Jump to content

Not a good month for me, pen-wise


Sonnet

Recommended Posts

My beloved Pelikan M200 translucent blue is suffering from....a crack in the cap! Right by the "lip"? of the cap, to be precise, just above the gold trim!!!!!! A tiny, hairline crack :o And it's got scratches on it :(

 

My ever-dependable Levenger Prima survived 5 months in a car dasboard last year...but today, the nib's tines were ever-so-slightly- misaligned. I still don't know how. One minute, I'm making notes on a pipeline summary and the next, my pen just stops writing! The tines are either "split" just enough to kill the ink supply, or misaligned with similar results. I must have pressed down too hard or the nib hit the paper at just the wrong angle, just enough to screw up the tines.

 

Between this and some other weekend developments, I am just not in a good mood at all :( :( :( :( :( :(

Sometimes I write things (as of 2013

http://katesplace7.wordpress.com/

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Replies 12
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

  • Sonnet

    6

  • KCat

    1

  • Slush99

    1

  • garythepenman

    1

Cheer up Sonnet, you could have had a precious Montegrappa that fell out of your pocket as you were getting into your car and then reversed over it. :doh:

 

Gary

A wizard is never late, he arrives precisely when he means to.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

:( Chartpak - oh wait. I have no idea where the other side of nowhere is. If you were in the US, I'd have said chartpak woud be most accommodating to replace your cap. What a shame - that's the first I've heard of a translucent developing a crack. scratches yes, cracks no. Though I've found scratches easily buff out on those pens.

 

re: the Prima - gosh those are such sturdy pens that surprises me. Is it possible someone played around with it without your knowledge and mucked it up?

KCat
Save animal lives - support your local animal shelter

My personal blog https://kcdockalscribbling.com

My nature blog https://kcbeachscribbles.com
Venerable are letters, infinitely brave, forlorn, and lost. V. Woolf, Jacob's Room

Link to comment
Share on other sites

:( Chartpak - oh wait. I have no idea where the other side of nowhere is. If you were in the US, I'd have said chartpak woud be most accommodating to replace your cap. What a shame - that's the first I've heard of a translucent developing a crack. scratches yes, cracks no. Though I've found scratches easily buff out on those pens.

 

re: the Prima - gosh those are such sturdy pens that surprises me. Is it possible someone played around with it without your knowledge and mucked it up?

Okay, the other side of nowhere, USA. So Chartpak it will be then. As for the Prima, I'm not sure. The yellow legal pad I was writing on did not seem to like my pen at all so I think the nib just hit it at the wrong angle and splayed ever so slightly.

Sometimes I write things (as of 2013

http://katesplace7.wordpress.com/

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Emailed Chartpak yesterday but haven't heard back from them yet. At least the Pelikan still writes. Still don't know what I'm going to do about the Prima-- send it off to Richard Binder or John Mottishaw, I suppose.

Don't forget about FPN's own Dillo. Not to disparage Msrs Binder and Mottishaw, but Dillo has done some work for me on a Pelikan GO!, and after he was finished with it, the nib was better than new.

 

Good luck, and I hope you get your pens fixed quickly.

 

French

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Don't forget about FPN's own Dillo.  Not to disparage Msrs Binder and Mottishaw, but Dillo has done some work for me on a Pelikan GO!, and after he was finished with it, the nib was better than new.

 

Good luck, and I hope you get your pens fixed quickly.

 

French

Oops, I didn't mean to leave him out! Although I'm wondering if it's worth getting the prima fixed. You figure-- I bought it in 2002/early 2003 for about $20-30 brand new. I don't know about Dillo's rates but John and Richard's minimum nib charges are about $20 and truth be told, this COULD be something I can do on my own. But I'm not comfortable enough with my pens to do anything beyond removing a Pelikan nib from a pen.

 

At least the crack in the Pelikan's cap doesn't affect how it writes [for now]. And my Clairefontaine notebooks seem to LOVE it :)

Sometimes I write things (as of 2013

http://katesplace7.wordpress.com/

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Whoo-hoo, progress! Chartpak emailed me instructions for sending a pen in for repair so I plan to hit up Fed Ex/Kinko's tonight for packaging [and maybe even ship from there]. I was going to stick my pen into a padded envelope before putting it in the FedEx box, along with additional packing materials. Any recommendations about what else I should do to keep my pen safe in transit would be greatly appreciated.

 

In the meantime, the Prima's tines appear to have "reunited" on their own. I'm keeping a close eye on the pen but for now, that worrisome gap between the tines is gone.

 

Now if only all the other stressful problems I have would solve themselves so easily.

