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When The Ink Level Is Too Low To Fill A 149


Barry Gabay

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What should we do when the level of ink in a bottle is just too low to fill a large fountain pen, such as a 149? Once in desperation, after buying a nice, old and very well used 149 in an antiques shop in a city far from home, I sat in the hotel room that night and squeezed blue Sheaffer Skrip from a cartridge onto the feed of the 149 and wrote a few lines with it. I was eager to write more without the hassle of squeezing the cartridge every few lines. So, I turned the 149's piston knob to the empty position. Squeezed a drop or two into the recessed space around the collar, and then turned the piston. Presto! The seal was strong enough to draw ink. Did this a few more times and was able to write the rest of the evening. Many times since then, I have used the dregs of an ink bottle, but find using a syringe much easier. If the piston won't draw ink with the first drop, run water over the feed and allow it to fill the recessed space around the seal. Then draw that water in. Capillary attraction should then work. This morning, I put the very last of some Pelikan Royal Blue into late 1970s- early 80s 149. Photos are turned & don't know how to rotate them. Right comfortable here on the ceiling though. Enjoy.

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I have filled my pens in a few different methods when the ink is too low to fully submerge the feed.

 

1) Push the piston to the point of touching the feed/ no air. Place the pen flatly in the table, making sure it wont roll away. Then drop the ink onto the feed, saturating it. Then suck the ink in by "pulling" the piston back. Then repeat and repeat until either no ink left, or full capacity.

 

2)ive never done it, but reverse capillarity and gravity. Simple put the pen straight up, nib up. saturate the feed with ink, and let the capillar effect and gravity fill the pen. It will be slow. It will be annoying. It should work.

 

3) similar to method one but instead of using a syringe or carefully dropping ink, etc, i have used a pen as the syringe.

 

4) Not an option to many, but still a viable way: Remove the nib unit and fill to capacity with a syringe, then put the nib unit back.

 

5) Use a Syringe and fill the pen straight through the filler hole in the feed, if available.

Edited by Reed_thoughts
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You have a 149 and are too cheap to buy a bottle of ink to fill it?

 

(something isn't adding up here....) :lticaptd:

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fpn_1561047249__b_gabay_images.jpg

~ Barry:

 

Many thanks for this helpful explanation.

The visuals are especially valuable.

Tom K.

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I just use a sample vial and then once that gets to low the rest is either tossed or put into an eyedropper pen. I dont have the patience for waterboarding my feed. :)

 

Also, those who also like the KoP of similar size to a 149 can still fill as the Sailor is able to pull from the breather hole (and of course you can just pull and fill the converter/cartridge. It's about the right tool for the job.

 

:)

If you want less blah, blah, blah and more pictures, follow me on Instagram!

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You have a 149 and are too cheap to buy a bottle of ink to fill it?

 

(something isn't adding up here....) :lticaptd:

:lticaptd: :thumbup:

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You have a 149 and are too cheap to buy a bottle of ink to fill it?

 

(something isn't adding up here....) :lticaptd:

 

There are those who prefer not to waste resources, I amongst them.

Add lightness and simplicate.

 

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As long it gets the job done, there's no wrong way to fill a pen!

 

 

I dont have the patience for waterboarding my feed. :)

A, line of the day. LOL~

Edited by Soot

"Reality is merely an illusion, albeit a very persistent one." -- A. Einstein

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Tom Kellie, Thank you for getting me off the ceiling. It was dizzying up there.

Reed_Thoughts & Zaddick, Thank you all for the interesting suggestions for re-filling.

Zaddick, Where's the breather hole in a KoP? For KoPs, I normally just re-fill Sailor cartridges with interesting colors using a syringe.

torstar, My wife laughed so hard at your observation that she fell from her perch on the ceiling. I had a devil of a time getting her back up there!

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The hole in the nib of a KOP is all you need to submerge when using a converter, unlike a 149 when I need to get ink up to the collar.

 

Cartridges do have more ink capacity than the Sailor converter.

If you want less blah, blah, blah and more pictures, follow me on Instagram!

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My solution to the problem in the title is, firstly, that I have another pen and, secondly, dregs go into the Random Mix Bottle.

 

I'm with Zaddick and torstar. :)

X

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Exactly! Relatively inexpensive and works every time.

 

Erick

Using right now:

Visconti Voyager 30 "M" nib running Birmingham Streetcar

Jinhao 9019 "EF" nib running Birmingham Railroad Spike

Stipula Adagio "F" nib running Birmingham Violet Sea Snail

Sailor Profit "B" nib running Van Dieman's Night - Shooting Star

 

 

 

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I just use a sample vial and then once that gets to low the rest is either tossed or put into an eyedropper pen. I dont have the patience for waterboarding my feed. :)

 

And I don't have the coordination.

I tried that once after seeing an Ink Nouveau video, with an eyedropper, one of my Noodler's pens, and a bottle of Kung Te Cheng; there are now permanent drops of Kung Te Cheng on my grandparents' dresser....

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

"It's very nice, but frankly, when I signed that list for a P-51, what I had in mind was a fountain pen."

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I saw this trick on youtube before but never dared to try it myself. This is where cartridge pen shines. I just syringe fill the converter or cartridge for those last drops.

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