refitting, especially as a little dried up ink may go a long way to make it very hard if not impossible to remove.

Also note that most specialized pen retailers I know, will replace the prefitted nib to another of your liking, if the specific pen with specific nib is not in stock anyway, by pulling the nib and feed and replacing the nib only, rather than unscrewing the whole nib/feed assembly.

Warm regards, Wim

Hmm... I'm looking right at my Stipula Novecento, which I've been using all morning, and it does not have that angled lip on the collar. Perhaps it's because is an older model; it's a piston filler. Also, unless I'm missing something, going by at Jim's photos, I don't recall any of my other Stipula pens having this angled lip on the collar. I have several Etrurias, Castonis (original, Levenger, and College versions), Duettos, the Bellini LE -- and the collar is flat in all those pens.

However, my Florentia does have the angled lip on the collar like Jim's. For now, it remains intact. I've never tried to remove and reset the nib though. It may be just a matter of time until the collar cracks on its own. If it does, then I'd opt to have it smoothed down since it looks to be merely decorative and has no bearing on the functionality of the pen.

Sorry to hear about your Florentia, Jim. With or without the lip on the collar, the pen is still stunning...

Very true. Retro 51 pens have the same basic collar design. The threads at the end of the collar, inside the section, are prone to breaking off if over tightened. Even if not over tightened. It's a real weak point in the design.

It is a smasher isn't it!! Beautiful colours that rival anything Omas and Conway Stewart put out in my humble opinion.
Which is one reason why i'm actually happy that this doesn't affect the writing.

If i find another Florentia,i just might buy it!!

Jim

It isn't angled, normally, it lies flat against the section, so maybe not very noticeable,

If you have a Novecento Aqua piston filler, it does have the lip, but you may only notice when you unscrew the nib/feed assembly.

Since about 2 1/2 to 3 years Stipula uses standardaized nib/feed assemblies, in two sizes. The larger ones for the larger pens and the smaller ones for the medium sized ones. Both have nib/feed asemblies held together in a collar with a flange, or lip, which is supposed to be perpendicular to the actual collar, and the section of course, when screwed in.

With some of the models it is slightly recessed into the section when screwed in, making it even less noticeable.

Warm regards, Wim

Seems to me that replacement collars should not be hard for Stipula's supplier to manufacture. Is anyone on this board in regular contact with Stipula to see if they might request their supplier to produce replacement collars -- making it unnecessary to purchase the entire nib assembly when problems arise?