Seal Hole From Missing Cap Clip?

[eaudom]

This pen's clip is missing, leaving holes in the cap. I tried sealing with some pen varnish...with limited success. should I use silicone or other sealer?

[PaulS]

can't imagine that pen varnish would have filled holes - these clip holes look to be substantial - at least in terms of the size of the cap, and would need a suitable commercial filler.

Obviously you're not worried about cosmetics, so you might try using a car body filler or one of the plastic wood fillers - after first inserting a backing substance inside the cap (behind the holes) to prevent the filler simply falling into the cap.

When applying, keep the filler as near level with the outside of the cap surface as possible, and when dry either mask off before sanding/polishing or perhaps try removing any excess with a sharp blade.

 

Alternatively, replace the pen with one where there aren't any holes in the cap

[estie1948]

This is a beautiful pen. You don't want to fill the holes left by the missing clip with some substance that is going to be in glaring contrast to the cap. There are builder's putties that are come in different colors or in a white that can be mixed with paint or ink so that while it may not be the same color as the cap, it will patch the holes without being all that noticeable. I would suggest you take the pen with you when you go to the builder's supply store and ask them for the best solution for a solid, hard, color coordinated material.

 

Another place to look is an auto supply store. Seems to me that a friend of mine who builds a type of slot car with a body not unlike the body of a fountain pen buys a type of putty at an auto supply store to patch his model car bodies.

 

I wish you great luck and am looking forward to hearing that you have successfully patched the holes in the the cap.

 

-David (Estie).

Edited November 20, 2016 by estie1948

[PaulS]

Quite right to mention the colour matching issue, and I should have said it would be a good idea to try and match the filler/putty colour with that of the cap - and forgot

As a matter of interest, what model is the pen??

[eaudom]

Thanks, I will try your suggestions. This is a Waterman Skywriter with a nice flexible nib. A next step would be an accomodation clip. But these pens have a tapered cap while replacement clips I have seen are made for cylindrical (straight) caps.

[PaulS]

virtually all Waterman's after the late 1930s look to have a cap that's tapered to some extent, and the one and only Skywriter I have shows this taper over the last half inch, so if you didn't mind having a clip that sits a tad further down the cap then you could fit an accommodation example. But then again, if you aren't in the habit of needing this pen on your travels, a cap wouldn't be essential, but maybe we think pens look naked without one.

Is this one of the Alco Division pens from Canada with the Skywriter nib? - the clip you're missing may well have looked like this - only in g.f. - mine pen is obviously of a lesser quality - but nonetheless the clip has a very deco style.

Edited November 20, 2016 by PaulS

[WadeNoble]

To answer your question in place of the OP, Paul, yes that's an Alco Division made in Canada version of the 1st gen Waterman Skywriter. I have the same pen, albeit different colour, which I have just re-sacked, and is also missing the clip. I'm hoping to find either a suitable clip or a replacement cap for the pen... found a cap here , but shipping to Canada is pricey, would cost several times more than the pen I'm restoring just to get the cap delivered. Still, I may go ahead, as even if the cap colour isn't a match, I could likely figure out a way to pull the clip and install it on mine... so tempting.

 

Cheers,

Wade

[eaudom]

Ha, i saw the same clip...not buying for same reason, $, and also this pen is the short version, 4.25" capped, so that cap is too long....Besides, if I fill the holes well, I see no need for a clip on this short pen...Also, I have no idea how to replace a clip...there seems to be an inner cap that is rivited in.

[Left FPN]

I suspect the clip would have been a bent tab or rivet design then held in place by the inner cap. The inner caps were probably bonded in. Filling to obscure the holes will be difficult because of the colour. If you are going to use it as a 'user' pen then perhaps fill the holes with epoxy resin, file them flush and then run masking tape around just below the bottom hole and spray the top gloss black. At least then you would not have the unsightly filled holes.

 

It probably would have looked something like this,

 

 

[PaulS]

thanks for the information Wade - I get the impression these first generation Skywriters are good quality pens, and the g.f. clip shown by Force is very attractive.

I agree sometimes a dilemma knowing whether to buy a part in order to complete a pen - we object to paying some shekels thinking it's too expensive - I don't know the shipping cost of the linked cap but it looks to be vgc - but then we get left with a pen that's high quality but it never gets completed.............. perhaps it's better to bite the bullet and pay for the part so that we have a completed pen.

 

MIght be an idea to buy the cap and then spend some time learning how to change clips - provided the job isn't rushed then perhaps a good learning exercise

[WadeNoble]

 

It probably would have looked something like this,

 

Sky_01.jpg

 

That pen, Force, is identical to my pen, albeit with a clip.

 

.... perhaps it's better to bite the bullet and pay for the part so that we have a completed pen.

 

MIght be an idea to buy the cap and then spend some time learning how to change clips - provided the job isn't rushed then perhaps a good learning exercise

 

 

I'm coming to that same conclusion myself. Mayhaps I should browse that pen parts website and find one or two other items to add that may take some of the sting out of the shipping.

 

Cheers,

Wade

[WadeNoble]

New cap arrived today, it's a perfect match so no need to learn how to change out the clip. Only thing is the cap is in nicer condition than the pen, so will have to research how to gently polish the pen. Thanks for all the advice folks!

[PaulS]

congratulations - sounds like a good result........... as for polishing, people have their personal preferences, of course, such as Renaissance Micro-Crystalline Wax Polish, and some prefer water based products such as Micro-Surface Finishing compounds. The wax product has a blended formula used by the British Museum and other restoration specialists (so comes with a great pedigree), and doesn't show marks left by fingers or water spillage, or so it says on the tin. This product does however, leave a coating of wax that some folk say is difficult to remove - although not sure quite why that should be necessary once you've renovated he pen.

 

Micro-Mesh polishing products use a water based carrier with grits from 1500 up to 12000 - and it's claimed that with the high end abrasive grit of 12000, the scratch pattern is undetectable by human eye. Apart from this Company's typical w. & d. papers, the cream formulations which are in the high end of grits, are adequate for most pen needs, and come in two or three grades which seem to be o.k. for most plastic pen renovations I've tried so far, unless you're in need of removing real damage I guess, in which case you'd need to start with the papers first, and then move on the liquid polishes.

 

I've used both sorts - the wax formulation I got into via my bookbinding adventures and used this initially on pens before I became aware of the water based Micro-Mesh product, which is the only one I now use. It has the obvious advantage that even in a very small grit size it will abrade sufficiently to enhance a plastic surface and improve that aspect of the pen, as well as polishing, plus it doesn't leave any residue on the pen.

Edited November 30, 2016 by PaulS