Cleaning Fountain Pens

[Sky Fountain Pens]

Hello Everyone,

 

What do you use to clean your fountain pens, Ultrasonic cleaners, brushes, syringes, brass sheets, etc? What brand is it?

 

Thanks

 

[SujiCorp12345]

Ear/Bulb syringe are great for flushing out pens, and I use them everytime I switch inks. I use brass sheets occasionally if paper fibres are stuck between the tines.

[WaskiSquirrel]

Water? Usually tap water. If I feel like doing something special, I use bottled water.

[Moshe ben David]

Ear bulbs where possible (which usually rules out most piston fillers). I keep a gallon jug of distilled water from the supermarket on hand -- the stuff they sell for use in clothes irons; about $1 ~ $1.50 per jug. I also do a flush usually with JB Pen Flush, especially if the pen has been waiting for a while for me to get around to cleaning it. And especially for inks in the red family.

 

Exception on the piston fillers are Pelikans; the nib/feed unit unscrews so easily from the barrel that I can flush the barrel quickly and also use the ear bulb to flush the nib/feed unit.

[ScienceChick]

Depends. . Bulb syringe with tap water whenever possible, pen flush and/or USC for stubborn ink (and pens with ossified ink - grr).

[NinthSphere]

Tap water. Flush with an attached converter or the built-in filling system as appropriate. I haven't run into anything so bad I've needed anything beyond that.

[Consulting_Detective]

Personally, I just use bottled water if its on hand, and just keep a small sysco bucket filled with clean water.. it's more a cup than a bucket but you know what I mean.. I also use a ink syringe, bulb syringe, a toothbrush (to clean those pesky feed flaps things, i have no clue what those are called), and finally, a bit of dish soap to clean off dried ink on the body or grip of the pen

 

-C.D

[Notgatherox]

Bulb syringe, syringe + needle, ammonia solution (1:10 ratio), dishwashing soap solution (a few drops in a bottle, well shaken), tap water and occasionally the ultrasonic cleaner.

 

 

~Epic

[Riayain]

Bottled water, a toothbrush, and very occasionally a few drops of dish soap.

[Paddler]

Distilled water flush. Floss the nib's slit with Dacron sewing thread if it picks up paper fibers.

[jar]

Tap water and patience.

[Ernst Bitterman]

Water.

 

If that's not working, either ammonia or Rapido-Eze in water.

 

...which then gets tried in an ultrasonic cleaner.

 

...and then we break out the tooth brush, section dismantling apparatus, bottle brushes and brass sheets. Plus more time in the buzz-tub.

 

Because I'm lazy, though, I try to arrange my own pens to only ever need the first step.

[Runnin_Ute]

Tap water, bulb syringe, syringe with needle.

Haven't needed pen flush, ammonia solution, dish soap solution or usc to date.

(pens are 1 aerometric, 2 lever, rest piston or c/c....

[CraigR]

Very simple here.

 

New pens receive a flush with tap water and a drop of dish washing liquid and then a clear flush.

 

Pens in service are flushed with tap water until water is clear. I use a bulb syringe and an assortment of small bottle brushes and tools that I have assembled over time. If not satisfactory, I will often soak and then repeat as needed. More stubborn pens require a tear down of parts and a complete cleaning of each. The ultrasonic is used as needed. Once reassembled, I try to keep the pen clean and not stored or unused for long with ink in it.

 

The more pens I have owned, cleaned and serviced, the more assorted tools and stuff I have accumulated.

[inkstainedruth]

I use distilled water first, then ammonia solution with a drop or two of Dawn dish detergent (except for iron gall inks, in which case I do a vinegar solution rinse followed by a distilled water flush before possibly an ammonia solution flush) and then rinse well with more distilled water. I will use tap water for rinsing out caps if needed -- but never for nibs and feeds because I have extremely hard water. For some inks and pens I will use an old toothbrush to scrub the nib and/or feed, but that is rarely necessary -- if the pen is easy to take apart (like the Noodler's pens) I may do that and soak all the parts, on occasion, in a small dishpan with ammonia solution in it (except the nib and feed, which get soaked in a cheap glass votive candle holder because it's a little more stable than a shot glass). For pens that don't come apart easily, like the 51s, I flush and soak them nib down in the solution, and use a plastic clothes pin to keep them upright in the candle holder. I do use a ear bulb to flush nib units, and a syringe with the needle blunted down on a sharpening stone for flushing out converters.
I've looked into ultrasonics a few times, but mostly I just let the pens soak (flushing and/or refilling with clean solution if necessary) and then flushing with distilled water, and then letting the pens or pen parts dry overnight in a small glass container with paper toweling shoved in the bottom. I have enough pens that I don't need to flush between in colors immediately -- I'll just put the new/different ink in a different pen. Low tech seems to work for me, and I can let the pen soak or drain while doing other things.

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[benjitzu]

Similar to many, I use filtered water as a first layer, simple cleaner in a bulb syringe.

 

If a deep clean is needed, or when I acquire a new pen, I use a filtered water with a drop of dish soap.

 

And for truly deep cleaning, or when I've used very saturated inks for a longer period of time, I use filtered water with a 10% ammonia mix; then rinse with filtered water.

 

Quitips are quite helpful in cleaning out converters or the barrels of pens, especially piston fillers.

 

Simple techniques really, nothing fancy. Mostly just water and patience.

 

b

[table4bat]

Ear bulb syringe, luke warm tap water. Easy peasy.

[zaddick]

Tap water and patience.

Agreed. Old pens I acquire tend to take a lot of both. I also use quality paper towels to leach out ink that is trapped where the nib meets the section.

[musket3]

A question about using a bulb syringe to force clean water through the nib to clean the pen. How do you clean the mold and mildew that develops inside the bulb syringe?

This is my first post here and I have learned a lot about this fascinating hobby by reading many posts here. Thanks in advance.

[ParkerDuofold]

A question about using a bulb syringe to force clean water through the nib to clean the pen. How do you clean the mold and mildew that develops inside the bulb syringe?

This is my first post here and I have learned a lot about this fascinating hobby by reading many posts here. Thanks in advance.

Hi Musket,

 

If your bulb syringe smells moldy, just chuck it and get a new one; their cheap enough that I think the involved cleaning process would be counter-productive.

 

- Anthony

Edited January 5, 2017 by ParkerDuofold