Ultrasonic Cleaner

[Marlow]

Ooo-errr! Looks like I misread the website I looked at for this item! Looks more like well over £200 inc vat! I'm definitely open to other suggestions for a few days at least! lol!

[twdpens]

 

Mine is the smallest model of this range. It's the unheated version (the water still gets warm after 30 minutes) and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend it to anyone in the UK.

 

 

I also have that model; it was recommended to me by Lawrence Oldfield. As you might expect, mine gets a lot of use on a daily basis. The cheaper unit I had before, even though it worked well and lasted me a few years, eventually died and I can't do my job properly without an ultrasonic cleaner. Although expensive, I can certainly recommend the Ultrawave unit. I think it's made in the UK too which is an added bonus.

 

HTH,

 

Martin

[Marlow]

Thanks for the additional confirmation, Martin! All roads leading then, it appears....

 

M

 

PS - is there any point getting the stainless steel lid or is the ABS plastic one sufficient?

Edited July 7, 2012 by Marlow

[Chrissy]

Thanks for the additional confirmation, Martin! All roads leading then, it appears.... This 'hobby's gonna have to turn into a second business sooner rather than later, methinks!

 

(just as well I chose not to splash out £*#$$ on either that MB or the Conklin Crescent for the time being then!)

 

M

 

PS - is there any point getting the stainless steel lid or is the ABS plastic one sufficient?

Hi M,

You're right in that I 'don't buy rubbish' LOL. Ultrawave is the company that my best friend (who is a jeweller) uses, and she has never bought a different brand. It has an all metal construction that lasts longer that the plastic ones. No need at all for the stainless steel lid though IMHO. All I use my lid for is to put the basket on when I take it out of the unit.

 

It's possible they might have one in the sale that may be an older model or maybe a reconditioned one

Edited July 7, 2012 by Chrissy

[twdpens]

I agree, no need for a SS lid. I only use the plastic lid as a cover when not in use.

 

I also have a cup holder lid (for plastic cups) which I don't think is offered any more. It's useful for giving really dirty pens a quick blast without having to change the whole bath afterwards. You could make a similar accessory out of a piece of artist's foam-core board.

 

Martin

[Marlow]

 

 

It's possible they might have one in the sale that may be an older model or maybe a reconditioned one

 

Is that from Ultrawave directly? I'll try calling them on Monday.

Edited July 7, 2012 by Marlow

[JimB]

After more than 20 years of fountin pen restorations and thousands later I am now on my Third Ultra Sonic Machine / Cleaner.

 

The cheaper ones tend to wear out sooner, Vapors from your working solution get into the

interior of the unit developing electrical shorts and or corrosion..

 

Frequent clening and drying of the unit may add to its' economic useful life

 

My Current model ws ner the top of the line available at: Hrbour Freight, It is made by Chicago Electric Tool for Harbour Freight . I have had this model for about 5 years.

 

I empty the water and ink solution at least once per week and dry the interior with paper towels.

THe stinless steel liner has held up well This time a previous model with a similar stainless steel tray developed small pin holes/ leks most like due to prolonged use of clorox to aide in in my blackening of hard rubber pens "Period" .. I now no longer use it for such.

 

My recommendations is to buy the best unit you can afford... Do not continue to restart the untra sonic , as the liquid may over heat and cause unwanted damage such as discoloring of Hard rubber

parts.

 

Until you get the hang of it, do not place your valuable collectibles in the solution and leave it unattended...

 

Whenever using household chemicals do be mindful of unwanted vapors and fumes..

You my remember your chemistry lesson, never combine Clorox and Ammonia , it does produce

an obnoxious and possibly deadly gas....

Based on your recommendation, I bought the cheaper version of your cleaner from Harbor Freight. I seems the most reasonable solution for a guy like me, cleaning out their (quite a few, but not a multitude of) pens on an infrequent basis. Thanks for passing on your experience.Also, I learned rom previous posts to beware of cleaners with controls on the front that might get damaged from leakage or spillage. This one has controls on top, and right now it's $29 + shipping. I'm looking forward to getting it. (Not affiliated at all)

[OcalaFlGuy]

You misread the posts about the problem unit.

 

The problem one is the one with the controls on the lid that lifts up, NOT on the front body of the main unit.

 

The wires between the control switches in the lid and the body of the unit are micro-thin and over time fail due to constantly being flexed with the lid opening.

 

I'd cancel the order if it were me.

 

Bruce in Ocala, FL

Edited July 9, 2012 by OcalaFlGuy

[JimB]

You misread the posts about the problem unit.

 

The problem one is the one with the controls on the lid that lifts up, NOT on the front body of the main unit.

 

The wires between the control switches in the lid and the body of the unit are micro-thin and over time fail do to constantly being flexed with the lid opening.

 

I'd cancel the order if it were me.

 

Bruce in Ocala, FL

uh oh.

[JimB]

So I cancelled the order in time, now have to decide what alternative to get. A cheap one, since I'm not doing this for a living... Well, back to re-reading this thread from the start. Taking notes, this time!

