Ultrasonic Cleaner - Damaged My Pen

[PaperQueen]

In most cases you should use some kind of container, like a basket, in the ultrasonic. I often put a stronger cleaning solution (like Rapido-Eze) a plastic pudding cup and drop that in the water in the tank.

 

Forgive me for being dense, but does this mean you pour the Rapido-Eze from the pudding cup, into the water -or- that you submerge the pudding cup into the water (think: college version of a boilermaker, although I could never fathom doing that to a decent glass of whisky....).

 

[Chrissy]

 

Forgive me for being dense, but does this mean you pour the Rapido-Eze from the pudding cup, into the water -or- that you submerge the pudding cup into the water

 

 

 

RonZ means the latter. You submerge the cup containing the cleaner and the section or nib unit into the ultrasonic. You could also use other types of protection, a thick poly bag for example, containing liquid and the pen section

[ac12]

FYI, I have deplated plated nibs. And this was NOT caused by abrasion. I held the pen in the water/cleaning solution, so it was just from the action of the USC on the nib through the cleaning solution. As was said, I suspect thin gold that was not bonded well to the nib. For most purposes, that would work just fine, until you put it into an USC.

 

Today I rarely use an USC on a plated nib, for just this reason. I just do flush and soak.

If the nib is already worn, and deplating it more won't make much difference, then I might use the USC.

 

BTW I have seen gold plated nibs (at estate sales) where I could see the plating starting to peel/flake off the nib.

Edited December 10, 2015 by ac12

[Ron Z]

I use an ultrasonic day in, day out, for every pen that gets restored, and have for years. Incidents of damage are very rare indeed, and cases of plating coming off are usually on 3rd tier or very cheaply made nibs. But never for instance, on a Schmidt, Bock, Sheaffer or Parker gold plated nib. Waterford, yes, but that practically wiped off.

[PaperQueen]

RonZ means the latter. You submerge the cup containing the cleaner and the section or nib unit into the ultrasonic. You could also use other types of protection, a thick poly bag for example, containing liquid and the pen section

 

Took me a minute, but I think I finally got the mental picture sorted out. I assume the aforementioned "pudding cup" has a lid on it (prevents water from flooding in)? :::duh:::

 

Thanks for the clarification. My Thursday is behaving more like a Monday.

[Kelly G]

So I started reading this thread from the top and was momentarily shocked by the appearance of Tom Mullane - aka Old Griz - who unfortunately passed away two years ago, a few months after his posting in this thread. I usually fail to notice the dates of the postings on these resurrected threads until something grabs my attention. Today it was Tom and it was good to remember his presence here.

 

As for the Ultrasonic Cleaner - I'm going with Tom and Ron - you had a bad plating job on that clip.

[Ink Stained Wretch]

 

Took me a minute, but I think I finally got the mental picture sorted out. I assume the aforementioned "pudding cup" has a lid on it (prevents water from flooding in)? :::duh:::

 

Thanks for the clarification. My Thursday is behaving more like a Monday.

 

I use one of those vials that are supposed to be used in ink exchanges. I put the pen part that I want to clean off in one of those, along with a dish detergent solution, most of the time, and then I put that into the ultrasonic cleaner, which is filled with plain tap water. This way I don't have to mix up a pint or more of dish detergent to clean off a nib or something.

 

Not using an ultrasonic cleaner has wrecked a pen or two on me .

[El Gordo]

 

Forgive me for being dense, but does this mean you pour the Rapido-Eze from the pudding cup, into the water -or- that you submerge the pudding cup into the water (think: college version of a boilermaker, although I could never fathom doing that to a decent glass of whisky....).

