Twsbi Diamond 530 With A Pelikan Nib

[mori45]

Read this thread and am a bit confused now, what with heat setting and knocking things out etc... I'm new at disassembling pens, but I'm getting my first TWSBI soon and I'd like to experiment so: Can you just take a Pelikan M200/400 nib/feed unit (the part which unscrews out of the section), screw it in and that's that? Or would you need to separate the Pelikan nib from its feed an put it on the TWSBI feed? How are chances this would work for someone who's never done it before? (Yes, I know, there's bound to be a first time but...)

 

Would be great if somebody could clarify.

 

You need to use the TWSBI feed for this to work. It's not going to fit right as the Pelikan nib is substantially broader, but it should still work. To heat set, simply warm your feed in water and bend it slightly upward to eliminate the gap between the nib and the feed--Pelikan nibs are rounded, TWSBI nibs and feeds are flat, so you'll have to try and maximize contact between the two. Gently but steady pressure should do the trick--too much pressure and you'll snap the feed, too much heat and you'll melt it.

[Wikoster]

Now just to find some of these beautiful nibs...

 

Also: added some of these nib combos to the nascent Nib/Pen interchangeable thread at Interchangeable Thread Linky

[Chi Town]

So, I'm having flow problems with my new pelikan nib in the TWSBI. When it flows, it flows well, but it requires a bit of a shake to get it going and it stops about every two minutes or less.

 

Any tips? I checked the video for reassembly of the feed on the TWSBI several times and triple checked that everything was aligned correctly. What else could be causing the problem?

 

Thanks!

 

Hi what is this video that you speak of here and where can i find it?

 

Thanks,

Mike

[RNHC]

I think I read somewhere that Twsbi uses Bock nibs. Doesn't Pelikan also use Bock nibs? If so, it makes sense that nibs are interchangeable, no?

[ExcaliburZ]

I think I read somewhere that Twsbi uses Bock nibs. Doesn't Pelikan also use Bock nibs? If so, it makes sense that nibs are interchangeable, no?

Twsbi is now using Bock nibs. The Pelikan nibs fit on the Schmidt feeds that they used before.

[NeelsK]

On a separate note, can anyone who has a TWSBI comment on the likelihood that an M600 nib might fit as well? I would imagine it would be closer to the size of the Schmidt nib, so the pen doesn't look like a huge man in a tiny hat.

 

 

Right, so this was my experiment for the morning. I took my test M600 nib, knocked it out and put it on a 540 TWSBI feed, et voila .... Sure, the nib fits. But not very nicely. 1st off, the Pelikan nib is thinner and the back end doestnt curve around as much as the TWSBI. So the friction fit is not very good. I placed it further down the feed and this DID make the fit better, but not perfect. It writes real nice ... BUT .... it just looks plain weird. The nib & feed were just not meant to go together I think. Oh, and the cap can't go on without mangling the nib.

 

I will try to get some photos later today and post them here.

[NeelsK]

Correction;

 

Ok, I fiddled some more and it actually fit very well now. The nib has to be set further back than I thought. Now it writes beautifully and the nib/cap clearance is good. Photos to follow.

 

[Edit]

 

http://i1102.photobucket.com/albums/g459/NeelsK/Pens/NibDepth.jpg

 

If you look at the red square above, you will see how deep the nib has been seated. Just the top part of the 'M' (Medium nib) shows.

 

http://i1102.photobucket.com/albums/g459/NeelsK/Pens/BPRs2of2.jpg

 

The pen is now an excellent medium CI (well, my idea of a CI. Some people call it stub) that writes a generous, wet line with no hard starts or skips of course. I will most certainly be on the look out for used Pelikan nibs to transplant to my Twisbis

Edited May 4, 2012 by NeelsK

[hanryy]

I think I read somewhere that Twsbi uses Bock nibs. Doesn't Pelikan also use Bock nibs? If so, it makes sense that nibs are interchangeable, no?

Twsbi is now using Bock nibs. The Pelikan nibs fit on the Schmidt feeds that they used before.

 

 

Does that mean that the newer Twsbis 540 no longer can have their nibs changed for pelikan nibs?

[DrNik]

Thanks to this discussion, I've been able to give a second life to a wonderful OB nib from a broken vintage Pelikan 400NN. So, thanks to everyone for sharing their experience

 

This Pelikan nib's length, however, created some problems initially. Being longer than the TWSBI nib, the OB stuck out too far from the section, which led to a creaking noise while writing and prevented the cap from closing, not to mention the unbalanced pen/nib aesthetics. Jamming the nib further into the section didn't work for me, as the feed had a raised step that acted as a backstop for the nib. Placing the nib on top of this step made the nib/feed assembly too thick to fit into the section. Being completely inexperienced in this, and having naught but a craft knife for tools, I chose to modify the feed to let the nib's back end sit further inside the section. This worked like a charm - the nib now fits well into the section and doesn't creak, the cap closes, albeit with less than a millimeter of clearance, and the flow appears to be largely unaffected, which is what I worried about the most. The pen's been writing well for a couple of days now without either drying out or leaking.

