Jump to content

From Mole Grips To Section Pliers.


PaulS

Recommended Posts

Known more for their use at the brutal end of D.I.Y., I wouldn't normally consider Mole grips suitable as a tool for f.p. repair, but for the fact that......

 

I had an English late 1930s Mentmore Ink-Lock that was defying all attempts to separate the two halves of the barrel - allowing access to the sac - and had tried the hair dryer over a period of some weeks without success. I had one very good pair of section pliers, but came to the conclusion that the job need two of them to grip the barrel hard enough to stop the whole thing slipping whilst twisting. I then bought a commercially available pair of section pliers, but disappointed that the plastic coating was too smooth and shiny to adequately grip the pen when under a lot of torque - they didn't work so I tried roughing the plastic with wet and dry but that didn't improve things and meant that I couldn't then send them back! These are a well known design of section pliers and am surprised that others don't find them equally ineffective. Unfortunately, the source of my original pair was no longer offering them.

 

So, trying to think of tools that would grip with some force I had the idea of using a bench grinder to remove the 'teeth' on a pair of Mole grips - the design with curved jaws rather than parallel ones - then wrapped each jaw with several layers of cycle inner tube which was stuck down with Araldite.

And it does work.............. I used the hair dryer to really warm the pen, clamped the Mole grip on one half of the barrel and used my good pair of section pliers to twist the other half - and the reason for the reluctance for the halves to part can be seen in the pix - a lot of encrusted shellac, probably from a long time back, and which will need removing with methylated spirit. Probably unwarranted in the first place since that part of the pen doesn't contain ink, and have to assume it was used to create a good air seal.

 

Aside from the need to access a bench grinder, I'd recommend this route as a last resort only - unless used with care mole grips can exert the sort of pressures not normally necessary on f.ps., but there are those very rare occasions where exasperation demands something different. I cadged a couple of cycle inner tubes from the local bike shop and pleased with how well this material grips............ when cut into smaller pieces or lengths for use, it's essential for obvious reasons to remove the French chalk completely from the inner side.

I suppose it says something for the strength of pens at that time that we can grip and twist with such massive force and the pen remains whole, but I wouldn't risk this on a cold pen.

Edited by PaulS
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Replies 19
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

  • PaulS

    6

  • Ron Z

    3

  • ac12

    3

  • praxim

    3

Top Posters In This Topic

It must have been a great feeling when the two parts finally came apart.

 

Thank you for sharing. :) I would never have thought of cycle inner tubing.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

yes, it was a red letter day Chrissy, thanks - I'd been struggling with this one for some weeks and getting nowhere. I had thought of using the heat gun, but was worried I might burn the pen, literally - they give out so much heat. But I get excited easily, and a Mentmore giving up it's secrets made my day :D

The cycle inner tube thingy was a suggestion from Cathedral Pens (U.K.) - they were the source of my original section pliers but sadly they no longer offer them, and in the course of our conversation the guy mentioned the gripping properties of inner tubes - so off I went to the bike shop and, as they say, the rest is history.

 

P.S. the gift is coming along albeit a little slowly - will send a PM tomorrow.

Edited by PaulS
Link to comment
Share on other sites

The need to use FORCE is dangerous.

I have sheared a pen in half, simply using my fingers and a sheet of rubber for grip, no leverage increasing device like a section plier.

San Francisco Pen Show - August 28-30, 2020 - Redwood City, California

www.SFPenShow.com

Link to comment
Share on other sites

quote.......................... "The need to use FORCE is dangerous.​" thanks ac - your knowledge and experience are appreciated, and would agree that any problem should be treated with the just minimum of force necessary. With this particular pen I had virtually run out of ideas as to how to get the thing apart, but knew it was a well made pen in good condition, so felt there was some justification in beefing up the mechanics.

I'm fairly new to pen repair and as a consequence perhaps am inclined to take chances I shouldn't - would you care to suggest how you might have solved this one? :)

Edited by PaulS
Link to comment
Share on other sites

It's an interesting thing, wondering how others might have solved the same problem. Maybe there would be several different methods of getting those pieces apart?

