The Things They Don't Tell You About Starting With Dip Pens

[AAAndrew]

I've had a few inquiries lately from people trying out dip pens for the first time and getting frustrated.

 

I realize that many of the standard calligraphy sources neglect a few basics that may be so basic for those teaching them that they forget that others may not know them. When I started out I made these mistakes myself and had to figure out or be told after asking.

 

So, as a public service, and an extension of the basic pen stuff I have out on my website, I here present a few uber-basic tips that seem to be left out of most beginner instruction.

 

Getting the nib into the Holder

This seems like it should be pretty simple. These are not complicated machines. But you may be surprised by how many people are stumped by a simple dip pen holder.

 

Basically, there are two main types you may run into. There are others, but they're more inutitive. The two main kinds you will encounter are the inner-spring and the slot/spring types.

 

The inner spring type (left below) has three or four bent springs on the inside of the end. These hold the heel of the nib against the inside wall of the holder or an insert in the holder. The slot/spring type may have two springs that hold the heel of the nib against a wall which together makes a kind of slot. Carefully make sure both springs are on the same side of the heel.

 

 

 

BEFORE YOU TOUCH A NIB, READ THIS!!!!!

Many sources do point out that you need to prepare a nib. Dip pens come coated in a varnish that protects the nib from rust under normal conditions. This needs to be removed before the ink will flow properly. There are many techniques you can find from a flame to toothpaste, to a potato.

 

What they sometimes forget to tell you is that after you prep the nib, you must take care not to touch it where the ink will go. If you do, you may well put oils there. This will interrupt the flow of ink and either the ink will just gush off the pen (usually a sign of not being prepped) or will stick up by the hole and will not flow down to the tip. (usually a sign of oils on the nib)

 

The easy way to know where you can and can't touch a nib is to look at this complicated diagram and memorize its intricacies.

 

 

 

How Far to Dip in Ink?

Basically, you can use the above diagram for two purposes: where you should not touch the nib, and how far up the nib to dip into the ink.

 

You can dip the nib deeper into the ink well, but rarely does that result in more ink sticking to the nib. Some people claim that the hole is there to hold more ink. Work with dip pens for a while and that will be clearly debunked. Even if you dip a pen fully in ink over the hole, and even if the ink sticks all that way up the nib (which is rare), the amount of ink that will stick in the opening of the hold will be infintessimal.

 

Most of the time, unless you nib is very small, or very old, your ink will not stick to the underside of the nib very far up from the tip. There are exceptions. Some pens' shapes lend themselves to holding more ink, but there definitely are limits.

 

The main thing you want to avoid, is dipping the pen so far into the ink that the end of the holder gets wet. That's how you rust out a good holder, and possibly a nib if you leave it in. I avoid this by only dipping my pens 1/3 to 1/2 of the way into the ink.

 

 

These basic tips should at least get you a nib in a holder, prepared and ready to dip.

 

I have a few more suggestions (as well as more info on dip pens and their history) on my website. https://thesteelpen.com/

 

Good luck!

[Cyber6]

AWESOME Andrew... Thanks so much. I learned these points the hard way myself... eons ago.

 

 

 

C.

[cattar]

Love this. Especially the complicated diagram.

 

Website, too.

[Inky.Fingers]

Wow! An Albata pen! Georgeous.... salivating....

 

now...which ink to use?

Edited January 15, 2019 by _InkyFingers

[Bo Bo Olson]

Good info, I'd been dipping a bit too far....

will have to take a look at some of my 'better' antique holders to see if there are any spring/slot ones. Another think I didn't know.

[AAAndrew]

Wow! An Albata pen! Georgeous.... salivating....

 

now...which ink to use?

 

A couple of years ago three of us Esterbrook fanatics pitched in together and were able to get a whole box of them on eBay. We split them up and Brandon got the box. It was not cheap, but worth it.

[sirgilbert357]

Wow. I could have used this quite awhile back. I put the nib INTO the cross part of the springs, lol. No wonder it seemed so loose! I figured those four springy "claws" were there to hold the nib!

