I have a Mark I (skinny clutch ring) that had a crack in the barrel--I repaired that. But the capillary filler leaks ink into the barrel. It seems like the end of the capillary filler is not engaging with the rubber cup in the barrel that is supposed to seal the filler, etc. Has anyone ever heard of the rubber cap getting pushed too far down into the barrel? (When I take an approximate measurement, the depth of the cap seems to be just about equal to the length of the cap filler plus barrel threads.) Any other ideas what might be happening here?

How do you remove the tassie from the barrel? Please tell me it doesn't involve first removing the jewel, 'cause I can't get that thing to budge.

Check the seal with the hood before you get excited about the seal at the rear of the filler (assuming the hood has been removed). There are two versions of the seal that I know of, one is quite short, with a long nipple, and the other rather long, with a short nipple. Not interchangeable unless you also change the nipple! If this seal is torn or missing, it will allow ink to run down the outside of the filler into the barrel.

Check the filler seal by looking down the barrel with a good light. Should be complete, with no gouges or cracks. I've not seen a bad one in my pens, though.

You will feel it contact the back of the filler while you are screwing the barrel on -- I can feel the spring spinning and making a faint scraping noise when the cup contacts the filler. Check to make sure the fiberous material at the opsnings of the filler isn't pulled loose and trailing across the seal surface as well, as ink will wick out if that stuff crosses the seal surface whether or not the seal is in place.

The jewel holds the tassie in, alas. A couple of mine have unscrewed themselves, resulting in the loss of the tassie!

Peter