Perfect Travelling Ink Bottle?

[Messmer]

For travelling, I would rather use a keychain pill fob made for Nitroglycerin Pill bottle. You can get them in stainless or in ABS plastic. Fully waterproof and could take abuse. I use one in ABS for my Ibuprofen liqui-gel. ABS one cost around 3 buck each.

 

http://www.usasalesweb.com/pillfob/media/plasticClr.jpg

[stefanv]

I like the keychain one. I saw them in the drug store, but there was no indication of how waterproof they might be. What is their capacity?

[CatBookMom]

Cute little pill bottle, and those small Visconti bottles look very useful.

 

With so many of us having the sample vials from Goulet Pens and other vendors, I'm wondering how they will do when taken on an airplane. Do they stay leakproof with the changes in air pressure?

[Inka]

I've not flown with these but the 1oz Nalgene or smaller bottles work well and are nearly unbreakable.

They also sell them at outfitters like REI.

I'd imagine them to also work well under pressure or at altitude, the caps have no paper liners that get wet and fall apart like on glass bottles, so they seal perfectly to the bottles every time.

I like the smaller 1/2oz [15ml] Nalgene Wide-mouth bottles myself, for pen filling and travel, but they're getting harder to find in that size, worth doing a Web-search for the smaller ones though.

It's hard to beat an anti-microbial, nearly unbreakable bottle that's also nearly 100% leak-proof, to carry extra ink in, costing less than $2, and that's exactly what the smaller Nalgnene bottle delivers.

[Inka]

P.S.

I see that Nalgene Outdoors does still carry the smaller 1/4oz size, but not sure if the narrow-mouth will be wide enough for super-large pen nibs/ sections like a Pelikan M1000 for example.

Another thing about small bottles to keep in mind, you'll have to take into account that once the nib is submerged up to the section for a fill that there's enough room for ink to rise and not overflow over the top rim.

I've done this, have filled a small bottle so full that when I went to fill a pen it caused the ink to overflow from insertion of the nib-to-section in the contained ink, just an FYI!

[aj3537]

Why are you going through all the trouble of washing small bottles? I carry 4-7 samples with me to school eveyday without a single problem. Here are some cheap, simple solution from ebay that can be carried onto a plane and won't violate airport security rules.

 

First, there are superglue type plastic bottles for sale with plastic needle nose that fits perfectly into a converter or cartidge. Two options to fill bottle, unscrew top and fill or use a syringe and fill from the needle point. Bottles range in size from 15 to 30 ml.

 

Second, small plastic eyedropper bottles. This is the best option for those who like to dip their nibs to fill. To fill the bottle, you pull out the eyedropper tip. You don't need to use the tip and without the tip, wide enough to dip nib into. Bottles range in size from 3 to 60 ml. If you use a thicker pen, you will need to buy a bigger bottle. Also great for those using eyedropper pens.

 

Third option is bellow bottle which has a plastic needle tip like the superglue bottles. These are great for carring 1 or 2 oz of ink.

 

For those of you that aren't traveling by plane, I would recomend the eyedropper bottle because there is a neat trick to be done here. If you have a blunt tip needle, you can shove the needle over the eyedropper bottle for a slow, controlled fill. When done, remove needle and put the cap back on.

 

To find these, search ebay for squeeze bottle, needle bottle, or bellow bottle. Adding empty will narrow your search but elimate a lot of sellers who didn't put empty in their titles. I personally use the superglue type bottles. I fill my pen by removing the converter, filling it, and then twisting it down until ink is seen at the edge of the nib. And you can reuse these by simply running water through them until they run clear and dry upside down over night with paper towel underneath. For faster dry time, use hair drier.

Edited April 18, 2011 by aj3537

[lunawing]

I use 15cc glass bottle with phenolic cone cap (http://www.sks-bottle.com/340c/fin2b.html). It is sturdy and the cap seal the bottle very well. Wide mouth opening makes it very easy to refill the pen.

 

CH

[stefanv]

Those look cool, but I wonder where one would buy them individually?

[LedZepGirl]

For travelling, I would rather use a keychain pill fob made for Nitroglycerin Pill bottle. You can get them in stainless or in ABS plastic. Fully waterproof and could take abuse. I use one in ABS for my Ibuprofen liqui-gel. ABS one cost around 3 buck each.

 

http://www.usasalesweb.com/pillfob/media/plasticClr.jpg

 

I was just going to mention this, but I see you beat me to it. I've still been meaning to pick one of these up. My grandma uses one to carry around all her pain killers and says no water ever gets in it, so it sounds like no ink would get out of it.

 

Also, awhile back I picked up some cheap plastic cosmetic cases at Target in their section of travel shampoo bottles and stuff. You wouldn't think they are leak proof, but they are. The only thing that worries me is that the tops could come unscrewed because I have lip balm in similar cases and they do that in my bag.

[plc123]

Regarding the Nalgene bottles: I have always wondered if ink will stain the plastic? How do you clean it when changing ink color?

 

Thanks for any info!

plc

[Inka]

Regarding the Nalgene bottles: I have always wondered if ink will stain the plastic? How do you clean it when changing ink color?

 

Thanks for any info!

plc

Very good question!!!

I've not yet tried to clean them, they're so cheap I use different bottles for each ink.

Now that you mention this I'm very curious as to how well they'll clean out, as a few do seem stained.

Looking at them now, Noodler's Habanero, Noodler's Apache Sunset, Montblanc Racing Green, Sailor Kiwa-guro aren't staining at all, but several others such as Noodler's Polar Brown/ Polar Black/ THOD/ Borealis may be staining the Nalgene although I'm not sure just yet.

