Ink And Lab Pipettes

[nickapos]

Hello there, some time ago I was looking for a way to fill my pens without having to use a syringe, I wanted a method that would be safe and I would be able to use in my office without any strange reactions. I do not feel comfortable about keeping a syringe in my office drawer (I work in a bank) so I ordered a package of 3ml lab pipettes. I got them from ebay, they are really cheap (i think I paid for 3 or 4GBP for a package of 50 pipettes) and so far I have used them for ink mixing, eyedropper pen filling, and cartridge filling (parker cartridges and lamy)

 

Here is a photo of one of my pipettes after filling my lamy vista with waterman florida blue

 

http://test.oncrete.gr/static/photos/pens/vista-and-pippete.png

 

 

Just a heads up for anyone who might be interested.

Edited March 17, 2013 by nickapos

[mhguda]

I get these sometimes when I buy ED pens. They're nice for ink mixing when you're not too worried about the precise mixture. And they work well when filling an ED barrel. But they're less than stellar when you want to fill a converter or refill a cartridge. And they don't clean very well...

OTOH I understand your reluctance regarding syringes very well. So, if it works for you, more power to you!

[nickapos]

Yes these specific pipettes are not very thin, so refilling a international converter or an international cartridge would be difficult. On the other hand I do not bother refilling intern. cartridges as I can find and purchase them easily. My difficulty lies in Parker and Lamy cartridges. The Lamy ones are quite rare in the area where I live and I would like to refill those I already have, they can certainly be filled with this specific pipette as they have a bigger nipple than the international ones.

 

As for the cleaning, this pipette has been used multiple times already and as you can see there is no ink residue after a quick rinsing.

[GreenVelvet]

I use fine-tip pipettes for all pen-filling. They work just fine for cartridges and converters... the tips are very, very fine.

 

fine tip pipettes on ebay

[Sasha Royale]

Greetings, Nickapos !

 

If the pipet method works for you and your situation, do continue. Please share with

us any problems that you encounter and solve. Thanks.

 

For cartridges, I still use the syringe, since it injects ink inside the cartridge,

and not just into the cartridge. I find it cleaner. The syringe also allows me to

flush the cartridge of old residue.

 

I haven't encountered the issue of people seeing the syringe, as I use it at home.

All my cartridges are serviced at home. I transport ink cartridges in a metal,

candy tin or match box. I find it tidier.

 

Write with joy.

[nickapos]

I use fine-tip pipettes for all pen-filling. They work just fine for cartridges and converters... the tips are very, very fine.

 

fine tip pipettes on ebay

Hey this is nice.

I didn't see these pipettes when I was searching on ebay, otherwise I would choose them over the ones I have got now.

 

I will keep it in mind for the future though.

 

Thanks for the tip.

[nickapos]

Greetings, Nickapos !

 

If the pipet method works for you and your situation, do continue. Please share with

us any problems that you encounter and solve. Thanks.

 

For cartridges, I still use the syringe, since it injects ink inside the cartridge,

and not just into the cartridge. I find it cleaner. The syringe also allows me to

flush the cartridge of old residue.

 

I haven't encountered the issue of people seeing the syringe, as I use it at home.

All my cartridges are serviced at home. I transport ink cartridges in a metal,

candy tin or match box. I find it tidier.

 

Write with joy.

 

Hello Sasha,

 

I have been doing the same thing up until quite recently. On the other hand, I keep at my office a number of pens and two ink-bottles. One of these pens is an eyedropper, others are piston fillers, etc. Now I can refill my Parkers, my eyedropper and my Lamy using the ink I keep at the office without having to carry them or the empty cartridges over to my home.

 

Enjoy!

[Pentulant]

Oh goodness...thank you for posting about this!

[OakIris]

Now, I don't usually fill my pens in public so use of a syringe is a bit of a non-factor for me. We use pipettes to fill up sample vials of ink during our pen posse meetings, but I prefer the use of the syringe for filling cartridges. The syringes used for this do not have a needle point so I wouldn't imagine if anyone saw them that they would think that you were a diabetic or up to no good, so to speak, especially if they saw you filling up your pen cartridges.

 

If the pipette works for you though, that's great. Another idea would be to get converters for your non-eyedropper pens so that you can fill them directly from a bottle of ink; a bottle of ink in your drawer should not raise any eyebrows - though why someone would even be going through your drawers at work is a mystery to me.

 

Holly

[KCat]

I use the fine-tip pipets like GreenVelvet linked to. I used to use syringes but now and then would get a bit carried away and put too much force on the plunger and make a mess. Not that you can't do the same with a pipet.

 

I still use syringes for cleaning a cartridge though which has to be done now and then when it's time to toss a well-used cartridge and start fresh.

 

The ones you got, Nick, are good enough. The fine tips give you a little more control for certain types of cartridges but as you've discovered, the ones you got work just fine for the most part.

 

Also, the fine tips are the perfect size for getting into the back of a Pelikan nib and really flushing it thoroughly. Just for future reference.

