hi

is this advisable. i've read you can do this by inserting a razor blade into the slot, very carefully??

cheers


kevin.

Hi Kevin,

Yes, that can help, but it can also mess you up if overdone or done improperly. Slot width and shape is only one of likely a dozen or so factors that govern flow rate.

I'd prefer to let an established nibmeister, like Richard, lay out those factors and what the average bloke can do about them.

Hi Kevin,

Roger is right. Within limits you can increase ink flow a bit, provided the feed is capable of supporting the ink flow required. Normally it can.

You'll need a piece of a transparant overhead sheet or something similar, IOW, fairly stiff, bendable, but not too thick plastic. Cut off a strip, and wiggle it between the tines, between the tipping material on both ends of the tines. Next pull it out slowly. Try the pen. Still not enough, try it again, but no more than 2 or 3 times. The tines should still touch when looked at with the naked eye, IOW, at the tipping, you shouldn't be able to see through the slit. If you do, you've gone too far. But I'll explain only how to undo that when you get there by accident. It is much harder to undo this, then to increase the ink flow, and in this case you really may have to send the pen off to a nibmeister.

Now, also make sure that the tines are still aligned properly, otherwise the nib will be scratchy afterwards. You can set this right, if they do become misaligned, by "twanging the nib ™", IOW, flicking the tine that is highest up in the air with a finger nail, down towards the feed. You probably need to do this up to 3 times before it is right again, and you need a decent loupe to be able to see that everything is as it is supposed to be.

HTH, warm regards, Wim

i'll leave it alone!!

thanks for the help.


cheers


kevin

Please don't use a razor blade. I have seen people use a utility knife and literally butcher an otherwise excellent nib!
Use the clear acetate material as suggested by another poster. If the pen needs more than the acetate, consider sending it to a pro. It is easy to mar the inside surface of the tines and, in some cases, to break off the feed, especialli in delicate vintage pens and in some modern pens with Schmidt feeds.

I've had good luck cleaning tines recently with a focused blast of compressed air from Dust Off.

I am puzzled. Ink flow is incresed by:
1. Increasing the separation between the tines
2. Increasing the gap between the nib and the feed.
I honestly fail to see how compressed air can help. Maybe it is strong enough to slightly bend the nib away from the feed....
I do not doubt your word, I am just puzzled.
Regards,
Giovanni

True, Gio, but though the thread is about increasing ink flow, the claim for compressed air was merely as an aid in cleaning the nib.