I just got a new Conklin Mark Twain in Lime Green, however the nib isn't exactly what I expected. Firstly its quite broad for a medium, more than a Parker medium. Secondly the flow is very inconsistent, although it is pretty smooth. I got it at a great price at the Toronto Pen Show, only 37 dollars, so it was kind of an impulse buy. If anyone from here was there I got it from Sleuth and Statesmen. I did the typical stuff to help with the flow, flushed it ALOT, soaked it overnight in a mild ammonia solution, but its still acting up. Since I don't care much for the medium, I was wondering if anyone knows where to get replacement Conklin nibs, or if Conklin themselves, do nib exchanges. I'll call Sleuth and Statesmen and let them know as well, however I think it was their last piece and they may not have another nib. I just wish I have it up and running shortly. For now I'll go use the 51 I just got. That pen is a champ, flushed it, filled it and it was good to go.

I have bought several of the New Conklins and had unresolvable ink flow issues with all of them.

You have tried what I did with the same results.

At the price I paid there should have been no issues and so I sent them back for a refund.

I wish you well.

I have three Conklins - a Mark Twain, a Glider, and a Nozac. All have ink flow issues and I've just resigned myself to not ever buying Conklin again. It's rather sad too...I really love the look of the Nozac and the Mark Twain.

Hope you find a solution.

What nibs and feeds do those have? I have 2 of the Crescent Glory LEs with the 14k nibs and they're reliable and lusciously wet writers. My Duragraph someone gave me feels a little dry, but it's an M nib and I have problem with those anyway, given my fast scrawl.

Jay, given that you're presumably in Canada, I'd contact Sean Gosse about this one. He may be able to help you out.

My guess is that after sitting, the feed has become a little mis-shapen. I've been through about a dozen Conklins (and several that I've worked on for others), and this seemed to be a pretty big issue. The feeds are checked for quality immediately after they roll off of the production line, but after they get jammed in with a nib into a section, they may be exposed to a lot of elemental changes that can have some negative effects on a feed. Sometimes with these Conklins, it just takes a little TLC on the feed itself, widening/evening the channels, or replacement with one that's a better fit for the particular nib that came with your pen.

If Sean can't help you out, send me a note back channel and I'll be glad to look at it for you. I've fixed a handful of these before.

I have 2 of the Mark Twain Crescent pens with medium nibs. Both are smooth wet writers. I don't have any of the cartridge/converter Mark Twain pens. I'm not sure if those have the same nibs as the Crescent pens.

i got the Victory Conklin (the only conklin i own) and it performs very well!!

They do. Sounds like you got some good ones, though! Enjoy 'em!

I have one Mark Twain Signature in mediun nib, It may be the ink. I had the same problem, now it has Waterman Black and flows a wet medium very consistent,

Hope helps,

Julio

I recently purchased a Mark Twain Signature. I noticed some flow problems out of the box (uneven flow, but never skipping; flow was noticeably less at the top of my up-strokes). I flushed the nib & feed with some mildly soapy water, and nothing much had changed. I then flossed the nib with a scrap of 35mm film -- I even left the negative in the slit to act as a shim for a while -- and the situation improved remarkably.

It is currently loaded with DC Supershow Blue and I've had no problems so far, although it is more on the drier side than I prefer.

I had flow problems with the mark twain also--never resolved--sits in bottom of drawer!!

Wow, I have not had this problem. I have the four Word Gauge LE's and have never had a moments bit of trouble with them. They are some of my favorite pens.

I've been having similar problems with my Mark Twain Signature, but I have a fine point, so was attributing it to that. I'm currently using PR Velvet Black. I was going to change inks to see if it improved. I generally like how the pen feels and if it gets flowing, I'm pretty happy. I've just not spent time with it.

You have 4 of the Word Gauge LE? Argh...now I know where the ones I wanted went!

It took me over a year to get all my Conklin's to write well. Thanks to many on this board, I now enjoy them regularly.
But what a disappointment in the beginning.

I suppose it would be mean to point out what marvelous pens vintage Conklins are....

Simon

Someone's hoarding the B nibs

Towmarrow I will be going to Toronto, to Sleuth and Statesman. They will either replace or order a new nib, I wouldn't even mind if I get to swap colours, he said they have alot more pens in store, than were available at the pen show. They very reason I got this pen, is the reason I'm not really liking it, especially for myself. I found it very attractive, and eye catching, being so bright a lime green. However now I find in my collection it just sticks out too much, and its not something I would see myself carrying around or using much.