Sometimes I write things (as of 2013

http://katesplace7.wordpress.com/

Link to comment
Share on other sites

For pens I use a short section of pvc pipe. The pen will be wrapped in sufficient paper towel to ensure no movement inside the tube. Even then, I prefer a box in which to place the pen in its pvc tube.

 

Overkill? Perhaps, but if you have seen what automated machinery can do to packages mailed/shipped you might prefer overkill.

 

My motto has always been, "too much is barely enough."

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I just sent my Pelikan M200 off to Chartpak to have the cap fixed or replaced; I sent it via UPS, using a Sheaffer Prelude box (it's what I have the most of in the apartment!). When I send pens off to anyone, I usually use the Sheaffer boxes, or the priority mail small boxes loaded with bubble wrap.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm planning to seal the pen in a padded envelope, then place said envelope in a small shipping box and pack the whole thing full of bubble wrap.

 

I'm hesitant to use anything like PVC pipes because I don't want my pen showing up as a possible bomb on x-rays [see Richard Binder's site]. Yes, I know he's talking about international shipments into the US for that, but still.

Sometimes I write things (as of 2013

http://katesplace7.wordpress.com/

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Don't forget about FPN's own Dillo.   Not to disparage Msrs Binder and Mottishaw, but Dillo has done some work for me on a Pelikan GO!, and after he was finished with it, the nib was better than new.

 

Good luck, and I hope you get your pens fixed quickly.

 

French

Oops, I didn't mean to leave him out! Although I'm wondering if it's worth getting the prima fixed. You figure-- I bought it in 2002/early 2003 for about $20-30 brand new. I don't know about Dillo's rates but John and Richard's minimum nib charges are about $20 and truth be told, this COULD be something I can do on my own. But I'm not comfortable enough with my pens to do anything beyond removing a Pelikan nib from a pen.

 

At least the crack in the Pelikan's cap doesn't affect how it writes [for now]. And my Clairefontaine notebooks seem to LOVE it :)

Hi,

 

Since it is so cheap, I could do with $10 to $15, but then again, sorry for the advertising. :bonk:

 

Anyway, I hope you get your M200 fixed. I am giving one to my friend.

 

Dillon

Stolen: Aurora Optima Demonstrator Red ends Medium nib. Serial number 1216 and Aurora 98 Cartridge/Converter Black bark finish (Archivi Storici) with gold cap. Reward if found. Please contact me if you have seen these pens.

Please send vial orders and other messages to fpninkvials funny-round-mark-thing gmail strange-mark-thing com. My shop is open once again if you need help with your pen.

Will someone with the name of "Jay" who emailed me through the email system provide me an email address? There was no email address provided, so I can't write back.

Dillon

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now


  • Most Contributions

    1. amberleadavis
      amberleadavis
      43844
    2. PAKMAN
      PAKMAN
      33583
    3. Ghost Plane
      Ghost Plane
      28220
    4. inkstainedruth
      inkstainedruth
      26772
    5. jar
      jar
      26105
  • Upcoming Events

  • Blog Comments

    • Shanghai Knife Dude
      I have the Sailor Naginata and some fancy blade nibs coming after 2022 by a number of new workshop from China.  With all my respect, IMHO, they are all (bleep) in doing chinese characters.  Go use a bush, or at least a bush pen. 
    • A Smug Dill
      It is the reason why I'm so keen on the idea of a personal library — of pens, nibs, inks, paper products, etc. — and spent so much money, as well as time and effort, to “build” it for myself (because I can't simply remember everything, especially as I'm getting older fast) and my wife, so that we can “know”; and, instead of just disposing of what displeased us, or even just not good enough to be “given the time of day” against competition from >500 other pens and >500 other inks for our at
    • adamselene
      Agreed.  And I think it’s good to be aware of this early on and think about at the point of buying rather than rationalizing a purchase..
    • A Smug Dill
      Alas, one cannot know “good” without some idea of “bad” against which to contrast; and, as one of my former bosses (back when I was in my twenties) used to say, “on the scale of good to bad…”, it's a spectrum, not a dichotomy. Whereas subjectively acceptable (or tolerable) and unacceptable may well be a dichotomy to someone, and finding whether the threshold or cusp between them lies takes experiencing many degrees of less-than-ideal, especially if the decision is somehow influenced by factors o
    • adamselene
      I got my first real fountain pen on my 60th birthday and many hundreds of pens later I’ve often thought of what I should’ve known in the beginning. I have many pens, the majority of which have some objectionable feature. If they are too delicate, or can’t be posted, or they are too precious to face losing , still they are users, but only in very limited environments..  I have a big disliking for pens that have the cap jump into the air and fly off. I object to Pens that dry out, or leave blobs o
  • Chatbox

    You don't have permission to chat.
    Load More
  • Files






×
×
  • Create New...