Will Not Write - Parker 21

[jody_fpn]

[jody_fpn]

I figured out how to post a picture from Picasa - if you need to know, ask.

Jody

[inkstainedruth]

We're happy you got the pen to write.

Just be warned, though -- I had a 21 and it became a gateway pen.... I liked it so much that I understood why people liked 51s (and now I have six -- two 51 Vacs and four Aerometrics -- as well as a 51 Special, and a 41...).

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[jody_fpn]

All that said, Mr. Parker 21 stopped writing a few minutes after I got the pictures loaded.

 

The writing that I posted was the last thing it wrote.

 

I got maybe 3 pages out of it then it quit.

uuuuug. I shall pick on it some more I guess, maybe.

[Sailor Kenshin]

Is it fully loaded with ink?

 

If it is,try a 'wetter' ink...if that doesn't work, maybe time to send it to a pro....

[inkstainedruth]

All that said, Mr. Parker 21 stopped writing a few minutes after I got the pictures loaded.

 

The writing that I posted was the last thing it wrote.

 

I got maybe 3 pages out of it then it quit.

uuuuug. I shall pick on it some more I guess, maybe.

Sailor Kenshin is right -- it may not have been fully filled. I'm having a similar problem with the 51 Vac sumgai pen I found last year for $10. I've had it repaired twice now, but I'm only getting about a page and a half or so of writing (in my journal, with roughly 6" x 8" pages). But when I went to just say screw it and flush the pen out this morning I was getting a LOT of ink.... It's somehow the worst of all possible worlds between my Vacs (where you can see how much ink is still sloshing around) and my 51 Aeros (which just write and write and write). I SOOO much want to like this pen (it's Cedar Blue)... but....

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[Sasha Royale]

Too much trouble to get it working. Sell it. Buy a brand new fountain pen.

[Sailor Kenshin]

You also have to press on the filler bar a few times. There are probably threads on the proper way to fill a 21.

[ac12]

If you have never used a hooded pen, like the 21, something to be aware of is the rotation of the pen.

If you rotate the pen in your hand, sooner or later you will rotate the pen off the sweet spot (where the tines are level) and lift one tine such that you get no ink flow.

Hold the pen in your hand, and without moving your hand/arm, move your head behind the pen, so that you can look down the pen.

Is the nib of the pen level? If not, you rotated the pen.

This unfortunately is somewhat common, even for me, because you have so little visual reference of the nib, because most of the nib is hidden by the hood.

 

If you press the pen somewhat hard, you could also be picking up paper fibers between the tines. Enough of that fiber and the ink flow is plugged, until you floss the tines to clear the blockage.

 

When you fill,

• hold the pen in the ink,
• press the bar,
• WAIT till the sac expands,
• repeat this 4 times, then remove the pen from the ink.

If you do not wait for the sac to expand, you will not get much of an ink fill. This was the mistake I made when I first used a 51 aerometric.

[jody_fpn]

>>Sailor Kenshin is right -- it may not have been fully filled.

 

Yes indeed - it writes again - after I added more ink.

I do not mind the problems IF I am learning something from them.

This problem made me feel really ignorant - "just add ink dummy".

If I recall correctly, I did try adding ink, and perhaps did not realize that I failed in that.

 

Thanks everyone.

 

>>Too much trouble to get it working. Sell it. Buy a brand new fountain pen.

But then I would not learn anything :-)

I like to tinker with things (my other hobby is gasoline appliances, mostly Coleman Lanterns & Stoves - mostly to tinker with).

 

Jody

[Sailor Kenshin]

>>Sailor Kenshin is right -- it may not have been fully filled.

 

Yes indeed - it writes again - after I added more ink.

I do not mind the problems IF I am learning something from them.

This problem made me feel really ignorant - "just add ink dummy".

If I recall correctly, I did try adding ink, and perhaps did not realize that I failed in that.

 

Thanks everyone.

 

>>Too much trouble to get it working. Sell it. Buy a brand new fountain pen.

But then I would not learn anything :-)

I like to tinker with things (my other hobby is gasoline appliances, mostly Coleman Lanterns & Stoves - mostly to tinker with).

