Omas piston issue-not filling

[handlebar]

Ok,i was hoping to find an answer to this problem in the search but never really did.

So here is the problem:

My new (3 months) Omas Arco Brown has been working flawlessly.Today i rinsed it out to refill with a different ink and the piston filler refuses to take up or discharge anything.No water,etc.

So i let it sit for awhile,then soak a wee bit.Nothing.

I REALLY don't want to send anything back to Omas or Kenro.

 

Any thoughts of something i have missed? I don't want to take the sections apart for fear of damage.

 

The alternative is sending out for repair.But i want to exhaust all of my in-home repair possibilities first.

 

 

Jim

Edited January 28, 2008 by handlebar

[handlebar]

Looks like the ol handlebar solved his own problem (a rare occurance in itself).

Here is a breakdown of my gamble:

 

Looks like the piston became dislodged from the screw.

So i decided to shoot some photos of what i did in case anyone else has this issue (that was a brain storm thats rare too! )

 

(1)--I took off the blind cap:--

 

http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h93/n7myw/Pens/Arco41.jpg

 

(2)--Pulled out the sleeve surrounding the screw:--

 

http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h93/n7myw/Pens/Arco31.jpg

 

http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h93/n7myw/Pens/Arco91.jpg

 

(3)That reveals the screw mechanism that drives the piston.I pulled back and forth on the sleeve while attached to the screw,forcing the water that was inside the piston,out.Then pushed the screw down as far as it could go.This made it ready to draw ink back into the piston.

 

http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h93/n7myw/Pens/Arco21.jpg

 

As you can see,the piston screw is down inside the barrel.Now i simply slide the sheath back on to the screw.

 

http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h93/n7myw/Pens/Arco41.jpg

 

(4) The blind cap has a fitted form inside which corresponds to the sleeve:--

 

http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h93/n7myw/Pens/Arco71.jpg

 

I screwed this on and make sure that the threads are twisting correctly as i see the cap threads are soft plastic.

 

I tried it out and all worked well!!! To make sure,i undid all of it twice to make sure my procedure was going to be permanent.

It worked splendid.

 

So just those three parts you see in this photograph,are what make up the piston filler and blind cap assembly(that we see).

 

http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h93/n7myw/Pens/Arco11.jpg

 

I know i might have voided my warranty here,but at the rate Omas takes to repair,i decided to risk it and see what i could learn.

I would say quite a bit.

 

I only hope this helps someone else with piston issues. Not sure if this same design was used on past Omas piston fillers.

 

Let me know if anyone has experience with this.I would like to see more of what Omas have under the hood.

 

Jim

Edited January 28, 2008 by handlebar

[Tom Pike]

Hey Jim,

 

Good work! Repaired, photographed, and your OP updated in 63 minutes. I think it would have taken me that long to work up the guts to pull the blind cap off the piston . Seriously, taking apart most modern pens give me the willies, but this is a great design, and a classic piston mechanism. Thanks for posting this!

 

One thing you didn't mention: Why did the piston become detached in the first place?

 

 

Cheers,

Tom

Edited January 28, 2008 by Tom Pike

[handlebar]

Not sure why Tom.I twisted it as normal to fill and things just stopped working.

I wonder if when it was produced if the sleeve was inserted only part way.

Good part is,it works now.

 

Jim

[John Cullen]

Jim

 

You have nibs of steel to take this thing apart. I agree with TP that taking apart modern pens somehow always seems more risky to me that taking apart a snorkle or whatever.

 

I do have two questions, though.

 

1. So the plunger/piston part does not come out the back, correct? Only the sheath gets removed.

 

2. I see this is the new Omas. This is the new Milord Arco, correct? Could you comment on the nib and flow and whether it is tolerant of angle at which you hold the pen and maybe even turn your wrist a little.

 

 

thanks, jc

[kazoolaw]

You have far more courage than I do.

Question though: how did you get the blind cap off?

gary

[handlebar]

Jim

 

You have nibs of steel to take this thing apart. I agree with TP that taking apart modern pens somehow always seems more risky to me that taking apart a snorkle or whatever.

 

I do have two questions, though.

 

1. So the plunger/piston part does not come out the back, correct? Only the sheath gets removed.

 

2. I see this is the new Omas. This is the new Milord Arco, correct? Could you comment on the nib and flow and whether it is tolerant of angle at which you hold the pen and maybe even turn your wrist a little.

 

 

thanks, jc

 

Well i had the option of exploring on my own or sending it back for who knows how long.

The piston does not come out as far as i can see.The pull stem for it came out about 1/8" inch as you can see in the photo.

The sheath twisted rather easily off of the screw.

 

This is a new Milord Arco,yes.