 

So, once again, cheers!

[renderboy]

Reviving an old thread I know, but I just wanted to say thanks for the inspiration here - I swapped a Pelikan M600 18 ct two-tone gold onto a TWSBI 580, the feed on my stock broad nib fitted the Pelikan near perfectly and needed no tweaking to work. The two-tone gold kind-of works aesthetically too with the TWSBI's chrome furniture. I'm not sure if I could cope with a full gold nib... The writing experience is sublime, and I've now ordered a second 580 because I quite like the broad and stub of their's I've got, but the Pelikan's a keeper in rotation.

[josephchow42]

Anyone verified if a Richard's customized Pelikan nib can actually be "mounted" onto a TWSBI 530/540/580?

[renderboy]

The main problem I had was getting the cap on - I had to remove the cap liner in order for it to shut properly, but there was a tiny bit of clearance between the tip of the nib and the nut at the top of the cap.

[saskia_madding]

I can confirm that I've successfully used an m400, 2 tone medium CI ground by Binder, an m625 M, and an m425 OM in TWSBI 530s and 540s.

 

http://i997.photobucket.com/albums/af97/Saskia_Madding/Pens/DSC09817-1_zpsa8093c11.jpg

 

http://i997.photobucket.com/albums/af97/Saskia_Madding/Pens/DSC09821_zpse58070b8.jpg

 

 

I didn't have to remove the inner cap, but NeelsK is right. Notice in the above picture how far back the nib is seated? Just the very tips of the M is visible. With this nib seating, the cap fits without problem, but just barely. Still, I have no worry of damaging the nib after seeing that there is clearance, and the flow is perfect.

[josephchow42]

I can confirm that I've successfully used an m400, 2 tone medium CI ground by Binder, an m625 M, and an m425 OM in TWSBI 530s and 540s.

 

 

I didn't have to remove the inner cap, but NeelsK is right. Notice in the above picture how far back the nib is seated? Just the very tips of the M is visible. With this nib seating, the cap fits without problem, but just barely. Still, I have no worry of damaging the nib after seeing that there is clearance, and the flow is perfect.

The main problem I had was getting the cap on - I had to remove the cap liner in order for it to shut properly, but there was a tiny bit of clearance between the tip of the nib and the nut at the top of the cap.

 

Thank you both for confirming this! I purchased a TWSBI 580 yesterday and I came across this thread this morning. I think I shall go ahead and order a Waverly nib from Richard's website and mount it to my new TWSBI and see what happens.

 

This thread is definitely FUN!

[pajaro]

I like frankenpens. I recently bought an NOS Twisbi 530. I think I am going to use a Parker nib in it.

[saskia_madding]

Okay, I'm definitely going to find myself a #5 Pilot nib! That looks great. Thanks for the tip, guys!

[JJ51]

Awesome thread!

Edited December 17, 2013 by JJ51

[pajaro]

I think I read somewhere that you can put a M600 nib in a M200 body except that there wouldn't be enough room in the cap for its length. If M200 nibs fit in the TWSBI, I'm under the impression that M600 nibs can fit too.

I have a gray marble M200 with an M600 B nib I bought on ebay for $62. This nib writes a nice italic upside down, so I think it was tuned to do that. The cap fits on and there's room.

[cursivator]

This is one THRILLING thread, which I hope nobody minds my reviving. I have a number of M200, and maybe M400, nibs from the redoubtable Richard Binder, and I'd be the happiest guy in town to be able to use them in some affordable pens. The problem is, I'm a mega-klutz, and dread the very thought of trying to use a knockout block. Is there another way to remove the Pelikan nib from the unit? Also, has anybody since discovered other pens into which one can swap Pelikan nibs? Thanks!

[sansenri]

nice reading this old thread, I had missed it too at the time...

 

I doubt that there is any pen out there that you can easily swap a Pelikan nib into, the only exceptions are those pens which have been modified ad hoc in the threading to fit a Pelikan nib+feed and collar.

I don't own a TWSBI but I don't particularly fancy buying one just to try this tinkering, with all the uncertainties of results that were being mentioned here.

Some Indian pens have been modified to take Pelikan nibs though; I have a couple, thanks to the help of Hari317 here, that are just perfect.

They both work very nicely in ED and the Pelikan gold nib on such nice ebonite is an odd but interesting sight.
Performance is spectacular (very nice OB)

(just slightly small, next time I need to check with Hari for a modification to take a M800 nib )