Hi!

I'm thinking about starting to refill my Parker cartridges with a syringe, since ink is so much cheaper in bottles; one has already been cleaned out for potential refilling. Is there anything beyond the obvious I should know about this -- that is, any special precautions to take, how many times a cartridge can be used, and so forth? Should I just think about a converter instead?

Thanks,

Jeff

Yes For $4-6, a converter is money well spent.

Hi,

Pushing and pulling the cartridge in and out will wear out the seal. Converters are a better buy.

Dillon

I refill the cartridges for my Namiki Vanishing Point. I've had no problems with doing it.

Bill

Refilling carts has its advantages:

- cartridges can give better flow than convertors

- reduces waste through reuse of plastics

Ok, so maybe there are tens of discarded empty cartridges clogging our landfills but every little bit helps..

But I have heard it said, and my own obervations support, that cartridges, for whatever reason, are less prone to "vapor lock" where all the ink end up at the piston end of the convertor. Requiring a tap or even a twist to get things moving.

If a cartridge seal would break down over repeated uses, how much sturdier can a convertor seal be? I guess if you never removed the convertor when cleaning or changing ink colors that would help maintain the seal, but I'd guess an average cartridge could be refilled well into the double digits, especially if you're careful.

All that being said, my one piece of advice is use a syringe or thin pipette. You seem to have that bit in hand though. Using an eyedropper is not advised unless you enjoy water rockets and Jackson Pollock paintings...

Your fellow cheapskate
Tom

I too have gotten into this and have had no problems. Especially good for pens for which converters aren't readily available and it's easy to mix inks. Beware though--inject slowly and carefully--just like a doctor--otherwise an air bubble might blow some ink out.

I refill cartridges too because of the reason Tom mentioned re: ink flow. No special precautions (except for the obvious with pointy metal things!) I know there was a thread on Zoss about the potential problems with reusing cartridges (and the lady at the pen store rolled her eyes when I mentioned refilling them, but I guess that wouldn't be good for ink cartridge sales, would it?). Some people mentioned that you would get better flow if the pen's nib was dipped into the ink bottle and refilled by convertor, whereas with the cartridge, you wouldn't get the nib 'wetting'. Not sure that makes much difference, but of course your results could vary from pen to pen...

Since I'm shy about needles, even when they aren't embedded in my flesh, I like to use these plastic syringes for refilling cartridges. They are a hardware store sort of item and typically used for dispensing epoxy. I bought a 12-pack from West Marine (for boat repair use) for about $15.

Well, there is nothing wrong with refilling cartridges indeed. But it is better to reduce waste by not buying any plastic cartridges in the first place. In my experience, cartridges are more prone to vapor lock. Converters also push the ink through the feed, flushing it in the process. Converters can also be used to thouroughly flush pens. The only converter I ever had to replace was the one in my Parker 75, after 10+ years of use, perhaps half a dozen ink bottles, and periods of neglect when ink was allowed to dry inside the pen. It cost me $4 to replace it One other advantafe od converters. When the ink has dried a bit and your pen has temporary skipping problems, a small twist of the converter to push some ink into the feed will give enable you to writre OK until you get a chance to clean the pen.

Thanks for the tips, all.

I'll try cartridge refilling, but I certainly will be putting a Parker converter on my to-do list.

Here is my suggestion. Next time you bUy a pen (if you ever do), you can also purchase a converter. It's not worth paying shipping just for one converter. But if you are already buying a pen, you can just add it to the order. As everyone said, it is not a necessity, but I think it is nice to have one

Edited for typo.

In the future I'm probably going to be buying mostly or only integrated self-fillers, since I really don't mind dunking. Though certainly next time I order from Pendemonium or somesuch I will stick in a Parker twist converter

Then theres the pen that wont take a converter period..a la my Pelikano

Thanks for this post! It was really helpful. I just ordered some Japanese pens for their very fine points, but they are too short to find converters for.

I ordered from vials from Kcat for the small little pipet I might be able to use. I'm also very wary of using real life syringes to refill ink. Other people will think I'm crazy to have one in the house! Ha ha.

Oooo? Nah. I keep mine in my office with one here, one there, and sometimes one in th bathroom if I'm flushing out stuff. I have fairly steady hands, though, so I don't end up with ink in my veins LOL. My friends aren't wary of the ink filled syringes, they're wary of my very pointy knitting needles which I will leave on sofa seats, beside my bed, and just about anywhere you might not expect to find one.

My local electronics geek heaven also has wide tipped syringes in the "mod" aisle, along with soldering stuff and heat sink goop (which the syringes are for, I think). The name of the store is Fry's.

Converters sure do come in handy. Alas, I'm mostly into the Japanese EF pens, too. Some work better with carts- they actually start and put down a consistent line...