Scratchy Nib in One Direction Only

[a aa]

Hello Everyone,

 

I am puzzled by an unusual nib problem on one of my pens. It is smooth in general, but when drawing diagonal lines from bottom right to top left of a page it feels quite rough! Going in the reverse direction, i.e. from top left to bottom right it is just fine, fairly smooth. Also, when drawing a horizontal straight line from left to right it is OK, but going straight from right to left it feels just a tiny bit rough, though not as rough as the bottom right to top left diagonal lines.

 

Can anyone suggest what might be causing this problem? I looked at the tines and they look even, not mis-aligned.

 

When writing, the nib feels OK in use but gives the impression of being 'toothy' and almost, but not quite, scratchy sometimes.

 

Thanks in advance for your help.

Edited November 30, 2009 by a aa

[a aa]

Bump.

[welfvet]

I'm a real amateur at this - managed to expertly remove all the iridium tip off a pen I was practicing on to smooth the nib! But what I have learned is that with a 20x loupe one can have a proper look at the nib and start to diagnose what's amiss. Sounds like there is a small rough patch on one of the tines or perhaps they are slightly out of alignment. Often these things are best repaired by someone experienced as it is easy to overdo the smoothing or pushing of tines such that things end up worse than when they started. If you run a search here on FPN of the old threads on nib adjustment etc you will find lots of posts and many helpful photos. There are also links to web pages where things are properly explained with diagrams. I think Richard Binder's site is a good example.

[lunawing]

If you have a loupe, you might want to check your inner side of the tin. My pen used to have the same problem and I solved it by polishing inside tin a little with Micromesh 12000 sanding sheet. You need to be very gentle and test write frequently. A slightest touch should be sufficient.