Flying With Fountain Pens

[irabelo]

First of all, sorry if it has all been answered in older topics. I *did* do some searching and haven't found my answers, so here I am...

 

My job demands that I travel a lot, so I get on an airplane at least a couple times a week. I usually carry 2-4 pens with me (nothing fancy, like an X450 and a Reynolds Accent). Problem is, I've been having problems with leaks. Not so that ink escapes from the cap into my bag, but enough that when I first use the pens after landing I get inky fingers from a dirty section, some drip from the cap or a barrel full of ink. Sometimes, if a pen is sideways during the flight, I even find a completely empty cartridge

 

I use cartridges in all of them, so always keeping them either full or empty would be a big nuisance. I've tried carrying them all nib up, have tried waiting some time after landing before using them and have tried using a filled converter, but nothing has worked. I love using a fountain pen as my daily writer, but this is getting really annoying

 

Can anyone help me? Thanks!

 

- Igor

[Dragonmaster Lou]

Goulet Pens has some tips on traveling with fountain pens on Youtube, but it looks like, as far as I can remember, you've already tried most of those tricks and still had some bad luck.

 

The only other option I can think of would be to get a vacuum filler pen like the TWSBI Vac 700 or the Pilot Custom 823. They can be completely sealed to be pretty much airplane-proof. The TWSBI is considerably less expensive than the Pilot and it may be the way you want to go in this case.

[langere]

I know what you mean and I feel your pain! I suggest two things: One, keep on doing what you are doing. Take some extra cartridges with you. And secondly, always open the pens with a piece of tissue first. You will find that some pens are more sensitive than others. I have figured out that my Kawecos, for example, make for few problems. But having the pen nib up (actually in your shirt pocket) during the flight is all it takes. And then just have a tissue handy just in case...

 

Erick

[fly_us]

You did all you can and still leak then you might think about bring other pens. I flight a lot (travel industry) and Parker 51 is always my choice for pocket pen. The rest will either in carry-on or checked luggages.

[spaceink]

I have traveled with pens nib up across transcontinental flights and my Parker 51 and Sheaffer Balance experienced no problems. I sealed them in ziploc bags. Not sure if that helped any.

[fabri00]

Keep pens upright during fly, and full of ink.

90% of pens will have no problems if you do that.

This has been said in tenth of threads.

[Buzz_130]

I've flown internationally for years and am a pilot. I'm sorry you are having so many problems travelling with your fountain pens. The general rule is that you need to travel with the nib pointed up (not sideways or any other position). The air inside the pen wants to escape into the lower pressure air of the cabin that gradually decreases as the aircraft cilmbs. The higher pressure air inside the pen will take the path of least resistance--through the nib and will go through any ink in the way. As a result, you would end up with a cap filled with ink. On descent, the reverse is true. The air from the cabin will try to equalize with the lower pressure inside of the pen. This isn't a problem because it pushes the ink back into the pen. If a pen is carried full, then there's no air to try to escape. If a pen is carried empty, there's no ink to get in the way.

 

Your pens may be leaking as the air goes through the path of least resistance. Depending on where that is for your pens, there may be ink in the way. The collector may leak as a result of the pressure changes. The feed may be holding a great deal of ink in your pens. All could cause your problems.

 

When travelling, from taxi to level off, I keep my pens in my pen wrap in the seat pocket in front of me with the nibs pointed up. At level off, I've always been able to use my pens. (You would be fine about the time of the announcement that you can use your electronics passing through 10,000 feet because the cabin altitude stopped rising long before you reach that point). It's just smoother and easier at altitude. Make sure you are doing the same.

 

If that doesn't work, then you may need to consider a flying-specific pen. The Parker "51" Aerometric was specifically designed for air travel (the initial adds were to 72,000 feet!). I carry one all the time when flying, and I've never had a problem even on unpressurized flights. Another choice is a pen with a shutoff feature like the TWSBI Vac 700. Screwing in the filler actually seals the barrel from the feed and the only ink that is used is from the collector.

 

Good Luck.

Buzz

[two2tone]

This works for me -- toss the half filled cartrige before bording the plane. Insert a new cartridge at cruise altitude or when you land. No chance of a leak!

[Jerome Tarshis]

I flew for decades with a Parker 51 Aero and the nearest I came to a leak was finding a drop or two on the hood when I took the cap off the pen. (But I never tried to write with the pen while I was in flight.) That was acceptable. Then one flight I got off the plane and found a great big ink stain on my shirt.

 

After that, for several years, I flew only with cartridge pens. Converter or cartridge plugged in, and never the slightest hint of a leak. More recently, in honor of buying the equivalent of my first Parker 51, lost after using it for 36 years, I took that pen on the plane and had no trouble.

 

Whatever the company said about the Aero's being designed not to leak on airplanes, I truly don't think they've been trouble-free. A systematic search of pen message boards should find quite a few complaints about Parker 51 Aeros that leaked.

