How To Fix A Loose Or Wobbly Nib ?

[jskywalker]

Some of my pens, the nibs becomes loose and wobbly, especially those that I used very often (favourites),,,

 

Eg, when I write, the whole nib will shift out of alignment with the feed...

 

How to fix this ?

[carlos.q]

What pens are we talking about?

Do you frequently remove the nib/feed for cleaning?

[Newton Pens]

what pens are these? do you take them apart to clean them? how hard to you press when writing?

thanks.

[Michael R.]

I have not done this but this would be my approach...

 

Trying to carefully coat the upper surface of the nib with a thin layer of shellac, clear nail polish, superglue, .... BUT only the part of the nib which will hide inside the section later. Stay away from the underside, nib slit, breather hole, feed, ...

 

Also make sure the coating can be removed with organic solvent later if desired without harming the nib.

 

Let everything dry so possible solvent residues will not harm the sections material.

 

Re-insert when everything is really dry! Im NOT talking about glueing the nib in place. Only adding a little bit if thickness to the metal itself.

 

Lets hear some other tricks!

 

Cheers

 

Michael

Edited February 20, 2020 by Michael R.

[jskywalker]

Omas pens

[PAKMAN]

Many times it's because the nib is not seated deep enough in the collar. Pressing the shoulders of the nib toward the pen to push it in deeper may fix your issue.

[Ron Z]

Omas nibs are mounted in a ring that screws into the section. This ring is not reinforced like the ones used on Pelikan nib units, but is simply plastic. From time to time they break, causing the looseness that you are seeing. While it is not common, neither is it uncommon for this to happen. The ring can not be glued or solvent welded, so has to be replaced. Premade after market parts are not available, so we have to make them, which I can do, and have done.

[jskywalker]

Oh... thanks.

 

Ron, do you have a website that I can purchase the collar ?

[Ron Z]

Oh... thanks.

 

Ron, do you have a website that I can purchase the collar ?

I only make them as part of a repair so that I can be sure that it fits properly.

[OMASsimo]

Yes, this is a known issue with some OMAS pens from the 1980s/90s and I had to fix a few of them. I simply made the collars myself from pieces of plastic tubes of appropriate size. It's a little tedious to make them by hand but it's well worth it. Someone here in the "Italian pens" subforum pointed me to a website where you still can find original ore remade collars. Unfortunately, I can't recall the url right now.

 

I'd suggest you post your question there.

[Paul-in-SF]

Some of my pens, the nibs becomes loose and wobbly, especially those that I used very often (favourites),,,

 

Eg, when I write, the whole nib will shift out of alignment with the feed...

 

How to fix this ?

 

I have not done this but this would be my approach...

 

Trying to carefully coat the upper surface of the nib with a thin layer of shellac, clear nail polish, superglue, .... BUT only the part of the nib which will hide inside the section later. Stay away from the underside, nib slit, breather hole, feed, ...

 

Also make sure the coating can be removed with organic solvent later if desired without harming the nib.

 

Let everything dry so possible solvent residues will not harm the sections material.

 

Re-insert when everything is really dry! Im NOT talking about glueing the nib in place. Only adding a little bit if thickness to the metal itself.

 

Lets hear some other tricks!

 

Cheers

 

Michael

 

Reviving this thread because I have the same issue as the OP on a brand new Kaco Master 14K nib. There seems to be a sort of collar that stays in the pen. There is a little shelf on the section that limits how far I can push in the nib and feed. And the nib does move just from writing. I don't push on the nib while writing, in fact its a fairly soft nib so that would not be a good idea anyway.

 

No-one ever responded to Michael R's suggestion and I would love to hear if anyone has tried this, whether it succeeded or failed, or if there are other ideas out there.

Edited June 24, 2020 by Paul-in-SF

[Ron Z]

No-one ever responded to Michael R's suggestion and I would love to hear if anyone has tried this, whether it succeeded or failed, or if there are other ideas out there.

 

...well, I did respond. But it was redirecting instead of saying what I wanted to say, which is, "NO!" No shellac inside the section with the nib and feed. You don't want to go there, and it really doesn't work. Someone no doubt will say, "But I ..........." I tried it very early on, have seen it on pens that I've taken apart to restore, and it is not the way that I would do it.

 

That step in the section that limits how deep you can set the nib is quite common. They want the section to fit tightly around the feed so that it doesn't leak, but have to allow for the thickness of the nib.

 

I would check to see if the nib unit or collar that you are seeing screws in. If it does, perhaps it can be replaced. If it is just a sleeve like Sheaffer often used, making a new one out of hard rubber would be an option. This is a good and reliable repair.

 

Sometimes punching the tail of the nib to get a bump, effectively increasing the thickness of the nib works, but usually not well. The Omas collar is threaded and open at both ends, instead of being closed at one end like a Schmidt or Jowo nib unit that has a piercing tube in it. I make them with threads just like the original, but make them to fit the pen in question. Some people have shimmed nibs with stainless shim stock. I have found that a sleeve/bushing takes less time, and works better.