Twisted Nib?

[AaronMcKay]

Hello Gentleman

 

I am pretty much a FP newb. I purchased a couple of m205's last christmas time, one for my wife and one for myself. We use them for note taking at University and absolutely love them, we could never go back.

 

So anyway, i'm having a slight issue with my nib. After having removed the nib to clean, soak, flush, dry it before reassemble and refill I noticed that as I tried to write it was scratchy on the paper. So I took a look and saw the the nib was no longer centered with the feed. I grabbed a wad of paper towel and gripped the nib to give it a slight adjustment back to the center and it moved willingly. It flowed well after that but the nib has since become off center again.

 

I would like to know if this is something I can fix myself? Do i need to send it in? Should I just buy a new nib?

 

I'm planning to buy a third pen so that we have a spare on hand in case something like this happens in the future. I think having a third will also make it more likely for me to clean them regularily as I will then be able to clean it and let it dry without needing it again the same day or next.

 

thanks in advance and please see attached photos (I FIGURED OUT HOW TO POST AN IMAGE!! )

 

[Flounder]

There NEEDS to be a cleaning sticky on this subforum. Saturation point of ill-advised youtube clips, blog posts &c. has been reached, and they're understandably the first port of call for new hobbyists seeking information.

 

Aaron, a hearty welcome to the forum to you. Please forget everything you've seen and read about disassembling your pens for cleaning. It's totally unnecessary, accelerates wear, risks alignment issues etc. etc.

 

To sort your immediate problem, disassemble once more, and make sure the nib tines are aligned in isolation of the feed (think they're held in a screw in collar in these pens?). Then reassemble the unit with the feed aligned, and screw it back in.

 

Unless you and your better half are writing with iron gall, those sparkly inks, or something home-made, all you need to do to undertake routine cleaning is use the filler to take up and expel clean water. A piece of paper towel helps wick out any water left in the feed. And that's it!

[AaronMcKay]

There NEEDS to be a cleaning sticky on this subforum. Saturation point of ill-advised youtube clips, blog posts &c. has been reached, and they're understandably the first port of call for new hobbyists seeking information.

 

Aaron, a hearty welcome to the forum to you. Please forget everything you've seen and read about disassembling your pens for cleaning. It's totally unnecessary, accelerates wear, risks alignment issues etc. etc.

 

To sort your immediate problem, disassemble once more, and make sure the nib tines are aligned in isolation of the feed (think they're held in a screw in collar in these pens?). Then reassemble the unit with the feed aligned, and screw it back in.

 

Unless you and your better half are writing with iron gall, those sparkly inks, or something home-made, all you need to do to undertake routine cleaning is use the filler to take up and expel clean water. A piece of paper towel helps wick out any water left in the feed. And that's it!

Hi

 

Thank you for the reply. It's funny you should mention a sticky for cleaning. I've searched but not found one and have just been as you said using Youtube or other posts for reference.

 

We use edelstein ink onyx. Every few fills I would put the nib in sterile water and use the piston to flush it several times. Then disassemble the nib from the pen and soak them for a few hours. Then reassemble and flush again. Then let them sit over night on paper towel to dry. I must have twisted the nib from the feed while removing it from the pen. Today while browsing I read that when you are removing the nib be sure to squeeze it with your thumb and index finger from the front and back, not the sides of the nib. This may have been the cause of my issue.

 

I've examined the nib tines with a loupe and they look fine to me. I think the only issue is the nib being off-center of the feed. So you are saying i simply need to grip the nib with my fingers and realign it with the feed? Simple as that? What is to prevent it from happening again? I'm not sure I completely understood your suggestion. Does the nib actually disconnect from the feed?

 

Moving forward I will clean only by flushing the pen without removing the nib. Or should I be disassembling it and cleaning every 6 months?

 

thanks

[pajaro]

Hi

 

Thank you for the reply. It's funny you should mention a sticky for cleaning. I've searched but not found one and have just been as you said using Youtube or other posts for reference.

 

We use edelstein ink onyx. Every few fills I would put the nib in sterile water and use the piston to flush it several times. Then disassemble the nib from the pen and soak them for a few hours. Then reassemble and flush again. Then let them sit over night on paper towel to dry. I must have twisted the nib from the feed while removing it from the pen. Today while browsing I read that when you are removing the nib be sure to squeeze it with your thumb and index finger from the front and back, not the sides of the nib. This may have been the cause of my issue.

 

I've examined the nib tines with a loupe and they look fine to me. I think the only issue is the nib being off-center of the feed. So you are saying i simply need to grip the nib with my fingers and realign it with the feed? Simple as that? What is to prevent it from happening again? I'm not sure I completely understood your suggestion. Does the nib actually disconnect from the feed?

 

Moving forward I will clean only by flushing the pen without removing the nib. Or should I be disassembling it and cleaning every 6 months?

 

thanks

 

Yes, do as you suggested in the bold part. The R&R of the nib probably pushed the nib off center with respect to the feed. I have done the same with Pelikans. It will probably happen again if you remove the nib unit again. Just realign it if it does.

[Flounder]

 

We use edelstein ink onyx. Every few fills I would put the nib in sterile water and use the piston to flush it several times. Then disassemble the nib from the pen and soak them for a few hours. Then reassemble and flush again. Then let them sit over night on paper towel to dry.

 

 

Honestly this is overkill. Can you imagine if folk had to go through this rigmarole before ballpoints? They'd just have stuck to pencils untill ballpoints were invented.

