Parker 100 Problem

[dmorgen]

I inked my new Parker 100 (Medium nib). It writes nice & wet & SMOOTH ... I love it ... until it doesn't write, that is! When I first inked it, it wrote fine for a page or 2. Then the problems started. At worst it runs into starting problems any time the nib is lifted from the paper. If I hold the nib at almost a 90 degree angle to the paper, it writes; it writes (not great, but at least ink flows) if the nib is upside down. I can touch the nib to a tissue & the ink flows beautifully. The problem is when I want to write normally! Shaking the pen doesn't help. I've tried lowering the piston & ink appears almost immediately on the nib, and it writes ok for a short while. The ink flows in the converter (e.g. if I turn the pen upside down) as well as I've seen in any pen. I think I did the detergent flush before using the pen. I certainly did it a couple of days ago. No difference. BTW, it was first inked with Waterman Florida Blue, Then Waterman Blue-Black.

 

BTW, one weird thing. I thought I did a very good job flushing the ink between changing inks. When done, I left the pen point down on a crumpled tissue. Some Florida Blue appeared, but not a lot. When I inked it with B-B, it wrote Florida Blue! After awhile, the B-B started appearing. But, if I store it with nib pointing slightly down for awhile, when I start writing again I get Florida Blue again for awhile! Where the heck is the Florida Blue "hiding" when the pen is writing with B-B? I've seen an old ink appear for a small time before a new ink, but never like this! IAE, the problem occurs with both inks.

 

I'm going to try some of Giovanni's InkSafe. But I suspect the pen is going to Parker Repair. I'm running into this kind of problem on MANY new pens, of many makes!!!

 

Any other suggestions?

 

Dave

[JimStrutton]

This is disturbing, I tried a 100 in a shop yesterday and was thinking about it, nice weight and balance uncapped IMHO, by the by.

 

Just an real off the wall suggestion, maybe a soak more than a flush is needed. I had this behaviour once on a Vac "51" that had been serviced. The pen then was filled with Diamine Prussian Blue, which hung around permanently, until I soaked the pen for 48 hours nib down in about an inch of water. That did the trick, so maybe try that before you give up and sent it back. As an alernative, you could try flushing it with a bulb flusher, the thing they sell to clear out ears I think it is. Remove the converter and you can flush it both ways, which should get any residue out.

 

If not then back to Parker, but an update would be good :blink:

 

Jim

[dmorgen]

Jim,

 

InkSafe added to the ink in the converter did help somewhat, as did gradually moving the piston converter towards the nib, with nib upward. This lost some ink, and a lot of air. For awhile the pen wrote perfectly. Now it's having problems again, but not as bad as before.

 

Interesting suggestion about the soaking. I recently purchased a used Visconti Van Gogh Crystal. At first it was a great writer; after quite awhile it wasn't as good in terms of consistent ink flow, although it wasn't really bad either. A few days ago, I tried flushing it & just could not get clear water to come out, even after letting it sit full of water for a couple of hours. So I ended up soaking the nib; the first time I've tried this with any pen. It didn't happen right away, but I could then see ink gradually coming out of the nib ... and a different ink than I had been using! I did this multiple times, finally overnight. That overnight soak got a lot of ink out. I flushed some more & let it try nib down in some tissues, which got even more out. It was amazing this much dried ink was in the pen, yet it was still able to provide a nice wet flow for quite awhile. The pen was always slow starting after not using even for a day or less ... hopefully this dried ink is the explanation.

 

After this happened I tried flushing a cheap Sailor pen I had picked up from Pendemonium, after running one cartridge through it. I couldn't get it totally flushed using the bulb. So I soaked it. The amount of ink that came out was unbelievable. So as good a job as the bulb did, it couldn't get everything.

 

So, I'll definitely try the soak with the Parker 100. I'll also try the bulb, since it conceivably could force out any particles which are blocking the flow. Thanks for the ideas!

 

Dave

[dmorgen]

Another thought ... does anybody know how to remove the hood, so I can gain access to the nib? Maybe some flossing could help.