[Sailor Kenshin]

I use pipettes all the time, and always recommend them. I have some whose tips rival a syringe in thin-ness, and these have no trouble whatever going into any cart at all. Larger pipettes work well on Pilot, Sailor, and Platinum carts.

 

Never did understand the mania for syringes and needles, unless they are the industrial variety.

[lapis]

I use pipettes all the time, and always recommend them. I have some whose tips rival a syringe in thin-ness, and these have no trouble whatever going into any cart at all. Larger pipettes work well on Pilot, Sailor, and Platinum carts.

 

Never did understand the mania for syringes and needles, unless they are the industrial variety.

I couldn't agree more... I use them all the time, too. Not at all for filling any pen, but for filling vials, making mixes (e.g. 1 : 2 : 5 ml) and above all, for anointing swabs to compare different inks but all with exactly the same amount of ink. Here are a few old shots. All Gilson medical scientific pipettes with disposable plastic tips, Made in France:

 

First of all, the three I use most: 20, 200 and 1000 µl. (Anywhere between 0 and up to those volumes, all completely adjustable, of course). I also have a 5000µl one but can't find it at the moment.

http://i654.photobucket.com/albums/uu264/peli46/Gilson_5.jpg

 

 

Now two better shots along with my tray, where I fill pens and mix inks. My wooden desk and wooden floor are both nicely coloured in the meantime.

http://i654.photobucket.com/albums/uu264/peli46/Gilson_1.jpg

 

http://i654.photobucket.com/albums/uu264/peli46/Gilson_2.jpg

 

 

Finally, here's how I anoint a swab. Usually with exactly 100µl.

http://i654.photobucket.com/albums/uu264/peli46/Gilson_3.jpg

 

Cheers, Cap'n. You've got one of the pint-size versions, I imagine...

[The Good Captain]

Cheers, Cap'n. You've got one of the pint-size versions, I imagine...

No. I just use a kitchen bucket and a tinfoil funnel. Works a treat every time.

[nickapos]

Nice equipment lapis. Do you use it for any other experiments besides inks?

[lapis]

No, but my wife uses it for the Tabasco.

[nickapos]

Nice, you certainly have a scientific approach to your inks testing, measuring exact quantities etc with your pipettes. I on the other hand am more sloppy, I do not keep accuracy in my ink tests. I usually go with approximation. My pipettes are of the 3ml variety with 0.1ml grading.

[lapis]

Nice, you certainly have a scientific approach to your inks testing, measuring exact quantities etc with your pipettes. I on the other hand am more sloppy, I do not keep accuracy in my ink tests. I usually go with approximation. My pipettes are of the 3ml variety with 0.1ml grading.

Thanks! Now don't get me wrong, but here's an even better method. More efficient and faster at the same time. You can also use an accurate balance like this, allowing weighings down to 1.0 to 0.1 mg. (1 mg is practically equivalent to 1 µl).

http://i654.photobucket.com/albums/uu264/peli46/TestTube.jpg

 

 

Mike

[mmkoenecke]

lapis, I'm jealous of all your lab equipment; that stuff is not cheap! Were the pipettes/beakers/test tubes an investment exclusively for ink?

[lapis]

lapis, I'm jealous of all your lab equipment; that stuff is not cheap! Were the pipettes/beakers/test tubes an investment exclusively for ink?

Thanks! An investment exclusively for ink? Actually, no and yes. I managed to get the scale out of the lab on time in order to weigh green tea here at home.

Then, after I retired, I joined FPN and started to come up with inks... so I told my wife -- who still works in the same institute -- that when she by mistake somehow happened to bump into a pipette or three, she might as well bring these things home because I had, in the end, decided quite confidently that it would be a pity to see those things being chucked out just because someone might consider them to be too old. Today's youngsters in that building do everything electronically, you know.

 

Whew!

[nickapos]

lapis, I'm jealous of all your lab equipment; that stuff is not cheap! Were the pipettes/beakers/test tubes an investment exclusively for ink?

Thanks! An investment exclusively for ink? Actually, no and yes. I managed to get the scale out of the lab on time in order to weigh green tea here at home.

Then, after I retired, I joined FPN and started to come up with inks... so I told my wife -- who still works in the same institute -- that when she by mistake somehow happened to bump into a pipette or three, she might as well bring these things home because I had, in the end, decided quite confidently that it would be a pity to see those things being chucked out just because someone might consider them to be too old. Today's youngsters in that building do everything electronically, you know.

 

Whew!

 

I belong in the generation you are referring to and I think that most people do not realize that if a piece of equipment does what it was designed to do, it doesn't matter if it is electronic or not. Sometimes non-modern designs are even more enjoyable than the modern ones.

Also most people do not realize that electronic equipment is a lot more sensitive to environmental conditions than their analog versions. Some time ago I designed a small pcb that was used to control the environment conditions in a green house. My experiment proved that the common sensors used would have to be calibrated frequently otherwise in the extreme temperature and humidity conditions found in the greenhouse, their reading would be quite useless.