Hey guys, I've been reading on this forum about dipping the nib inside the ink. I can't remember which thread, but there was one that did not recommend dipping the nib inside the bottle for who knows what is on the nib?

So, is there a way to extract the ink from the bottle without touching the nib? I know there is something about a syringe but I don't know what that is. (I mean I do know what a syringe is but I don't know how it can be used put the ink inside a converter. Do you just draw the ink from the bottle and squeeze it into a cartridge or converter?) Thanks. Very much appreciated for helping out a newbie.

Brian

just wash the nib carefully and dip!

You can do it, come on. Dip, dip, dip, dip!!!!

Just as Dr O said, just wash the nib in some warm water, but not too warm, to wash away what manufacturing oils/etc might be present on the nib, then make sure you dry it completely. If the nib is dry, the feed might still have water though, and if you dipped that, it could dilute the color of the ink, depending on the ink. Some might be more susceptible to it than others. A nice trick is to touch the nib to a paper towel/toilet paper or some similar material and bleed it out. Then wrap it in a paper towel and shake it out as if you were cracking a whip (or use a salad spinner! ). Once it's dry, then you can dip the pen in ink, worry free.

Thanks guys for the help. I'm planning on using waterman florida blue. I heard it is a pretty good ink, well-behaved. Diluting wouldn't do anything to it would it? I mean, besides making the ink lighter. Also, just curious, what does hot water do to the pen?

depending on the pen, a number of things can happen with hot water. On celluloid pens, it ruins the celluloid, making it a cloudy/milky color if the water is too hot, on some cheaper plastic pens the hot water can warp plastic, and also there's cases where hot water will do nothing. It's best just to avoid it completely.

Waterman florida blue is a good ink. I've got it in cartridges for my phileas. Diluting wouldn't do anything other than make it lighter colored, but you'd need to use a fair amount of water to do that.

What pen? If it uses a convertor, just remove the convertor and fill the convertor and replace it.
With Pelikans, Montblancs and other twist mechanisms, if you don't to dip, then empty the chamber of air. Fill a syringe with ink. With nib pointed
up put a few drops on the nib. Then twist a bit to absorb the drops. Repeat after ten minutes or so it will be filled.

OTOH you could just swirl the nib in a glass of warm water and wipe.

Avoid very hot water, stick to lukewarm one. And dip, man, dipping is fun!.

Bubba, you mean swirling it in a glass of warm water to wash the ink on the nib right?

And thanks guys for all the help. I guess I'll dip since that seems like the easiest and most convienent way.

With Pelikans you can remove the nib, and shoot the ink in there.

Generally, you are right on - as you say, "just draw the ink from the bottle and squeeze it into a cartridge."

The only concern to me with dipping is if you have one ink in the pen and are switching to another without cleaning the pen out. Other wise if the pen has been rinsed or you are dipping it back into the same ink for a refill during the week, I say dip on! By the way, bottled ink will eventually have some of the water evaporate and may need a little bit added back to get it back where it needs to be. I have a bottle of Penman Sapphire right now that needs an eye dropper of water to thin it back down.

I mean swirl the nib in a glass of warm water then wipe off the nib ( after depressing the convertor ) to remove any gunk that might go into the ink bottle from the nib.

Pens are made and designed to be filled by dipping the entire nib in ink for filling. You will need to clean and dry the nib, feed converter on a new pen before filling. After you fill from the bottle, you need to wipe off the excess ink. You can also fill a cartridge or converter with a syringe if you dot want to get the nib "dirty".

what about dipping a converter?

No. It will be quite messy when you try to insert it.

This is actually how I usually fill my convertor pens...just suck the ink directly into the convertor, lift it out of the ink, twist to squeeze out a couple of drops and then untwist, then give it a quick dab with a paper towel and insert. Not messy at all...in fact it's easier for me than wiping a messy nib/feed.

But you are indeed missing on the feed-flushing action of filling from the bottle. You may also flush with water every 3-5 fills to keep the feed passages free from clogs.

Put ink in your pens????
Are you crazy??

;-))


Pens are for putting in the display cabinet and appreciating the craftsmanship.
I never put ink into my mint pens and they stay unused.

The others are usually tried out and then dried out and put away.

Only got a 51, 61, Big Red and a Senior Newhaven Duo working for me, and the Newhaven will get cleaned up and put away when I get another nice working day type pen.

And that's exactly why (and when) I flush them out with water. Good fun that is, too.

Especially with a Sheaffer Snorkel. It shoots a stream of water up to 5ft away!