 

Dave

[Richard]

does anybody know how to remove the hood, so I can gain access to the nib?

I asked the people in Janesville about this when I wanted to pull a 100 nib for retipping to a bigger size, and they deferred the question to the UK. The answer I got from the UK was that it's impossible to remove the nib from a 100 without damaging the pen.

[RLTodd]

does anybody know how to remove the hood, so I can gain access to the nib?

I asked the people in Janesville about this when I wanted to pull a 100 nib for retipping to a bigger size, and they deferred the question to the UK. The answer I got from the UK was that it's impossible to remove the nib from a 100 without damaging the pen.

So Parker said that the most fragile part of the Model 100 cannot be replaced? As I understand what is being said here the Parker 100 is a disposable pen!

[Richard]

So Parker said that the most fragile part of the Model 100 cannot be replaced?

No, that is not what they said. They said, by their statement, that to replace the nib requires replacement of the entire section assembly. Since they do not sell loose nibs, making replacements available only as complete assemblies, that's what you'd just as well do anyway.

 

As I understand what is being said here the Parker 100 is a disposable pen!

Not at all. Replace the section assembly, and off you go. Since personalization is done on the cap or on the barrel, this too makes sense. My Parker 100 started out life as a dealer sample, a pen that was rendered nonfunctional but would serve just fine to show the customer what it looks like. (You could even dip it, if you wanted to.) But because it had SAMPLE engraved on its barrel, I really wanted to keep it rather than simply go out and get another pen.

 

http://www.richardspens.com/images/collection/zoomed/parker_100_sample.jpg

 

It turned out that I could buy a whole pen from Pam less expensively than just a nib section from Janesville, so that's what I did -- but the principle still holds.

 

Anybody want a Black Cobalt Parker 100 with its feed epoxied closed?

[RLTodd]

It turned out that I could buy a whole pen from Pam less expensively than just a nib section from Janesville, so that's what I did -- but the principle still holds.

Yes, that was my exact thought ( more like a fear) and follows the BICs with the Imperial pattern nibs. That being, it is less costly to buy a new pen for the section than to replace the section unit for the broken nib.

 

I take it we perceive this condition differently. I always consider a current production pen disposable if the parts cost more than a new one. I do thank you for providing this valuable information.

[Richard]

I take it we perceive this condition differently. I always consider a current production pen disposable if the parts cost more than a new one.

No, we see it the same. The specific reason for not simply replacing the entire pen was, as I said, to retain the SAMPLE engraving. Black Cobalt 100s are common. Black cobalt 100s that Parker has marked as sample units are not common.

 

This same sort of "common vs. uncommon" logic applies to vintage pens, and not always just to the super-collectibles like the Parker Aztec. There are plenty of Sheaffer's Balance Juniors around, but there remain very few of those pens that were made as service loaners. Service loaners took lots of abuse, and most haven't survived. I have seen about half a dozen of them, of which exactly one was in better than C condition. It's in B+ condition, and it's mine.

 

http://www.richardspens.com/images/collection/zoomed/service_pen.jpg

[dmorgen]

I tried flushing the pen, then soaking the nib for 48 hours, and little if any ink came out. I set the nib point down on a crumpled tissue to dry ... and a surprising amount of ink ended up on the tissue! I don't get it!

 

IAE, the problem is not solved. But here's what's strange. Upon close perusal through a loupe the nib seems in alignment in the usual direction. But one tine is longer than the other! Unless, it's a shadow or ink, one tine is ground at a sharper angle vs. the slit than the other tine! So this nib does have problems! I'm calling Parker tomorrow to see about getting it fixed.

 

Thanks for your suggestions!

 

Dave

[FLZapped]

Hmmm. If it is a new pen, return it and quit giving yourself grief over it.

 

For what it's worth, I've had absolutely no trouble with mine skipping or hard starting and I've left it for a couple weeks without use.

 

Good luck.

 

-Bruce

[dmorgen]

Now, I'm definitely planning on returning it. Fortunately I like fiddling with pens, or this would've been a lot of wasted grief !

 

Dave