The more saturated inks, as with the blacks and blues, seem to be sticking to the Nalgene if not actually penetrating it.

I'll try transfering one that looks stained into another container, then give it a good cleaning, post back with the results ASAP.

I will say that not once have I gotten anything weird growing inside my Nalgene bottles, I can't say that for the glass bottles with paper cap liners and had some funk growing in my THOD in a glass bottle but not in the Nalgene storing the same ink.

[silverstar]

For travelling, I would rather use a keychain pill fob made for Nitroglycerin Pill bottle. You can get them in stainless or in ABS plastic. Fully waterproof and could take abuse. I use one in ABS for my Ibuprofen liqui-gel. ABS one cost around 3 buck each.

 

http://www.usasalesweb.com/pillfob/media/plasticClr.jpg

 

I was just going to mention this, but I see you beat me to it. I've still been meaning to pick one of these up. My grandma uses one to carry around all her pain killers and says no water ever gets in it, so it sounds like no ink would get out of it.

 

Also, awhile back I picked up some cheap plastic cosmetic cases at Target in their section of travel shampoo bottles and stuff. You wouldn't think they are leak proof, but they are. The only thing that worries me is that the tops could come unscrewed because I have lip balm in similar cases and they do that in my bag.

I used to swap perfume/lotion samples through the mail and everyone taped the cap before mailing to prevent it from coming loose in transit. You can use regular tape but I have gaffer tape which is easier to remove and doesn't leave as much residue. I would remove the keychain portion and then put the tape beginning on one side of the bottle a little bit underneath the cap, go across the top, and back down on the other side. If you want to be super paranoid, you can add one more strip of tape perpendicular to the first one. I've used this method for all kinds of bottles and none of them have ever come lose in my luggage or in the mail.

[lunawing]

Those look cool, but I wonder where one would buy them individually?

 

This is my problem too. I ended up buying a whole box of them...

 

They are very handy for traveling. I also use them to mix ink...

 

CH

[djkpens]

i made a travelling inkwell out of 3 koh-i-nor - plastic drafting fluid bottles

with a loop of repoussed sterling in a light gauge to strap them together

for green black and brown inks --i havent used it in awhile

i switched to using india ink for final detailing on drawings done with wide flats

and other antique calligraphy dip pen nib/holders

 

and carry india in the large bottom screw dropper plastic higgins/ hunt/speedball bottle

refilled from quart bottles ---filling about as much as you might be afraid to spill

out in the field [clubs-bars] the large flat bottom is great

ammonia will clean them after they cake up

 

and still carry osmiroid green in its glass bottle

i like the square higgins plastic 73.9ml bottle and apply lanolin to threads to

help seal the lid -sometimes replacing the paper seal with thin plastic foam cut to fit

[Pen2009]

I found these bottles on the web and they seem to be suitable for carrying fountain pen inks for extended travelling. Each bottle is 18 ml. So, it is about 1/3 the size of the typical ink volume. The bottle seems to be tall enough for decent filling depth. These bottles are originally designed for mixing and storing the paint for plastic models. So, I know their caps can seal the bottles very tighly as those paints emit hazardous fume.

 

http://www.gaianotes.com/products/g-goods_g03.html

http://www.gaianotes.com/products/img/g_goods/80016.jpg

 

I am awaiting 2 sets now in mail. I am going to use these when I travel in Singapore for a month next month.

Edited August 26, 2012 by Pen2009

[Pen2009]

I just got my 2 boxes. I think I can use this definitely. The bottle opening is just right for any pen and it is deep enough to submerge the nib. Also, it is small enough to carry several in a ziplock bag for an extended travel or as a spare bottle for my secondary residence.

 

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y115/YS2003/IMG_3856.jpg

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y115/YS2003/IMG_3855.jpg

[Gcouch]

Creative idea, maybe I'll pick one up myself…

[lapis]

Yup, Nalgene. It's the only way to go. In case you haven't seen any shots, try these on for size.

 

I prefer the 1/2 oz (15-ml) bottles.

http://i654.photobucket.com/albums/uu264/peli46/Nalgene_1.jpg

 

 

For a size comparison alongside my Sahara:

http://i654.photobucket.com/albums/uu264/peli46/Nalgene_3.jpg

 

 

W/a take into consideration that an M1000 or a 149 will also fit into these (don't know aout the 1/4-oz version):

http://i654.photobucket.com/albums/uu264/peli46/Nalgene_4.jpg

 

MIke

[Chris]

The little glass bottles at the start of this thread reminded me of all the lovely little glass bottles we used to have in the microbiology laboratories that went under names such as McCartney and McConkey. I think they were 10, 15 and 30 ml capacities and would have been great for ink. They were certainly leakproof as they would contain bacteria in aqueous media and you did not want those little devils escaping! They were also very strong and would not break if dropped, again for safety reasons.

 

Chris

[tinta]

Re: Nalgene 1/2 oz clear bottle caps.

 

Please be very careful not to snug these caps too tightly, because the crown on this cap has a tendency to crack & separate from its threaded part. At least it did (20 years ago, now) when we used these small Nalgenes to store camping spices.

Then, the bottle & cap were made of two differing plastics, with the cap being a clear, more brittle material.

 

Mountain Equipment Co-op was selling spare caps, so we always had a few on hand in case of a breakage.

The contents of our bottles were mostly dried leaves, ground seeds or salt.

I have also used these bottles for shampoo on short trips. No matter how carefully tightened, a cracked cap allowed leaking shampoo to drain into my pack.

 

Nalgene might be using a cap composed from a different, tougher (& more flexible) plastic.

I don't know,..... but still,.....please be careful & test it at home before you use it on the road for.......... INK.

Edited September 6, 2012 by tinta