 

 

 

 

I've examined the nib tines with a loupe and they look fine to me. I think the only issue is the nib being off-center of the feed. So you are saying i simply need to grip the nib with my fingers and realign it with the feed? Simple as that? What is to prevent it from happening again? I'm not sure I completely understood your suggestion. Does the nib actually disconnect from the feed?

 

Moving forward I will clean only by flushing the pen without removing the nib. Or should I be disassembling it and cleaning every 6 months?

 

thanks

 

I'm saying unscrew the nib-feed unit from the barrel. Then separate the nib and feed from the threaded collar. Then remove the feed from the nib, and check the nib's tines are aligned. Then fit the nib and feed back into their collar, aligned. Then screw the complete unit back ito the barrel.

 

Remove the nib from the pen when it is too clogged for normal cleaning to work, for example if left it in a drawer inked up, for a couple of years.

Edited January 17, 2017 by Flounder

[AaronMcKay]

 

Honestly this is overkill. Can you imagine if folk had to go through this rigmarole before ballpoints? They'd just have stuck to pencils untill ballpoints were invented.

 

 

 

 

I'm saying unscrew the nib-feed unit from the barrel. Then separate the nib and feed from the threaded collar. Then remove the feed from the nib, and check the nib's tines are aligned. Then fit the nib and feed back into their collar, aligned. Then screw the complete unit back ito the barrel.

 

Remove the nib from the pen when it is too clogged for normal cleaning to work, for example if left it in a drawer inked up, for a couple of years.

 

Got it, thank you. So do you suggest i use one a knock-out-block? Or if I'm clever can I do it without household tools?

[ac12]

Warning, if you do not do it correctly, you could easily damage the collar of the nib assembly trying to knock the feed out. Been there, done that, I now have a nib assembly that needs a new collar A knock out block is not the complete solution, as the nib is wider than the collar. There is skill and technique involved here.

 

I would NOT try to remove the feed. If you can nudge the nib into alignment without removing the collar, do that. Then CAREFULLY push the feed+nib further into the collar, just a TINY bit, to get the collar to hold it tighter.

 

As you surmised, I would NOT move the nib from the pen unless I HAD TO; to change nibs or clean a really badly clogged nib assembly.

[AaronMcKay]

Warning, if you do not do it correctly, you could easily damage the collar of the nib assembly trying to knock the feed out. Been there, done that, I now have a nib assembly that needs a new collar A knock out block is not the complete solution, as the nib is wider than the collar. There is skill and technique involved here.

 

I would NOT try to remove the feed. If you can nudge the nib into alignment without removing the collar, do that. Then CAREFULLY push the feed+nib further into the collar, just a TINY bit, to get the collar to hold it tighter.

 

As you surmised, I would NOT move the nib from the pen unless I HAD TO; to change nibs or clean a really badly clogged nib assembly.

Thank you all. this is very helpful. Maybe it would be best if I took the nib to a local shop and had them do it. I don't have the skills or the right tools.

 

I'll try doing as you said without removing the nib and feed from the collar. If I can get the pen writing that will do the trick for now anyone

[AaronMcKay]

Hi! *UPDATE*

 

So I actually removed the feed and nib from the collar using my thumb and index finger. I actually was just demonstrating to my wife how they would come apart and I realized I could do it quite easily with my fingers. So I decided to go all the way and separated the pieces into nib, feed and collar. I then had fun examining them with the hobby light and 4x loupe before proceeding to put them back together, again with my fingers, using my wifes nib as a model.

 

The result seems to be a success. The nib and feed are aligned to my eyes and the pen is writing well. I just need some feedback concerning one matter. The nib is slightly less deep into the collar relative to the feed compared to my wifes and I notice the pen is writing slightly wetter than my wifes, although I am happy with it and the ink is drying within 13 seconds.

 

So my questions are as follows. Is it a problem that the nib may not be installed quite deep enough, or does this affect really nothing? Is the fact that the pen is writing a little wet due to the nib not being installed deep enough, or do I need to push the tines together slightly?

 

thanks again guys , I'm really enjoying getting a little more intimate with my pen.

 

my wifes on the right side

 

writing from my pen on the top and bottom, hers are the middle two

 

 

[ac12]

The only concern if the nib is not seated deep enough is, when you screw on the cap, the top of the cap may mash into the nib and twist it . . . not good. If the cap does not contact the nib, good enough.

 

There is enough variability in nibs that if the nib is not too wet, leave well enough alone, and call it a success.

[PAKMAN]

Glad it all worked out!

[AaronMcKay]

Glad it all worked out!

 

Thank you! And in the process I learned more about fountain pens and maintenance.

[AaronMcKay]

The only concern if the nib is not seated deep enough is, when you screw on the cap, the top of the cap may mash into the nib and twist it . . . not good. If the cap does not contact the nib, good enough.

 

There is enough variability in nibs that if the nib is not too wet, leave well enough alone, and call it a success.

I do not suspect that to be a concern in this circumstance. So can you confirm that the nib not being seated quite deep enough into the collar relative to the feed should not be the cause of my pen writing a little bit wetter than I'd like? If that were the case could I bend the tines closer together to have less flow?

 

That being said it may be best to take your advice and leave well enough alone

[ac12]

You could try to sisscors the tines to close the gap.

If there is a significant gap between the nib and feed, that would also contribute to a wet nib.

[AaronMcKay]

You could try to sisscors the tines to close the gap.

If there is a significant gap between the nib and feed, that would also contribute to a wet nib.

Ok I will take a look at that. I think before I got messing with the tines I might try removing the feed and nib from the collar again and re-seating the nib a little deeper, as it was before I messed with it, and see if that helps. If it doesn't than I'll know for sure that I must adjust the tines.

 

thanks