Clever Ideas For Holding Ink Sample Vials Steady?

[zombywoof]

I'm interested in hearing about simple and effective solutions for holding ink sample vials steady while filling - homemade fixtures, repurposed household items, etc (yes, I just tipped one over on my desk) - what do you use?

[lunareclipse]

I bought a rack for all my ink samples from Goulet Pens a while back - I believe it's actually intended to be a stand for test tubes. Works great for storage, and to keep the vials upright while filling from them.

[wastelanded]

In a pinch, slam a lump of play-doh or other modelling clay on the table and press the vial down into the middle.

 

Or, take a smallish block of any old wood, like a piece of 2x4, and drill a 21/32 inch hole into the middle. It can get as fancy as you want it to!

 

In my experience, few things in life tip over as easy as those sample vials. Shaky hands don't help, either.

[Elizabeth in NJ]

Behold....

 

The Apparatus

 

 

http://i.imgur.com/XgrylGEl.jpg

 

I call it "The Apparatus" because I like giving grandiose names to things. It's really just a tuna fish can with 2-inch strips of cheap craft foam rolled up in it.

 

It works really well and catches ink drips too as is probably obvious from the ink drips on it. If you want to stabilize something larger, you can just temporarily pull out a center strip or two.

 

It's also good for holding your eyedropper pen barrel upright for refilling or cartridges that you're syringe filling and other things of that nature. Just stick them in between the layers.

 

http://i.imgur.com/TJre5nbl.jpg

Edited May 22, 2013 by Elizabeth in NJ

[UDog]

I use a 3/4" diameter heavy hex nut.

[mhguda]

I used a small jam jar (the ones you would get from hotel room service), but Elizabeth's apparatus is so clever, I just copied it by sticking a small piece of packing foam (from a phone carrying wallet) rolled up to make my own apparatus. Thanks, great idea! I also have the cap of an old men's cologne bottle that is just right for holding pen barrels and the like, but the ink sample vials were just a little too large for that. This solution is a perfect fit.

[Namru]

Blu-Tack. I use it on vials and those pesky 30ml Diamine bottles.

[something creative]

Sorry to hear about that incident. Hope everything cleaned up all right. What I use is Diamine's 80mL ink bottle. I keep an empty one specifically for this purpose. The 5mL sample vials everyone uses fit perfectly in the opening. Whenever I need to fill from my sample vials I just uscrew my sample vial and plop it in my Diamine bottle. It makes for very stable filling. you can get an empty Diamine bottle from isellpens.com or gouletpens.com (no affil). Probably others too. Hope this helps. God bless.

[OakIris]

It is only by luck that I did not have a similar accident while I was filling up a pen from a sample vial for the first time; they are very tippy and I am not coordinated enough to hold the vial steady at the same time as I am trying to fill a pen. After the first near spill, I looked around my house for something that I could use to hold the vials stable. I found a pewter candlestick that works very well. It is heavy enough and deep enough to keep the sample vial stable, but small enough that I can store it in the top of my Gerstner tool chest where I keep my pen repair and cleaning tools and other related paraphernalia. The opening is also wide enough that it will fit some slightly larger sample vials than those commonly obtained from places such as Goulet Pens, which I think of as being the "standard" size.

 

 

 

 

 

I like the other ideas and apparatuses ( ) posted here in this thread as well. Amazing what we can come up with to use in this hobby!

 

Holly

Edited May 22, 2013 by OakIris

[bassmannate]

Wish I had found this earlier. Was refilling a pen with 54th mass. and accidentally dumped it on my jeans. Yup, cellulose reactive ink all over pants made of cellulose. Well, guess I have a designated pair of work jeans now.

[dobemom]

Hi zombywoof! I just got my first ink samples in vials a couple of weeks ago and I was fairly certain my dogs would find them most fascinating and likely nudge them with their noses, so i faced the same situation.

 

I opted for a candlestick holder as well. I use a glass one with a blob of clay at the bottom of it just for extra security and it works well. I sort of screw the vial into the clay and release it the same way and thevial doesn't wobble at all.

 

Elizabeth in NJ - pure genius with that idea. I am going to have to do this with a wide glass topped metal spice jar I have lying about unused. It's one of those from IKEA with a magnet on the bottom. I'll be able to toss it up on the side of the refridgerator to keep track of it. Absolute genius!!!

[majorworks]

I like Elizabeth in NJ's idea... no accident there, because we all know smart people live in NJ.

 

I have an idea I've yet to try that is similar, which is a block of foam with little slits cut into it. Gotta find the block of foam. I already have the knife and ink vials. ;-)

[CharlieTurtle]

My prof. uses a test tube rack

[Ted A]

I like Elizabeth in NJ's idea... no accident there, because we all know smart people live in NJ.

 

I have an idea I've yet to try that is similar, which is a block of foam with little slits cut into it. Gotta find the block of foam. I already have the knife and ink vials. ;-)

That's exactly what I did. The piece I have is about 2 inches by 4 inches by 2 inches high. (roughly) I cut 2 square holes with scissors on one side and on the other a square hole to fit a Diamine 30 ml bottle. The holes are a little bit smaller than the diameter of the bolltes so they hold the vials snuggly.

Two holes are useful if I want to transfer ink from one vial to another, for example when I'm doing some mixing. Or also to hold a cartridge when I'm refilling it.

[kestrel]

I use a "disposable" clear plastic Scotch tape dispenser that dispenses 3/4 in tape. Stable, cheap thrifty, and convenient.

[KenD]

A piece of pine 1x2, cut to about 3 inches long, with a 5/8 hole drilled in it. Small enough to toss in your briefcase with a vial of ink for away from home or office refills. And very affordaable!

[inkstainedruth]

There was a similar thread around a year ago. I ended up going to the hardware store with a vial with me, to measure the size (I liked someone's hex nut idea). But the ones I found weren't big enough. So I showed the guy in the store what I needed size-wise, and he found me a connector for copper piping -- the top part is smooth and the bottom part is shaped like a hex nut, with screw threads on the inside. The bottom part seems somewhat heavier, so it's automatically weighted to stay upright and stable. The upper part is just big enough in diameter for a vial, and high enough that the vial stays upright but is still easy to get in and out, and the copper is relatively attractive looking (although not nearly as nice as Holly's candlestick...). Cost around $5. I actually lost the first one inside my coat and had to go back and get another one, but they were cheap enough that it wasn't too much of a drain (then found the first one last fall, so I have 2 of them).

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[penhand]

shot glass from second hand store or goodwill -- 50 cents.

[2GreyCats]

A small cup/jar/container filled with sand, salt, or rice. It could be a paper cup, a lid of something, baby food jar, clean cat food can, etc. Does not require purchasing craft foam or using power tools, just uses stuff that's lying around your kitchen anyway.

Edited May 23, 2013 by 2GreyCats

[Elizabeth in NJ]

Wow, there are are ton of good ideas here. (and thanks for the compliments on The Apparatus)