The nib flow has been perfect and i have a decent albeit not liberal,ability to turn a little while writing.I figure it is in line with my other Omas pens in that regard.It is a fine point and writes as such.These nibs are some of the best out there in my opinion.

 

I certainly didn't want a dip pen,hence undertaking the task at hand myself.I figure if i did something wrong,then i would send it in.

I was a mite disappointed that a $700+ pen would have these thin plastic parts as the main force behind the piston.

Oh well.Omas is not alone here.

 

Jim

[handlebar]

You have far more courage than I do.

Question though: how did you get the blind cap off?

gary

 

Hi Gary,

 

Actually i twisted to where i felt resistance and decided to just go for it.I knew already that the blind cap was threaded and p[probably only had a dab of thread seal.I was right. If you look at the cap photo,you will see a hexagonal form at the back.That contours to the sleeve.

Then when finished,i just screwed it back on.

Presto.

 

Jim

[greencobra]

Alright, good work Jim, now get that smug grin off your face!

 

You said you unscrewed the blind cap until you felt resistance, or the point where it stops. Then just go for it to break the seal of the thread sealant. Am I understanding that correctly?

[John Cullen]

Uhhh, let's not say "BREAK" the seal. j

[handlebar]

Hehe.Well i wasn't sure whether there was a seal to actually "break" per se.But i knew i had to take it off to fix anything.

So it was an expensive gamble that paid off.

 

Yes,still grinning!!

 

Jim

[omasfan]

nerves of steel! Glad you got the issue resolved!

[roger3]

Hehe.Well i wasn't sure whether there was a seal to actually "break" per se.But i knew i had to take it off to fix anything.

So it was an expensive gamble that paid off.

 

Yes,still grinning!!

 

Jim

I am so glad to read this post! I just received and have already returned a Red Celluloid Bologna that suffered a similar problem as your Arco. The difference with mine is that the entire pistonscrew/blindcap unit detached from body of the pen. The threaded sleeve that secures the piston unit into body of pen was not properly secured while the piston screw remained inside of the pen...(hope you're getting the picture) My pen was less than a day old and I had not even put ink into it but had only just opened up a bottle for that very purpose when the filling unit literally unscrewed right out of the pen and onto my table!!! I contacted the seller who agreed to forward pen to Omas...I am not thrilled by what I expect to be a long turnaround time but am expecting the pen will be properly repaired/replaced. I take heart in reading that other Omas owners have experienced similar issues. Perhaps Omas will be reviewing and develop a solution to this apparent flaw.

 

Roger

 

 

 

[PenFisher]

Thanks for posting ... very informative! All I can say is ...

 

 

Edited February 1, 2009 by PenFisher

[roger3]

Hehe.Well i wasn't sure whether there was a seal to actually "break" per se.But i knew i had to take it off to fix anything.

So it was an expensive gamble that paid off.

 

Yes,still grinning!!

 

Jim

I am so glad to read this post! I just received and have already returned a Red Celluloid Bologna that suffered a similar problem as your Arco. The difference with mine is that the entire pistonscrew/blindcap unit detached from body of the pen. The threaded sleeve that secures the piston unit into body of pen was not properly secured while the piston screw remained inside of the pen...(hope you're getting the picture) My pen was less than a day old and I had not even put ink into it but had only just opened up a bottle for that very purpose when the filling unit literally unscrewed right out of the pen and onto my table!!! I contacted the seller who agreed to forward pen to Omas...I am not thrilled by what I expect to be a long turnaround time but am expecting the pen will be properly repaired/replaced. I take heart in reading that other Omas owners have experienced similar issues. Perhaps Omas will be reviewing and develop a solution to this apparent flaw.

 

Roger

updating with new info. Seller of my pen was able to put all pieces back together again, tested pen and found all o.k. Pen enroute to me and I will update when received in next couple o'days. Glad it was not sent on long vacation to Italy =)

[MichaelPhelps]

I may have the same problem with an Omas T2, but I cannot see the photos thus cannot understand the instructions. Can anyone help?

Thanks

[uticarose]

I've sent Omas and Marlen pens out for repair because the piston filling system neither drew ink in nor released any. Since then, I've "treated" three pens (also Marlen and Omas) with a similar problem on my own. All appearances were that I had cleaned the pens as thoroughly as I could, given the dysfunctional filling systems. Still, I persisted with soaking them in a fountain pen cleaner over a three day period. After five or six hours, the solution turned black, and I replaced it with fresh cleaner. It was surprising how much residual ink had collected in the pens, which I'm pretty good about rinsing out regularly. In all three cases, the pens became unclogged, and the piston filling mechanisms worked perfectly. I can't say I've run into this problem with any of my other piston fillers...just pens from these two Italian companies.