 

David Nishimura's site vintagepens.com says, judiciously, that the design reduces the probability that the pen will leak, and I'd endorse that. My one big leak occurred when I was wearing a sweater over my shirt, and it may be that the body heat trapped by the sweater played a part in my leak.

 

Even though I've never had any leakage with a c/c pen, obviously it can happen. Some questions do not have perfect answers, unfortunately.

Edited August 17, 2015 by Jerome Tarshis

[irabelo]

Well, thanks everyone. Think I'll try Buzz's solution of keeping a pen wrap in the seat pocket and see if the problem goes away! If that doesn't work...well, I can always use an excuse to get a couple new pens, as the suggested TWSBI and 51

[VivienR]

Sorry for saying that, but maybe some better pen? I flought several times with Parker Sonnet and Duofold, never had such kind of problem, and the cartridges or converters wasn't always filled, ink level was varied flight by flight, and had no issues with my pens. I know that currently Parker hasn't the best reputation especailly Sonnet, but I had zero issues with them.

[irabelo]

Sorry for saying that, but maybe some better pen? I flought several times with Parker Sonnet and Duofold, never had such kind of problem, and the cartridges or converters wasn't always filled, ink level was varied flight by flight, and had no issues with my pens. I know that currently Parker hasn't the best reputation especailly Sonnet, but I had zero issues with them.

 

No problem, that's why I stated that I wasn't using "fancy" pens: in case that could be the issue

[juanjo]

I have flown with cheap pens, both long and intercontinental, lots of times, and the advice by Buzz is consistent with my experience: never problems if you keep them with the nib upwards and only use them once altitude has stabilized. Worked witb Pelikan, Rotring and Tachikawa pens on all flights.

[Cal_D]

I was flying recently, and had the opportunity to run a little experiment. I had a hero 616, platinum 3776, and a platinum preppy eyedroppered. All were filled fresh with HOD, with the 3776 using a refilled cartridge. I filled all three before I left. During my first flight, I had all three upright in my pocket. Only the hero had a little ink in the cap, just a thin line where the inner cap holds the pen. After my layover, I had all three in my front pocket, and had a similar length flight. This time, the hero had quite a bit of ink in the cap, enough that I needed a tissue to clean in up, and the preppy, had a thin amout of ink in the cap, but less then a drop. I then used the pens a bit on my trip. The 3776 was 2/3 full, the hero was 3/4 full, and the preppy was 2/3 full. For my first flight, I kept them up right, and saw no ink in any caps. For the second flight, again, on their side, I had a ton of ink, several drops worth in the cap of the hero, with some leaking around the edge of the clip. The preppy leaked about a drop, and the 3776 did not leak anything again. Ill admit though, that I used the 3776 for about 1/2 hour on the last flight, and its flow was much wetter then normal. All flights were around 3 hours long, with a two hour layover on the first one, and a 1/2 hour layover on the return. My destination had a much higher elevation then my layover or home.

[lynxcat]

i own only quite cheap pens, and the few times i've flown with them, they've been no trouble at all; nib up in my shirt pocket, topped up before leaving for the airport, and open them with a piece of tissue paper just in case. only problem i had was when i badly overloaded the shirt pocket with random stuff then ran/jogged from one end of JFK's terminal 8 to the other --- that shook one pen loose from its cap, which wasn't too good.

 

OTOH, i know that airport metal detectors do not care about cheap Chinese P51 copies, nor does the TSA. walked right through several security checkpoints with them and never a peep.

[cattar]

Get some new pens.
Some vintage pens and a lot of modern pens will fly well
Pens and inks that are fussy about position in the bag won't.

I toss my watermans and platinums in my bag and walk around town. I toss them in the carryon and fly, don't worry about how much ink is in the pens or the position of the pens.

[Shangas]

I've flown with vintage, antique and modern fountain pens. So long as you keep them full, and nib up (and don't use them until you reach cruise-altitude) you'll be fine.

 

But keep some tissues nearby, juuuust in case. You never know.

[fplover01]

I have flown several times with Pelikan piston fillers. Both fully and half filled. Never had issues, I also used them to write in flight. Just some days ago, i also had a Lamy cartidge filler with me, had also no probems with it.

[ksm]

No problems with Pelikan M215, but I never unscrew it in the air.

[Sasha Royale]

Why does ink leak from a fountain pen, during air travel accent ?

As the aircraft / fountain pen ascends, the air pressure outside the pen decreases. The higher air pressure inside the pen expands, escaping through the nib. Any ink, between the air and the nib, will be pushed out by the expanding air.

 

When a common fountain pen is carried "nib-up" the ink drains out of the feed and nib. Hence, no leak. In some cheaper pens, the ink does not drain well, but remains in the nib to be pushed out. A Parker 45 is not very expensive. Mine has never leaked in air travel. Apologies for my prejudice, but I have little confidence in eyedropper pens.