Dip Pen Resevoir

[Uncial]

This might seem like a very, very stupid question and I am sure the solution must be staring me right in the face, but what the heck do you use to hold the ink for an oblique holder dip pen? It's really frustrating me! I have a few dip pens and recently picked up an oblique holder and some nice bouncy flexible nibs. So long as the ink bottle is close to full it's fine, but it won't go deep into the bottle; what do you put the ink in?

 

[Ergative]

Dinky dips!

 

http://www.johnnealbooks.com/prod_detail_list/1074

[Uncial]

Does that really work? I have a load of sample bottles from ink drops; are they the same size as that?

[Cryptos]

I am in the same position. The jar of walnut crystals that I turned into ink has a super wide opening, so no problem there. The Higgins I have though is impossible to get an oblique holder into. One solution would be to have a small dedicated paintbrush with which to transfer ink to the nib. Apparently this is quite an acceptable solution though I have not tried it yet. On the other hand, I have some 10ml vials and I think the cap may be deep enough to use as a mini ink well. I can embed it in some bluetak. Not the most elegant of solutions. Workable.

[Uncial]

Wide, deep enough and sealable are the three things on the wish list. Looking at those dinky dips I don't think they will work (the ink drop sample vials don't - just tried that), but I have seen something on Muji which might.

[kernando]

Don't calligraphers just use eyedroppers or pipettes to drop ink onto the pens?

[linearM]

I have tried using an oblique pen holder or a straight dip pen holder for that matter and am frustrated with dip pens. It's fine if you write small and you can get a line of writing and then dip the nib again. But the dip pen holds so little ink. There is one shallow ink well that I have that works fairly well.

 

I do have one dip pen that is an exception and wonder why more aren't constructed this way, with a built in feed to hold ink. I can get almost of page of writing with just one dip. The nib isn't interchangeable but I don't see any reason a pen holder couldn't be made to fit certain nib sizes and be interchangeable. The photo below shows the dip pen I'm referring to. Perhaps it was intended to be used as a desk pen with a dedicated ink well. Does anyone know?

 

It would certainly solve some of the frustration and could certainly be adapted to an oblique pen holder.

 

 

[ac12]

Common problem.

 

With dinky dips or ink vials, you MUST keep them close to full, or the nib won't get deep enough to pick up enough ink.

I use a small WIDE mouth jar, but it has a similar problem, the jar must be kept at least 3/4 full or the nib can't get deep enough into the ink to pick up enough ink.

 

So with both these option, you need to periodically top off the small jar/vial from your ink bottle to maintain that fill level. If you write in long writing session, you may need to top up the jar/vial in the middle of your writing session.

My issue with the older 'dinky dips' is the pull open cap. With my clumsiness, I will flip the container and throw ink all over the place when it slips from my hand. I much prefer the screw top version, where I have better control over the cap. These small ink vials can be MESSY. You NEED to have a solid stable base to put the ink vial in, or it WILL fall over and spill ink all over the place (been there, done that ). The small jars that I use are more stable, because they are wider and lower than the ink vials. Thus do not need to have a separate base. But a base would not hurt.

 

Next methods are eye dropper and paint brush to transfer ink from the bottle to the nib.

Edited May 18, 2015 by ac12

[Randal6393]

Having used dip pens, both broad-edged and flex, I find that an artist brush is the only really controllable way to get ink from the bottle to the pen. As for the line length, that depends on the pen, the flow rate, and the pressure of writing. But, a rhythm of ink, write, ink, write, is easy to get into. Worked well for many centuries. And, love my fountain pens as I do, I will admit that great lettering is more easily achieved with dip pens than fountain pens.

 

The next-best method is to use an eyedropper or pipette. Works OK, but not quite as controllable. Runs a greater risk of drops, IMHO.

 

The quick dip in the bottle works out for many people, I've used it for small projects that didn't demand the greatest calligraphic effort. But not my normal style.

 

A penman should be accomplished in all three methods if he is working at all regularly with dip pens. Not to mention, it's a lot of fun.

 

Enjoy,

[linearM]

One solution to make a stable base to hold either dinky dips or vials is to take a piece of 2X4 and drill the appropriate sized hole. You can also add a slot to hold the pen. It is inexpensive and provides a stable base. It also works when filling a fountain pen from a sample vial.

[phardy]

linearM, you wrote:

---

I do have one dip pen that is an exception and wonder why more aren't constructed this way, with a built in feed to hold ink. I can get almost of page of writing with just one dip. The nib isn't interchangeable but I don't see any reason a pen holder couldn't be made to fit certain nib sizes and be interchangeable. The photo below shows the dip pen I'm referring to. Perhaps it was intended to be used as a desk pen with a dedicated ink well. Does anyone know?

---

 

There used to be several dip pens of that kind. Esterbrook made a series, the 5xxx "Dip-Less", where steel nibs of different types could be swapped over a common feed that screws out of the holder. You occasionally see these pens, invariably with ruined nibs but intact feeds, on eBay. With a little patience, compatible new old stock nibs can be had from eBay or other sources. Here's one:

 

 

There's also the Sengbusch "Handi-Pens" with "Dip-a-day" nibs. These have a tiny tab of metal or plastic under the feed, at the base, that when pushed in would pop the feed and the nib out from the rest of the pen. I think Pendemonium still has some of the Dip-a-day nibs among its pen repair parts. Your photo vaguely resembles a Sengbusch. Here's one:

 

Esterbrook dip pens with feeds were designed to sit in a dedicated ink well; Sengbusch made self-closing inkwells. Both were meant for business, have lots of capacity, and look nice on the desk but unless you are using the ink at a good clip -- or the ink has serious biocides -- expect the ink to get nasty over time.

As far as recent production goes, I have a couple of Ranga ebonite and acrylic dip pens fitted with small steel nibs and ebonite feeds. I know nothing about oblique pen holders so maybe somebody who does can put in a query with Ranga or another Indian manufacturer for parts to tinker with.

 

[thatotherguy1]

Perhaps this is the cheap way out, but Private Reserve bottles are rather infamous for having quite large mouths and they, being proper ink bottles, seal quite well. They shouldn't tip easily either.

 

If you like Private Reserve inks, problem solved! If not, Goulet and a few other places sell empty Private Reserve bottles for a nominal cost...

 

Hope this helps. I don't have an oblique holder (just a straight myself) but maybe this will work