 

Jody

Not at all...The ink fill technique/sweet spot stuff is far from obvious, and this was a vintage pen which did not come with instructions.

[brownargus]

I bought a Parker 21 NOS (new old stock) and it wouldn't write properly. I sent it to a pen repairer who did some work on it but it was still a dry writer and intermittent starter. I have played with the tines to get them precisely aligned and also slid a razor blade between them to try to increase the line width. The result - it now writes but it's not very good - a dry line and quite scratchy - any comparison with a Parker 51 is purely in its appearance. As far as writing is concerned it isn't in the same class at all.

[jody_fpn]

>>I bought a Parker 21 NOS (new old stock) and it wouldn't write properly.

 

Thanks, that is good to know.

 

Mine starts well now, but draws a fine dry line.

I wonder if I have diluted the ink in the cleaning process, so I will keep using it for a while and see if it darkens with new ink-fills.

 

Cheers,

Jody

[ac12]

 

>>I bought a Parker 21 NOS (new old stock) and it wouldn't write properly.

 

Thanks, that is good to know.

 

Mine starts well now, but draws a fine dry line.

I wonder if I have diluted the ink in the cleaning process, so I will keep using it for a while and see if it darkens with new ink-fills.

 

Cheers,

Jody

 

Many of the older pens were F nibs. The old US Parker F nib is like a Lamy Safari XF/EF nib.

And so that the ink would dry fast, they were also dry pens.

[jody_fpn]

Refilled w/ink, pen would not write AGAIN.

I ran one thickness of film-negative between the tines (AGAIN) and it writes again.

 

I do not get it

- what does one do to fix it so I do not have to film-jump-start the pen every time I run it out of ink?

Is this a symptom of some known problem?

 

Jody

[Ron Z]

A couple of comments:

 

First, to answer one of your questions - No, the moderators do not delete threads unless they are spam, troll posts, rude or something objectionable.

 

Your pens is a basic 21. I don't like to take these apart, especially the ones like yours with the wide feed, because the plastic is fairly thin and brittle. I've joked that they crack if you sneeze in the same room. That is a bit of an exaggeration, but not far from the truth. I much prefer the super 21 or the 41 with the 51 style nib and feed.

 

Just soaking in water won't do much for you. To clean the pen, soak first in water with about 10%-15% clear ammonia and a few drops of Dawn dish detergent. Draw the solution through if you can, and let it stand over night. Then flush several times. Change the solution, and flush more. Eventually the water should start to get cleaner. Then shake the excess out like you are shaking down a fever thermometer with a paper towel over the end (grip firmly!) Then flush with clear water, and shake it down again to get all the excess water out.

 

If that doesn't work, a few cycles in an ultrasonic cleaner will help. If THAT doesn't do it, then consider sending it in to a qualified repair person to be serviced. Not that the pen won't break taking it apart, but they have a better chance than an amateur or a less experienced pen mechanic.

[brownargus]

Refilled w/ink, pen would not write AGAIN.

I ran one thickness of film-negative between the tines (AGAIN) and it writes again.

 

I do not get it

- what does one do to fix it so I do not have to film-jump-start the pen every time I run it out of ink?

Is this a symptom of some known problem?

 

Jody

I used an old razor blade on mine. It increased the flow slightly but it's still not a good writer. Do you know whether its the original or the "Super" model which came out later and was reputedly a better pen! Mine is the "Super". I agree that an ultrasonic cleaner might help. Mine works best with Parker Quink!

[Ron Z]

Just thinking - are you filling the pen properly? It may take several cycles of the filler to fill completely because there is a breather tube inside. The 21 has a relatively short tube, but it still has one so should hold a decent amount of ink. The other possibility is that the snorkel tube has come loose out of the feed, or is missing so the pen isn't filling much at all. They are essential to getting a good fill on the 21/41/51 pens.

[brownargus]

Have just refilled my 21 with Quink and it writes OK. I did have another look at the nib and made another very tiny change to the alignment of the tines. However, what I did notice is that the slit between the tines is at a 5 degree angle to the axis of the nib - strange. It looks as if the slit was cut wrongly. Don't know whether this is a contributory factor to not writing as well as my 51s.