Howdy!
I've had beautiful writing instruments in the past, however, nothing like the one I am about to present to you now.
My grandfather passed, and in his attic I found a single pen. It is a Remington, fine tip, piston filler.

The piston is frozen (it turns, but does not move otherwise), I can hear flaked ink inside of it, and I think it needs to come out. I tried getting the top tube (with the nib attached) to come off, but I believe it to be shellacked. I was wondering if anyone could think of a way I could save this pen so I can write with the same pen my grandfather once did.

It's pretty cool, his name is engraved on it and everything.

Thanks to those that respond,
Monica.

I'm not knowledgeable about the specific model you have, but it sounds like your best bet would be to send it to a specialist, like FPN members Richard or Ron Z. Old piston fillers can be especially tricky, and it doesn't sound like you're planning to get into fountain pen repair generally, just have this one special pen...? (Correct me if I'm wrong there.) An expert has the best chance of saving the pen, and their prices are really very reasonable. Depending on the person they might have a backlog and thus slow turnaround tho.

I'm in the same boat with a Sheaffer Triumph-nib Vac-fil my grandfather had; I plan to send it out in the next few months and give it to my brother for his birthday. Ahh, why can't they all be like Grandpa's Parker 51 Aerometric?? (I was shy about getting the slightly-stiff barrel loose, but once I did, it works just fine! ^_^;; )

Actually I am into repair. Like I said earlier, I've had several fabulous vintage pens in the past. In addition, my entire house is obsessed with fountain pens, one is a writing historian, he studies different writing methods and utensils (pens, typewriters, etc..)

I just need some advice, I'm willing and capable.

Okay. Sorry, my bad.

And with that... I'm out my depth. ^_^;; Hope someone can advise you!

In that case then the second pinned thread in the repair Q and A reference section is the place to start...
People with decades of experience went to a lot of work to share their knowledge....

But one of the first bits of wisdom you will find in those GREAT reference sites.... is not to work on your most valuable (to you) pen for your first project.... EEEKKK....

It's not my first project.
I have about 15 pens here.

If the section is sealed with shellac, careful and patient application of a hair-dryer or heat gun and section pliers is all I know to do. (As we all cross our fingers and hope it's shellac, not nail polish or something... ^_^;; )

can you post a picture of the pen? Is it a similar style to this one on eBay? (I've heard "piston filler" used to describe everything from a Sheaffer Touchdown to a current Pelikan so I'm trying to get a clearer idea of the mechanism...)

...or, indeed, like this one:



Although I'm having trouble figuring out where engraving would go-- the enormous blind cap? Or is it a different model entirely?

We were just discussing the piston in these things a few threads over, and my one-item-based experience with this pen suggests:

- if the piston is stuck, the same stuff might be sticking the section; mine slid out easily. The style of ink reservoir means it shouldn't mind a bit of a soak once the caps are off, and if the seal is gone on the piston, the water should be able to migrate up inside (try blowing through the nib to see if any air emerges from the piston to check whether there's hope in that direction).

- heat gun is a good next step.

[edit: Sentiment aside, it's quite worth the effort to get it working-- it's a stiff point, but very pleasant in writing.]

One caution, perhaps, on these style of pens. Richard Binder, in his blog entry of 12/22/2007 (RichardsBlog Entry), writes about restoring a Du-Pont pisont filler of this sort. He says:



It sounds as if many of these are not repairable because they do have a celluloid section fused to the barrel. I don't have any direct experience with these, though I am looking for a couple.

John

YES it is exactly like this one.
The engraving is on the ink reservoir section of the pen.
I've dipped it after filing the nib (it was uneven, but it's all good now), and it writes BEAUTIFULLY.
I love the range it has. I will try soaking it for a while to get the sealant to come off...
But the real problem is getting the top section off so that i can get the old ink out. I don't want to clog it up with the blue black that's in it now all dried and crusty.

I wouldn't soak it; that can damage some vintage materials.

I think a soak of the body of the pen would be safe in this case, actually. Celluloid can take a soaking - it has trouble with really hot water, but not with soaking at room temperature (after all, the ink sits right against the barrel in this one). There is no lever or other metal parts to rust, I don't think. I really don't think there is any caisein in this one, and it probably does not have an HR section.

Soaking is a valuable tool in pen restoration - for the right materials.

I wouldn't soak the cap, mind you.

John

I dunno, I've heard that sometimes those transparent sections are casein on older pens. If I read the opening post correctly, this seems like a high risk learning opportunity. If it were my grandfather's pen, and I had never repair this type of pen before, I would contact a pro. The chance for destruction of a family heirloom is too rich for my blood.

So I got all the old nasty ink inside OUT (it was really COOL, my hands are all bluuuue). But it was the wrong way... It all came out through the broken seal in the piston filler.
I need to ship this bad boy to someone so they can maybe fix the seal inside of it, does anyone know who could do that for a reasonable price?
Thanks again for all the help!

I'd be willing to bet Richard can do it:
http://www.richardspens.com/
Good luck,
d

I actually live in Chicago, I bet I can find someone locally.
If they're outrageously priced in comparison, I'll just ship it off. LAME.

Maybe one of the Chicago Pen Show coordinators can help you find someone locally.
http://www.chicagopenshow.com/