Sheaffer Legacy 2 Problems

[dmorgen]

I've got a copper Sheaffer Legacy 2, which I bought from Jim Gaston. It's got a stub nib. When this pen writes, it's an incredible pen. The problem is that it skips & won't start at random. Sometimes the inkflow will stop for quite while until some mysterious force gets it going again. Yet, if I touch it to a tissue, the ink flows out just fine. I've tried various inks. Now it's loaded with Noodler's Habanero. Previously, I've tried other inks, including Aurora Black. The problem is worse with some inks than others, but it will occur with all of them.

 

The nib is surprisingly flexible. I've noticed that sometimes with just a small amount of pressure, when the tines separate, the ink withdraws towards the pen body. But the skipping & bad starting can happen with very little pressure or a lot of pressure.

 

I looked at the nib very closely tonight. Depending upon the angle of view, there's a nice straight line across the nib, or a dip at a tine as it approaches the slit. Is this baby bottom? I tried the pen at various angles. Sure enough it writes much better at close to 90 degrees, which corresponds to the straight edge across the nib. At most angles it's smooth, but at certain angles it catches slightly.

 

The one thing I do know is it's not a converter problem ... the pen has a touchdown filler.

 

What do you suggest? Should I send it to Sheaffer? To a nibmeister? If it's in fact baby bottom, am I likely to need a new nib?

 

Thanks for your help! I want to resurrect this wonderful pen!

 

Dave

[Michael Wright]

Well, as a matter of fact it does have a converter, but one designed to work as a Touchdown. I've got one of these pens from Jim, and I agree they are beautiful looking, and mine, with a fine nib, is working fine with a cartridge. I too was surprised by the degree of flex in the nib -- it's by no means vintage flex, but you can get line width variation with only a very little pressure.

 

Anyway, it sounds like a nib problem -- possibly baby bottom at some angles. I don't know how US Sheaffer service is at the moment, but that would be the obvious place to go. Else, it could be fixed fairly readily by a nibsmith, I should think.

 

Ain't they *pretty* pens?

 

Michael

[petra]

Is your pen still skipping? Mine did at first but then started working fine after about the 3rd fill of ink. I'm thinking that maybe it took some time for "mysterious little new pen particles" to get flushed out of the pen. Naturally I was too impatient to actually rinse it... I just filled it with ink right away. But it's doing okay now!

 

Petra

[southpaw]

Sounds like it might be residue in the pen from manufacture. Have you tried the old dish detergent flushing? If not, that's the first thing to try (I and many others do it with a new pen automatically).

 

Here's how: Add a couple of drops of mild dish detergent to a glass of cold water and flush a couple of times. Then flush the pen out with clean water a couple of times. Put it nib down in a cup on some paper towels to wick the last of the water out and your're done!

 

HTH, and keeps us posted.

[tryphon]

There could be so many reasons!

Let's assume for a moment that the nib is OK.

You may try to change paper, ink, writing angle, writing pressure.....

Also, the nib may be too smooth (yes, there is such a thing as a nib that is TOO smooth). If there is an alignement problem, writing with the pen may eventually cure the problem. Try Old Griz's trick of using the pen on brown paper, it will accelerate the "personal wear" pattern that eventually matches nibs to their owners. If all else fails, send the pen to a nibmeister or to Sheaffer for a replacement nib, but first give it some time and write with it with a good, reliable ink...

Good luck on a very fine pen!

[dmorgen]

My Legacy problems seem to be solved, and will hopefully stay that way ... I sent it to Sheaffer for repair. So far, it's been writing beautifully, and no skipping whatsoever. They also fixed the problem with an ink leak where the converter connects to the section.

 

But, now that I inked my new Parker 100 (Medium nib), it's got skipping problems! It writes nice & wet & SMOOTH ... I love it ... until it doesn't write, that is! When I first inked it, it wrote fine for a page or 2. Then the problems started. At worst it runs into starting problems any time the nib is lifted from the paper. If I hold the nib at almost a 90 degree angle to the paper, it writes; it writes (not great, but at least ink flows) if the nib is upside down. I can touch the nib to a tissue & the ink flows beautifully. The problem is when I want to write normally! Shaking the pen doesn't help. I've tried lowering the piston & ink appears almost immediately on the nib, and it writes ok for a short while. The ink flows in the converter (e.g. if I turn the pen upside down) as well as I've seen in any pen. I think I did the detergent flush before using the pen. I certainly did it a couple of days ago. No difference. BTW, it was first inked with Waterman Florida Blue, Then Waterman Blue-Black. I'm going to try some of Giovanni's InkSafe. But I suspect the pen is going to Parker Repair. I'm running into this kind of problem on MANY new pens, or many makes!!!

 

Any other suggestions?

 

Dave