 

I'm not completely au fait with knowing exactly what materials all pens are made from, and whether they can be immersed or not.

 

I have a very good USC, that warms up the liquid inside it after a couple of cycles. In order to free shellac, I would run it a couple of cycles empty, then put the pen in for a minute or 90 seconds. I don't know whether that would have worked on your Mentmore or not, but it has worked on a few Esties, a Swan and a couple of old Parkers for me in the past.

 

I don't have a heat gun either, so I use a spare hair dryer when I need dry heat.

 

I can also get nibs and feeds out of Waterman Phileas pens easily enough after giving those a cycle in the USC. The additive I used in it is ammonia based, from my friend who is a jeweller. However, I use it at half strength for pens, and refill with water as the level drops.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

you don't need to grind down your tool; what you need is rubber padding that won't shred

 

I too took my favourite ViceGrips on Sunday for duty on the pen bench, I slipped some rubber high pressure fuel tubing (with fibre braiding inside the rubber) over its toothed jaws

 

Auto fuel tubing, heater hose, radiator coolant hose etc etc

 

I preferred the ViceGrips compared to open pliers as there's less control with the pliers; with locking ViceGrips I slowly ratcheted up the grip to just enough to grip & nothing more

Link to comment
Share on other sites

thanks for the advice :) and suggestions - I tend to give immersion a very wide berth since I've heard horrendous tales of pens changing colour or going milky, so now only use the hair dryer, although believe heat guns have some use providing you're very careful.

Having now adapted my Mole grips probably no need to bother changing their construction (I can't put the teeth back on), but glad to hear exactly which type of high pressure hose I'll need next time I want to make a pair of section pliers.

Necessity is indeed the mother of invention.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I've used these bionic wrenches for years. I know many use spark plug pliers to good effect, but I feel better applying 360 degree pressure. ;)

 

d36ad356-898a-4efa-b9f5-10b4ba12ca5b_1.1

so many pens, so little time.......

Link to comment
Share on other sites

hi - yes, I also have this design of loggerhead grips - the six inch size I think - and had tried them on my Ink-Lock with a non-slip material wrapped around the pen before gripping, to help avoid marking the pen, but something was obviously wrong since I couldn't seem to stop the pen slipping when ​I started to twist (not the dance you understand :lticaptd: ). They may well grip very tightly on their own, but I was afraid of crunching too hard and ending up mangling the pen if I didn't use some protection between the pen and the grip.

I agree 360 pressure is best, but those chrome contacts look like they might not provide a non-slip grip on their own - anyway, hopefully I won't get another pen that refuses to budge - at least not for a year or two. :)

Do you know if these loggerheads mark if used without protection?

Edited by PaulS
Link to comment
Share on other sites

The thing that has always kept me from using inner tube is that the jaws of the pliers can cut through the rubber. A better way to do it is to use fuel line hose - not then shiny variety, but the soft matte looking rubber. I've used it for decades now. Cut a piece of rubber about an inch long and slit it down the side, then slip over the pen. The bionic wrench that John recommends is quite good too - I have two of them, and use them in special cases.

 

You can also use the fuel line hose over the jaws of the pliers.

 

Be careful with the Vise grips though. They can multiply the pressure you apply and crush a pen, even through the padding on the jaw.

 

Making section pliers and other tools are discussed at some length in the two cheap tools articles on my website.

spacer.png
Visit Main Street Pens
A full service pen shop providing professional, thoughtful vintage pen repair...

Please use email, not a PM for repair and pen purchase inquiries.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I would have tried DRY heat, CAREFULLY applied, on that pen.

Edited by ac12

San Francisco Pen Show - August 28-30, 2020 - Redwood City, California

www.SFPenShow.com

Link to comment
Share on other sites

There is an important caveat to the next suggestion: one way of loosening the section is to rock it in relation to the barrel, using thumb and finger on the section while gripping the barrel with the other hand, a little bit like a golfing grip, simultaneously pushing forward on the section as if to remove it. Rotate the barrel slightly and rock and push briefly again, with heating as needed.

CAVEAT: There is high risk of cracking the barrel.

