Stain On Pens From Leather Pen Storage Case

[aarst]

Hello. I have come across a problem that hopefully some more experience members can provide insight into. About 6 months ago, I started my foray into fountain pens with a couple of Noodler's pens. As I started to upgrade to more expensive pens, I began storing my earlier pens in an Aston leather brown 10-pen case. After several months of storage, both of my Noodler's pens exhibit staining on the caps where they contact the velvet lining of the pen case (see photo). The staining seems to be deep and permanent, and I have been unable to wash it off. However, the other pens stored in the case, a vintage stainless Parker flighter, two resin Conklin pens, and a Platinum 3776 Century have no staining on them. The Ahab is made from Noodler's celluloid derivative, and the Konrad is acrylic, and both of them exhibit the staining.

 

As I acquire more expensive pens, I am now hesitant to store them in the leather pen case because I don't want to ruin them. Any opinions on if the problem could be strictly limited to Noodler's pens, or should I toss the (rather expensive) pen storage case?

 

[kapanak]

As far as I understand it, leather releases gasses and oils, both naturally and from the preparation process, that tends to stain earlier types of plastic if exposed for long (especially direct contact). This is also true for leather scabbards for daggers and swords, as those tend to have spot rusting rather than staining.

 

With regards to the stains in your photos, I have been able to take them out with a mild pure polish before, but I'd be careful on the type you use, as it can strip many layers right off if not careful.

[PAKMAN]

I had to throw away a leather case because it did this to my pens. I think it has to do with the tanning process on some cheaper cases.

[aarst]

Thanks for the information. I'll get the rest of my pens out of the pen case and find a different way to store them. The cheaper plastic in the Noodler's pens was probably the canary in the coal mine announcing that the leather is doing bad things to my pens.

[PaganArcher]

Most leather pen cases out there, especially the cheaper ones and some of the "luxury look" (not to say actual luxury brands; i.e. Montblanc, Visconti, etc) use a chrome tanned leather. The leftover chromium solution in the leather can and will adverse effects on many items, especially metals.

 

My suggestion is buy a Nock Co. case if you're looking for value and budget, or you'll probably need to spend a fair bit of coin on a well made case from a major pen company or a bespoke case made from vegetable tanned leather.

[painted_klown]

I was also looking for a low cost way to store pens and stumbled upon a Monteverde 36 slot pen case for $40 USD. No leather, at this price, but they look nice enough for the cost. Reviews on youtube and elsewhere I am sure.

 

Good luck with whatever you choose,and sorry to see your pens were damaged by your case. Ouch!

[SpecTP]

Massdrop has some very good leather wraps. https://www.massdrop.com/buy/allegory-leather-pen-wrap

 

I have 2 from Allegory and have had no issues with them.

[EclecticCollector]

Most leather pen cases out there, especially the cheaper ones and some of the "luxury look" (not to say actual luxury brands; i.e. Montblanc, Visconti, etc) use a chrome tanned leather. The leftover chromium solution in the leather can and will adverse effects on many items, especially metals.

 

My suggestion is buy a Nock Co. case if you're looking for value and budget, or you'll probably need to spend a fair bit of coin on a well made case from a major pen company or a bespoke case made from vegetable tanned leather.

Some of Montblanc's leather pen cases are described as being chrome tanned in their catalogs. Whether this is cause for concern or not, I can't say.

[PaganArcher]

Some of Montblanc's leather pen cases are described as being chrome tanned in their catalogs. Whether this is cause for concern or not, I can't say.

Montblanc may finish their leather a different way and take greater care after initial tanning given their image. I can't say for sure as they far and away above my paygrade. But my experience is that the lower priced cases aren't the greatest quality of hide.

 

Maybe I'm just overly picky as I'm a leatherworker.

[tinta]

For the last five years I've stored each of my eight pens in Pelikan single leather cases (some with a black band some with green). To date I have not noticed any adverse effects on the pens from these cases. Not sure where they're made, but their quality is excellent.

[Moshe ben David]

There has in fact been much discussion on these forums about the cheaper chrome tanned leather cases. IIRC, the issue with those was a resulting tarnish on metal bodied pens. I don't recall a comment on how this type of leather discolored acrylic or celluloid bodied pens.

 

You may not be able to 'wash' off the discoloration from your pens if it is some sort of result from out-gassing. That implies not a residue but rather a chemical reaction...

 

Sorry.

 

Moshe ben David

[ISW_Kaputnik]

With a number of leather pen cases, including the 10 pen Aston case mentioned by the OP, I have to say that I've never had this problem. But as others have noted, it may have a lot to do with the specific materials your pen is made of, and once it happens, there may not be a way to clean it off.

 

After reading enough warnings of this kind, I decided better safe than sorry, and moved my favorite modern pens, along with some old celluloids, to a fake leather 24 pen case with a cloth lining. The Aston now holds some less favored pens, but since I haven't actually had a problem yet, I don't want it to go to waste, and I don't want to keep on buying pen cases when I have slightly more than enough for all my pens. I would almost never be taking as many as ten of my fountain pens out of the house anyway, but when I take more than I want to carry in one shirt pocket, I put them in a cloth pen roll.

[marcelo]

I had this exactly same issue with my Waterman Carène. You can find out how to clean the stains here:

 

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/307630-i-am-very-happy-and-will-tell-you-why/

 

[snowbear]

It could also be that the leather is dyed, and the dye has leached out onto the pen.

[marcelo]

Hi aart,

 

Did you have the chance to test the solution I quoted above?

[orfew]

I use Montblanc cases and I have had no problems after several years.

[FOUR X FOUR]

You can still use a leather case. Just buy one that is felt lined

[marcelo]

You can still use a leather case. Just buy one that is felt lined

 

Mine was felt lined, but, even so, the pen got stained.

Edited July 8, 2016 by marcelo

[aarst]

marcelo, I don't have polishing paste, but I attempted to remove the stain by sanding the discolored portion out with progressively finer micromesh abrasives. It lightened up the brown marks a little bit, but it is still visible. I didn't really care for these Noodler's fountain pens or use them much due to inconsistent ink flow issues. It's not worth the effort to clean them up further. For now, I moved all my pens to a small wooden box but will eventually get a synthetic case for them. BTW, my leather case that caused the marks is also felt (or suede) lined.