Learning To Repair Vintage Pens

[dzg]

How does one go about learning how to repair vintage pens?

There are a handful of repair people scattered around the globe with most requiring upwards of 8 weeks to repair pens.

I am tired of paying $$$ ad waiting months for simple repairs on my pens, sometiems as simple as swapping a nib!

 

So if I wanted to learn how to do it so that I could work on my pens is there some course, resource available?

 

Everyone who is currently providing this service learnt it somewhere so I know its doable, but despite using google and searching around I have come across nothing that would indicate HOW one can learn.

 

So I turn to the wise sages on FPN .... anyone able to point me in the right direction or even hand me a map?

[USMCMom]

There are a lot of how-to posts in the Repair Q&A area and also in the pen by brand area. I go there very often and have learned a great deal. Many repairs are quite simple and easily done. There are also so many that are not so easy. One of the things I learned (as have countless others) is, there's always the chance of damaging a pen or totally destroying one as you learn. I know this first hand, as I totally destroyed a pen while learning what I thought to be a simple step toward a sac replacement. There are, in my opinion, certain repairs (restorations) that should be left to the gurus, as they not only take a lot of knowledge and experience, but specialized tools to get the job done. Just depends on what you need to do.

 

As an added note ... I'm hardly a wise sage when it comes to fountain repair/restoration!

Edited March 25, 2012 by USMCMom

[blbjdtny]

I'll second your thoughts on the money and wait. I was thinking of purchasing a book called Pen Repair Second Edition, Jim Marshall/Laurence Oldfield. I looked at the book at the philli pen show this year and it seems like a comprehensive how to repair every fountain pen ever made. I also agree with USMCMom that some repairs should be left to the gurus of pen repair. Google the book title and see what you think.

[Chrissy]

I'll second your thoughts on the money and wait. I was thinking of purchasing a book called Pen Repair Second Edition, Jim Marshall/Laurence Oldfield. I looked at the book at the philli pen show this year and it seems like a comprehensive how to repair every fountain pen ever made. I also agree with USMCMom that some repairs should be left to the gurus of pen repair. Google the book title and see what you think.

I also recommend getting the book first.

[USMCMom]

I have that book and it's a good one. I also have the other book ... darn, can't remember the name of it!!! It's also an excellent book. I bought my copy of each book from Pendemonium, who is a member here.

[Shaporama]

I have that book and it's a good one. I also have the other book ... darn, can't remember the name of it!!! It's also an excellent book. I bought my copy of each book from Pendemonium, who is a member here.

The book you are probably thinking of is, "Fountain Pens, the Complete Guide to Repair and Restoration" by Frank Dubiel

[USMCMom]

I have that book and it's a good one. I also have the other book ... darn, can't remember the name of it!!! It's also an excellent book. I bought my copy of each book from Pendemonium, who is a member here.

The book you are probably thinking of is, "Fountain Pens, the Complete Guide to Repair and Restoration" by Frank Dubiel

 

Yes! That's the one!!

[talkinghead]

Hi,

 

I agree with everyone else's suggestions........but.........why is this thread in the Montblanc forum?

 

My guess is you would gets loads more responses, feedback, tips etc. if this thread was in the Repair Q & A forum...

 

 

Rick

[USMCMom]

Hi,

 

I agree with everyone else's suggestions........but.........why is this thread in the Montblanc forum?

 

My guess is you would gets loads more responses, feedback, tips etc. if this thread was in the Repair Q & A forum...

 

 

Rick

 

Good point! I was responding to the thread title, not where it was ... didn't even notice that.

[Pen Nut]

I have learnt plenty off this forum as well. The way people will guide you really amazed me, I dont learn quickly and certain peoples patience must have been 'tested' to say the least.

 

I also bought tools from a well established FPNer to work on my particular make of choice which gave me the confidence to do jobs I never thought I would.

 

BUT know your limitations. Nib tuning (how hard can it be) is something I have decided to stop having a go at. Mainly because that is what I was doing 'having a go'. My nib man did a cracking job on my 146 vermeil. It was done to a 0.5 / 0.6 mm cursive italic and wrote like a dream. The devil introduced me to Micromesh, think you can guess the rest. Suffice to say that 12,000 grade Micromesh is very smooth and it does not feel like it is doing anything but it is. The 146 I mentioned needed smoothing, it didnt really but I feel better saying it did, and I did it. Oh yes did I do it.

 

Lytham Pen Show next month where my nib chap will at, I can see his smile now as I present him with pens that some dunderhead has messed up ! :embarrassed_smile:

[AltecGreen]

The answer depends on what one means by 'pen repair'. How far ones need to go depends on what pens and what types of repairs one wants to do.