I could add riders like "if you are not careful" etc but that is just weaselling around the risk entailed.

 

So, why do I suggest it? That is because you are already facing a high risk problem, one where applying simple grip-and-rotate with more force may have become a still higher risk, of crushing or snapping the barrel. The slight rock-push-rotate-[repeat] process helps to loosen the grip slightly, so that reapplying a standard twist action is more likely to succeed without requiring extreme pressures.

 

I reiterate that the rocking action must be firm but slight in action, and that to me this is appropriate where risk in standard separation has become very high owing to twisting forces apparently needed.

 

I have managed two out of two with this approach. Mostly it has not been required.

X

Link to comment
Share on other sites

thanks for the link Ron - appreciated, and will read at leisure - and you're quite right about the preferred type of line hose.

Felt I'd exhausted the hair dryer route ac, and in fact was teetering on the edge of putting a real heat gun in the vice so that I could ratchet up the degrees, and I suspect that with real care that method may well have melted the shellac, but heat guns can blow out some very hot air, and disaster can happen quickly.

 

I think Praxim's suggestion of rocking axially has merit, and I seem to recall having used that method, once, with success, and agree it's dangerous - if you think about it, slight axial rocking occurs naturally anyway, even when we think we're only pulling/twisting in a straight line, we're probably not and there's always going to be some sideways action but ordinarily it's too small to cause a problem.

When done deliberately, this process could also be called 'levering' - i.e. moving the length of the barrel in a sideway motion against it's anchor (the section).

 

With a nib in place, and bearing in mind the shortness of a section, there's probably not much leverage taking place, which is why a snap is likely if too much pressure is used, and if not careful it doesn't do the nib a lot of good either. With my pen, the joint that needed parting was in the centre of the barrel, and the two parts involved were 40 mm and 30 mm in length respectively - the sort of shortness that gives little opportunity for decent sideways leverage.

 

Anyway, I succeeded in the end, and presently don't have any pens that are defying my efforts to separate, but it's been a good learning curve and hope I don't find another difficult one for a while :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Anybody tried using those wheat heat bags that you warmup in the microwave?

 

Some ppl use them as gently heat source to bend plastics like spectacle frames... could be handy for pens too.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Anybody tried using those wheat heat bags that you warmup in the microwave?

 

Some ppl use them as gently heat source to bend plastics like spectacle frames... could be handy for pens too.

 

I have, and have also worked with a glass bead type of frame warmer. The problem with the bean bags is the inconsistent temperature i.e. you can't control the temperature precisely enough. I got one pen apart that way, distorted the barrel on the next one. I bought a frame warmer and tried using glass beads in it. Some have suggested using salt. In either case, the temperature was too high even at the very lowest setting. The reading was somewhere in the range of 300-350F. I looked up the chip that was used for temperature control on line, but couldn't get enough information to know what the resistor should be to take the temperature down to about 150F. I contacted customer support, but got no reply.

 

The hot air type of frame warmer may be OK, but I find that an embossing gun works very well once you figure out how far you need to go from the opening and how long to keep the pen at that level to get the temperature you want. I used a digital probe thermometer to measure the temperature at various levels before I put a pen over the opening to warm it.

 

re. wiggling. You do need to do that some times, though very gently. I hesitate though to suggest it though because some folks don't understand the concept of "very gently." Where we get into trouble is when we want it to come apart now instead of persistent, gentle efforts. Sometime you end up taking quite a bit of time, sweating bullets the whole time, to a pen open.

spacer.png
Visit Main Street Pens
A full service pen shop providing professional, thoughtful vintage pen repair...

Please use email, not a PM for repair and pen purchase inquiries.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Heat guns can be DANGEROUS.

Mine at low was still way tooooooo hot.

I over-softened a pen and it bent like a pretzel and I ignited a black rubber barrel.

 

If you use a heat gun, get an ADJUSTABLE one, and get a dial thermometer to set the heat level. But depending on the heat gun, you may not be able to get the temp low enough to safely use it on pens.

 

I use an adjustable hot air eye glasses frame warmer, with a dial thermometer to set the output air temp.

