So, I picked up this Snorkel because I wanted a Palladium nib with the script on it to add to my collection. Unfortunately, when it arrived, I was less than thrilled. There was ink all over the inside of the ziploc it was in, I'm having trouble getting it to take enough water to shoot the requisite 6 feet... and if that isn't bad enough, I think the nib/feed/snorkel assembly is off center! I was told this was a resacced and re-o-ringed pen in perfect working condition, and the price I paid for it should have made that a certainty. Here's a photo of the nib... am I being nitpicky or is this truly somehow not reassembled right?





Should I send it back and get a refund and look elsewhere? The silver seems more scratched up than it did in the photo before I purchased it as well.

6 feet is a bit much to expect. I think 3 feet is more typical. Hard to tell from the picture if the snorkel is off center - it shouldn't be. Good luck. You should contact the seller.

Sounds like you need to let the seller know.
A refund or "correct" repair by a pro should be his call.

My $.02

If could be that the secondary feed (the big one) is misaligned, although this isn't a big issue to put right (he said in a somewhat academic manner, not having seen a snorkel with the feed yawed over like that in person). If it doesn't affect the function of the pen, I wouldn't get too bent up over it unless I paid something like the current "retail"-- $50-$80. I'm likewise pretty tolerant of surface marks on the point.

On the squirt, as long as the fluid comes out in a fairly strong and uniform stream through the whole compression stroke, I'd not worry over the seals too much. I find the 6-foot stream is sort of an ideal, and usually if you're squirting someone who's that far away you're hoping to stain his shoes.

Thanks everyone for the speedy replies. I've contacted the seller who is apparently out of town until the 30th, so I will just have to sit and wait.

As far as the six foot water thing, it's sort of just sputtering and spraying drops, it's not even a stream.... I mean, if it was shorter than that, it wouldn't be a big deal... if it was a stream. But, it's not. I have a feeling, just going by n00bish instinct here, that something is wrong with a seal somewhere. When I pull the piston out, it's a bit wobbly, too, and I've never encountered that in another snorkel before, either. My other snorkels behave similarly to one another and this one is just really off. I'm pretty disappointed.

And... I did pay the "currrent retail" I'm afraid, so I'm a bit bent up.

I will just sit tight and see what they have to say when they reply.

Sounds like you should ask for a full refund.
Then wait while I restore a black snorkel with Palladium nib

[/quote]

Sounds like you should ask for a full refund.
Then wait while I restore a black snorkel with Palladium nib
[/quote]


You GO Pep!! Fixing up Snorks!

Thanks, Steve. So far I have worked on three. Just waiting for better point holder gaskets. The doughnut shaped ones are a tight fit...

If it's the palladium nib with the script engraving on it, sounds like a plan. I am interested.

Oh, I just checked, and it doesn't have the script engraving. Sorry.

Oh well. I'm still wanting a refund on this one. Nothing is worth this. Heh.

Wobbly tube and intermittant spray = bad o-ring, all right. I've worked on a couple that I was VERY TEMPTED to leave the o-ring be because it was ALMOST good enough... and that's the way it acted.

The point holder gasket is one place where you do not want to cut corners. If it fails, or should I say when it fails you can get ink into the barrel, and the spring will rust. Then you have a nasty repair and are likely to end up replacing the spring, and maybe the sac guard because the spring has rusted into the ring on the sac guard. Sort of like the battle being lost because the horse lost a nail in it's shoe.... For the low price of an 0 ring, you should replace that too. The tightness of the seal certainly effects how well the pen fills.

Good news. The seller offered a full refund, so I sent the pen back today, fingers crossed.

It's really silly not to replace both the O-ring and the point seal. Replacements are cheap, and if you have a bad point seal, you risk rusting out the pen's guts.

To my knowledge, there are basically three types of point seals currently available. First and worst are the doughnut-shaped ones, which are too tight a fit. Second are the limited production ones made to exact original dimensions, including the recessed groove. Third are the mass-produced ones that I sell, also made to original dimensions but without the recessed groove.