 

So how did all the pen repairers learn their craft (most of them at least)? They did by working on pens (a lot of pens) and paying the 'tuition'. The 'tuition' is a term used by Todd (aka Farmboy) to refer to the number of pens broken while learning to repair pens. The cost of 'tuition' has increased dramatically. When many of the first and second generation pen people started playing with fountain pens, it was cheap to buy large numbers of pens. Say back in the late 1970's and 1980's. It was a time when people were getting rid of fountain pens and a time before the internet and eBay. People who had pens did not know they had value. You used to be able to buy fountain pens by weight. A few dollars per pound. At these prices, you can afford to destroy some pens to learn how they go together and figure out the best way to fix a problem. You can also afford to work a large number of pens to gain experience and feel. The cost is now much higher because even the no name pens are worth a few dollars and other pens have skyrocketed.

 

So where to start now?

 

Books are a good way to start. A lot of people think that Frank's book is no longer really viable. It was written a long time ago and many of the practices suggested in that book are now frowned upon because better methods have been discovered. Unfortunately, Frank's estate has forbidden any changes to the original version even though I think a revised draft was started. The Marshall and Oldfield book is the one I would recommend. They color pictures showing pens completely disassembled is useful even for people not fixing pens because it gives and idea of what to look for when buying vintage pens.

 

Often you can attend seminars at pen shows and they sometimes cover basic repairs or some specific aspect of pen repair. Then there is information on the internet. You can get really good advice of places like FPN. Just be careful whose advice you take. A lot of people on FPN will chime in who have no clue what they are talking about. There are no pen repair courses even though many on FPN ask. The guys who do repairs don't really have time to teach. Many want to take on an apprentice, but an apprenticeship is a full time job at little to no pay.

 

 

At the end of the day, there is no substitute for experience. You can see a picture, read a set of steps, and get advice on FPN, but you learn by doing. Every pen is a bit different. You can do the same steps on the same type of pen, and the process will be different each time.

 

So with all of that said, there are easy repairs.

 

I would say the basic re-sac is a good place to start. It does not require too many specialized tools and parts can be ordered online. Once beyond that, you start to need tools and parts. An important mantra is that "you do not fix pens unless you have parts". For many vintage pens, you cannot go online and add to cart. You'll have to buy beater pens on eBay to scavenge the parts or go to pens shows and buy bags of junk pens and parts.

 

Nib swaps are not as straightforward as it sounds. For modern pens, it not too bad. On vintage pens a lot of things can go wrong. There have been a rash of people on FPN posting that they tried to take the nib and feed out from their section and they broke something. For vintage pens, plastics may have shrunk and deformed, things become brittle, and etc. Once you get the nib and feed out, you might not be able to get it back in. You are just going to have to do and learn.

 

You need tools. Even basic repairs require a set of simple tools. The more complex repairs require specialized tools and often these tools have to be custom made. Just look in the repair forum on when someone comes up with a new tool to help a certain type of repair. Many types of repairs are straightforward but require a lathe. And then there are some repairs that are extremely specialized and requires a lot of work to develop the skills. I would put things like nib crack repair, nib re-tipping, nib re-shaping, barrel cracks, replacement part fabrication, and others to fall into this category.

 

So for the OP, I would recommend buying some books and learn a bit about the pens you want to repair. Since the OP posted this in the MB forum, I assume the pens the OP wants to work on are piston fillers (unless he's into the pre-piston filled pens). I would recommend finding a bunch of vintage no name German pens and practice on those pens. That will be good experience in learning about piston fillers. Don't be like the guy who posted recently who started working on his vintage Pelikan and ends up destroying the piston mechanism. Reading how to do it and actually doing it are two different things. To remove the nibs from MB pens, one will need a tool either buying from Mb for improvising one. Practice, practice practice,...... At some point, the OP will have to pay the 'tuition' the question is whether the price is too high versus just sending the pen in.

Edited March 25, 2012 by AltecGreen

[Pen Nut]

To remove the nibs from MB pens, one will need a tool either buying from Mb for improvising one.

 

Tools are available from FPN member who is a superb engineer. MB wont sell their servicing/repair tools to anyone, these people wont supply a pocket clip or any other spare parts. I can see why and they do like to uphold the standard they have got to so quality of repairs/fitting of parts is something they keep in house. Improvising ANY tool has its risks and drawbacks. I was once shown how you use a pair of garden secuturs split in half to depress the overhead valve spring down just enough to get the shim off the top to adjust the clearance. It worked but only in the hands of someone who knew exactly what they were doing.

[dzg]

Thanks for the excellent replies guys ... its given me alot of food for thought.

 

Most of the "repairs" I speak of are actually "maintenance" e.g. cleaning and lubricating a piston mechanism, cork replacement etc

Its really easy to work on Pelikans, you don't even need a tool but the Montblancs are another thing altogether ...

 

I suppose I got tired of waiting 3 months to have a pen sent back to me and then paying $80-90 for the privilege of waiting that long .... I know that the nibmeisters provide a valuable service and frankly I would not even dare to mess around with grinding a nib ... but on the smaller jobs like piston cleaning or cork replacements I really think the prices are outrageous.

 

Apologies for not posting this in the repair forum ... my issue was around the vintage MB pens and therefore I mistakenly posted here.

[Kalessin]

As an aside, the late Frank Dubiel was not at all a fan of Montblanc pens.