Does anyone know of pens in roughly the same class as the Mark Twain, and how much they normally retail for? thanks

Did you get another pen, was the nib replaced, or are they ordering a new nib?

I took the pen back to Sleuth and Statesman, and under a magnifying glass it was revealed the left tine had a slight bend. I left it with them to fix and just got it back a couple of days ago. Its now writing much much better, and I find if I'm not wiriting on lined paper, I don't really mind the broader nib. Its actually nice becuase it is my only wide nib, and it goes with the size of the pen. S&S stopped dealing with Conklin, so they could not get me a new nib

When you say "unresolvable" issues with flow, do you mean that even experienced repairpersons and nibmeisters cannot resolve them? Or, just that you were not able to resolve them on your own, and decided not to waste money on paying for repair?

I have recently received two higher-end Conklins from two different seller, and both have flow problems. It does not look like ammonia will help: more like the tines are too close together and/or there is a problem with the feed.

You didn't quote but I assume you are talking to me.
I tried all the flushing and cleaning and soaking I could do and nothing helped.
I could have paid to have it worked on or returned it for a refund.
I chose the refund.

I finally had a chance to change the ink in my Conklin Mark Twain. I was using PR Velvet Black with skipping and slow to start issues. I put in PR Purple Mojo - others had discussed its fairly wet properties. The pen writes much better now. I need to look for either a blue or black that works more like the Purple Mojo in this pen. I like the pen, just don't want to write in purple all the time.

PR Tanzanite is a wet blue. Any Waterman ink should be well behaved.

As I mentioned to another person, I'm a sucker for 'eye candy' so bought the Conklin Nozac Sedona. It's very nice and yet has feed issues. It dries up after half a page and I have to take the barrel off
and squeeze down more ink. I have flushed/soaked/used tanzenite/added a bit of dish detergent and sent it to a respected repairman who pronounced it "unfixable."
Sooooo, as soon as I find out where to send it, back to conklin it goes.
skyppere

Conklin Pen Co., Inc.
28 Harrison Ave, Suite 215
Englishtown, NJ 07726
Tel 732-446-7778
Fax 732-446-7760
info@conklinpen.com

Been waiting on a nib swap for over a month, so I CAN'T say they're speedy.

Thanks.

I have a Mark Twain Crescent-filler that has inconsistent inkflow. Unlike my inkflow problems with my Taccia Imperial Portuguese and Conway Stewart Centenary, however, the inkflow of my Conklin never actually stops; it goes from wet to dry and back to wet and so on. Sean believes the problem is with the feed and that it is relatively easy to fix it by widening the ink channels in the feed (or something like that); notwithstanding, it's a real pain in the neck to have bought this not inexpensive pen only to have it not write properly.

Hey, let me throw in my two centavos here...

If you're having troubles with your Conklins, and you don't want to send them in and get the runaround like GP is getting (GP, you've got to manage them pretty heavily to get decent turnaround...I found this out the hard way last summer), please send me a note. I may be able to help you. After a few discussions between Tom Pike, myself and Brian Gray, and a few sacrificial pens and feeds, I think I've got this worked out to where I can fix 'em. They're such gorgeous pens...they don't deserve to be obnoxious writers.

Drop me a line if I can help you out.

==========
Thanks a lot! Since I can't use it now, speedy is not critical, as long as they can
either fix or replace...
cheers
skyppere

Glad to know I should follow up on that phone call. Will resume query mode until I know where it is.

Now I know where the Brown LE went to that was supposed to go with my Clear, Red/Blue, and Sterling Silver, LE's. All of them write nicely, and as consistent as the user. The SS did require my re-setting the nib and feed which I consider a small price to pay. I also have a Conklin standard Nozac in Rain-forest with a medium stub ground by Richard Binder. For some reason that one needed to have the nib re-set for me to use it; knowing Richards work I suspect that the original owner took it apart for some reason.
I really like Nozacs, and think that they are worth taking the time to sort out.
Good luck and best regards, Ken.

PR Naples Blue or PR American Blue are high-surfactant, high-flow blues without purple tones, which work well for me in other makes of balky nibs.

FWIW, my Conklin Nozac Lava Swirl (Fine) is a bit sporadic in flow. As long as I keep it in use and occasionally dip the nib in water, it works okay. It doesn't like dry atmospheres or idleness. I've been using PR Orange Crush in it, which maybe doesn't help--although it's a very high-flow ink when fresh, it thickens in a half-used cartridge.