 

As mentioned, patience is the key. Some pens come apart quickly, some take MANY heating cycles before the pen lets loose. And I have one that has resisted dozens of attempts. As Ron mentioned, impatience is what leads to damage/destruction.

San Francisco Pen Show - August 28-30, 2020 - Redwood City, California

www.SFPenShow.com

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I disagree. Heat guns in and of themselves are not dangerous. Improper or inattentive use is. I have a Steinel temperature controlled, digital readout heat gun for which I paid a lot of money, and which I never use. I use an embossing gun from AC Moore that I bought for $15, as do most all of the pen mechanics/nib techs that I know. Knowing what the temperature is at various levels, proper technique, limited time in the heat source are all important. Insufficient heat can be as dangerous as too much heat. Most heat guns also produce a stream of heat that is too wide. The opening of an embossing gun is about 1/2" wide, which gives a much more focused hot spot - better because you can direct the heat more precisely.

 

When using a temperature controlled heat gun, remember that the temperature reading is at the output of the gun. Move an inch or two away and the temperature drops significantly. Set the output for 130 or 140 degrees, and it won't be hot enough. Your heat gun has to be hotter than that.

 

You may damage a few pens along the way, but careful attention to what you are doing and how hot things are getting will limit the number. Let me direct your attention to the article "Seeing with your fingers." You never stop using that technique...

spacer.png
Visit Main Street Pens
A full service pen shop providing professional, thoughtful vintage pen repair...

Please use email, not a PM for repair and pen purchase inquiries.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have a heat gun which sits on its back, blowing up a steady stream of hot air. With a probe, I can find a comfortable temperature point in the air stream then rotate the pen there. I have also, as previously mentioned, used a warming drawer but with the pen on a small block of wood so it does not touch the heatings surface. A good warming drawer holds quite a stable temperature, generally with settings anywhere from 35°-80° C. I measure it continuously with a fixed probe anyway.

X

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now


  • Most Contributions

    1. amberleadavis
      amberleadavis
      43844
    2. PAKMAN
      PAKMAN
      33494
    3. Ghost Plane
      Ghost Plane
      28220
    4. inkstainedruth
      inkstainedruth
      26624
    5. jar
      jar
      26101
  • Upcoming Events

  • Blog Comments

    • Shanghai Knife Dude
      I have the Sailor Naginata and some fancy blade nibs coming after 2022 by a number of new workshop from China.  With all my respect, IMHO, they are all (bleep) in doing chinese characters.  Go use a bush, or at least a bush pen. 
    • A Smug Dill
      It is the reason why I'm so keen on the idea of a personal library — of pens, nibs, inks, paper products, etc. — and spent so much money, as well as time and effort, to “build” it for myself (because I can't simply remember everything, especially as I'm getting older fast) and my wife, so that we can “know”; and, instead of just disposing of what displeased us, or even just not good enough to be “given the time of day” against competition from >500 other pens and >500 other inks for our at
    • adamselene
      Agreed.  And I think it’s good to be aware of this early on and think about at the point of buying rather than rationalizing a purchase..
    • A Smug Dill
      Alas, one cannot know “good” without some idea of “bad” against which to contrast; and, as one of my former bosses (back when I was in my twenties) used to say, “on the scale of good to bad…”, it's a spectrum, not a dichotomy. Whereas subjectively acceptable (or tolerable) and unacceptable may well be a dichotomy to someone, and finding whether the threshold or cusp between them lies takes experiencing many degrees of less-than-ideal, especially if the decision is somehow influenced by factors o
    • adamselene
      I got my first real fountain pen on my 60th birthday and many hundreds of pens later I’ve often thought of what I should’ve known in the beginning. I have many pens, the majority of which have some objectionable feature. If they are too delicate, or can’t be posted, or they are too precious to face losing , still they are users, but only in very limited environments..  I have a big disliking for pens that have the cap jump into the air and fly off. I object to Pens that dry out, or leave blobs o
  • Chatbox

    You don't have permission to chat.
    Load More
  • Files






×
×
  • Create New...