 

Thanks for the heads up, OcalaFlGuy.

[marcomillions]

In the midst of this search for the perfect ultrasound cleaner, let me just insert another generic testimonial to the value of ultrasound cleaning of nibs. I had--some of you may have read my post--a particularly recalcitrant blockage in my Pilot VP. Repeated flushings brought no solution. The pen would write a few lines, then dry up. The blockage was clearly deep in the nib. Ink could seep through it, but only very slowly. If I left the pen alone overnight, enough ink would seep in to allow another few lines, but never enough to allow continuous writing.

 

Reading any thread that seemed to have any relevance to my problem, I came across this thread, and the reports of miracle cures were convincing enough to persuade me to buy an ultrasound cleaner. I bought one of the cheaper possibilities on line (about $25-$30, but claimed to be reduced from about $100). It arrived today and was pressed into service at once. Improvement was immediate, and I hope will be durable.

 

Thanks for alerting me to this solution.

 

Marc

[Stompie]

On the bay - CONRAD HOBBYCLEAN SU739 ULTRASONIC CLEANER 600ml 50W £29.42

 

That allright to get?

[Marlow]

On the bay - CONRAD HOBBYCLEAN SU739 ULTRASONIC CLEANER 600ml 50W £29.42

 

That allright to get?

 

Hey Stompie - my fairly extensive researches seem to show the best value low cost cleaner this side of the pond to be the James Ultra 7000 - £31 quid (reduced from 45quid) inc delivery from amazon uk... That's what I'm getting for now. They sell for around 20+postage on the bay if you dont like it or want to upgrade after a few tries - hence about 12 or 13quids worth of 'risk'...

 

PS there's little doubt in my mind that the one martin and chrissy (AND Laurence Oldfield) recommend is the 'keeper' but I'm willing to risk a few quid on the offchance that this James unit works as martin said his cheaper unit did - i.e. 'well for a few years' before dying. The review that's uppermost on the amazon page is even from a happy fountain pen collector so I'm hopeful!

Edited July 11, 2012 by Marlow

[twdpens]

Hey Stompie - my fairly extensive researches seem to show the best value low cost cleaner this side of the pond to be the James Ultra 7000 - £31 quid (reduced from 45quid) inc delivery from amazon uk... That's what I'm getting for now. They sell for around 20+postage on the bay if you dont like it or want to upgrade after a few tries - hence about 12 or 13quids worth of 'risk'...

 

That's pretty similar to the one I had (I think it came from Maplin but it was a long time ago). I've seen it sold under different brands, eg at Aldi. It's a decent cleaner and will do the job fine. I just killed mine through excessive use.

 

TBH, you could buy several 30-odd quid cleaners and still spend less than the price of a single Ultrawave (not very green though). For the hobbyist or part-time pensmith this would be absolutely fine. If you are doing pen work professionally though you need a professional grade machine.

 

Martin

[encremental]

I bought the 7000, which like Martin's stopped working after a while. But they are incredibly addictive things, and I quickly replaced it with the 7050 also on Amazon for very much the same price. It is extremely similar, but a little more substantial than the 7000, and the USP of a removable water tank which you can carry over to the sink for filling & emptying is actually extremely useful. I scour the house for things to clean - steel watch straps are especially satisfying, but electric toothbrush heads, removable pop-up sink wastes and a hundred other things make me wonder if, were they better marketed, they could replace shredders & pressure washers as the top middle-aged must have.

 

John

[Stompie]

On the bay - CONRAD HOBBYCLEAN SU739 ULTRASONIC CLEANER 600ml 50W £29.42

 

That allright to get?

 

Hey Stompie - my fairly extensive researches seem to show the best value low cost cleaner this side of the pond to be the James Ultra 7000 - £31 quid (reduced from 45quid) inc delivery from amazon uk... That's what I'm getting for now. They sell for around 20+postage on the bay if you dont like it or want to upgrade after a few tries - hence about 12 or 13quids worth of 'risk'...

 

PS there's little doubt in my mind that the one martin and chrissy (AND Laurence Oldfield) recommend is the 'keeper' but I'm willing to risk a few quid on the offchance that this James unit works as martin said his cheaper unit did - i.e. 'well for a few years' before dying. The review that's uppermost on the amazon page is even from a happy fountain pen collector so I'm hopeful!

 

I can only find one and that is for £70?

[Stompie]

Thanks encremental - so, decision time - do I send my teeth and nibs to encremental so there are more things to clean or do I buy one meself??? :roflmho:

[Marlow]

http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00112B0U0/ref=ox_ya_os_product

[Stompie]

Got me the 7050 for £33.50 - thank you!

 

Now I can take orders around the village for denture cleaning as well!

[Marlow]

I just cancelled order for the 7000 and gonna get the 7050 instead! lol! I like the removable tank bit - shame it doesnt mention that in the item's description or I would've gone for it in the first place!