 

I also never prepped my nibs, so I got a RIVER of ink on the paper with every letter. Now I know why...

 

I gave all that dip pen stuff away to someone who was more interested in it than I was. Maybe I'll try again sometime...

[AAAndrew]

I did all of those things as well when I first started out, which is why I felt compelled to write this up. Perhaps I’ll put together all of my bits and pieces for getting started, including my unpublished Six “P’s” for Perfect Penmanship with Pointed Pens and publish a small booklet. Like one of the millions of pamphlets published in 18th and 19th-century London.

[cattar]

Yes. Do that.

Though I'll still practice with my dip nibs.

[Bo Bo Olson]

Andrew is a FPN treasure....keep up the great work!

[Stompie]

I did all of those things as well when I first started out, which is why I felt compelled to write this up. Perhaps I’ll put together all of my bits and pieces for getting started, including my unpublished Six “P’s” for Perfect Penmanship with Pointed Pens and publish a small booklet. Like one of the millions of pamphlets published in 18th and 19th-century London.

 

 

A great help Andrew, well done!

 

A good thing to mention is that people should really try anything but the flame method as a small over exposure to the flame and nib will be ruined!

 

The booklet you mention putting together is eagerly awaited!

[sidthecat]

I started using these things in high school, but the nibs I'm using now are very old and different so I'm no help.

[rwilsonedn]

I think the pamphlet is a great idea! It makes me sad to see people who really should be enjoying dip pens give up on them, or never try them, for want of a few simple tips. You are a service to us all.

ron

[Honeybadgers]

I touch the nib wherever I want, I just torch it after I insert it into the holder so the oils from my hand come off with the machine oils.

 

I did very old school dip pen art all through high school (usually landscapes and old Americana) using garbage speedball nibs and holders. The problem most people have with dip pens is that they don't pick the right kind of task for the pen. They're not for taking notes in class. You really need to have a block of time set aside to draw or write, and they don't really work well when you're "writing" words. They behave much better when you treat the letters like pictures. You draw words with a dip pen.

Edited January 18, 2019 by Honeybadgers

[rwilsonedn]

... You draw words with a dip pen.

I think that is very well said.

ron

[AAAndrew]

One other thing you won't hear from most other sources. The common, everyday kinds of steel pens from days gone by, can also still be quite nice pens. You don't need a hugely fancy "grail nib" to both write nicely as well as enjoy your time writing. You are actually more likely to enjoy your time writing with an everyday pen more than a fancy calligraphy pen.

 

Here are some common pens I just pulled out of the pile on my desk.

 

Andrew

 

[pajaro]

Thanks for the good to know info I didn't know. I have always found dip pens frustrating, because of how frequently I had to dip them. I remember that back in the late fifties I used to see plastic dip pens with nibs and feeds. I wasn't allowed to use one in grade school, though.

[Bo Bo Olson]

plastic dip pens with nibs and feeds..............I have one..........sitting right there staring me in the nose, in my pen cup............sigh cubed. Does a lot better than beeswax feed I never made.

It's not the dipping for me, it's actually taking the time to learn to draw the letters.

[AAAndrew]

Thanks for the good to know info I didn't know. I have always found dip pens frustrating, because of how frequently I had to dip them. I remember that back in the late fifties I used to see plastic dip pens with nibs and feeds. I wasn't allowed to use one in grade school, though.

 

Pick up any Esterbrook Dipless set and that's what you have. Most use the standard Esterbrook Renew Point nibs that are on the fountain pens. They write for quite a while without any problem. And the Dipless desk sets are fun. Like this one I just picked up. The pens that were in it are actually desktop fountain pens, not the Dipless, but they also work the same.

 

Edited January 18, 2019 by AAAndrew

[AAAndrew]

I tried an experiment in video today. Nothing special, and the camera was hand-held, so production is crude, but you can see what it’s like to write with a Turner &Harrison 22, and listen to what it’s like listen to me babble without really knowing what I was going to say.