 

This is not the way to proceed, not keeping it as such, nor submerse it. See also comments by others already. You do not have to spoil the whole content of the US bath with ink residues on small items and use a pint of detergent loaded water. Just small containers help, it is better to renew small amounts of the cleaning fluid several time than to use a large amount. Fill the US bath with clean water (tap is Ok, softer water is better to avoid scale over long term) and smaller containers with the cleaning liquids (water based, no alcohols in principle) of your choice and parts. Do not keep these small containers with your fingers, nor submerge your fingers in the liquid, while the US is in operation. The US is transmitted to the small containers and their content, and also into your fingers. It does not do well on cartilage on the long term (despite medical uses for low intensity US). Should be in the manual as well.

AS these small vials or pudding containers are light they probably fall aside when left on their own, so some creativity will help here. Inspiration can be found for instance here (just took the first relevant from a Google search, no affiliation at all), the ring is mostly a rubber coated lead ring of appropriate size. You could also use a simple plate with a hole slightly larger than your vial, two o-ring that fixed on the outside to that plate, fill a beaker with liquid that stands stable in the US bath and for parts small enough to fit in a teaball / tea-egg simple immerse the tea egg in the beaker.

[Ink Stained Wretch]

This is not the way to proceed, not keeping it as such, nor submerse it. See also comments by others already. You do not have to spoil the whole content of the US bath with ink residues on small items and use a pint of detergent loaded water. Just small containers help, it is better to renew small amounts of the cleaning fluid several time than to use a large amount. Fill the US bath with clean water (tap is Ok, softer water is better to avoid scale over long term) and smaller containers with the cleaning liquids (water based, no alcohols in principle) of your choice and parts. ....

AS these small vials or pudding containers are light they probably fall aside when left on their own, so some creativity will help here. Inspiration can be found for instance here (just took the first relevant from a Google search, no affiliation at all), the ring is mostly a rubber coated lead ring of appropriate size. You could also use a simple plate with a hole slightly larger than your vial, two o-ring that fixed on the outside to that plate, fill a beaker with liquid that stands stable in the US bath and for parts small enough to fit in a teaball / tea-egg simple immerse the tea egg in the beaker.

 

I use a combination of twist ties and rubber bands, all affixed to the matrix of the plastic tray, to keep my plastic vials right in the "sweet spots" of the ultrasonic cleaner. I have been surprised that the rubber bands have lasted for quite some time while doing this chore.

 

Do not keep these small containers with your fingers, nor submerge your fingers in the liquid, while the US is in operation. The US is transmitted to the small containers and their content, and also into your fingers. It does not do well on cartilage on the long term (despite medical uses for low intensity US). Should be in the manual as well.

 

Now and again I do get my fingers into the larger pool of water in the ultrasonic cleaner while it's operating. Are you saying that this is dangerous? I don't recall seeing anything in the manual that warned against this. The only warnings I remember from that manual were to not get the outside of the unit wet and not to try running it with too little water in it.

[El Gordo]

 

Now and again I do get my fingers into the larger pool of water in the ultrasonic cleaner while it's operating. Are you saying that this is dangerous? I don't recall seeing anything in the manual that warned against this. The only warnings I remember from that manual were to not get the outside of the unit wet and not to try running it with too little water in it.

 

Not saying it is "dangerous" (definition of dangerous?), but it definitely is not a good habit. It will depend on how often, how long, frequency, power etc. Also small home US devices for jewel cleaning vs industrial baths will differ in this aspect. Where we live it is mentioned that it is bad and can assist in generating arthritis and cartilage problems over time. The following is an excerpt of the safety section of a manual where it is mentioned not to put your hands/fingers in the bath.

Anyhow, reported in the manual or not : if you see what the US does to clogged feeds and bone dry inks, or create pits in aluminium foil, never wondered what it does to the skin, or to bones or blood cells in your fingers?

 

Quote from manual (I don't own these, just random selection):

Care and Safety This user manual is for use with ultrasonic cleaning tanks from Shesto ltd. All cleaning tanks should be handled with care to ensure maximum performance. Please read and understand this user manual before using your ultrasonic cleaner. • Do not operate if the tank is less than 2/3 full. • Ensure power is disconnected before attempting to add or remove fluid. • If pouring fluid away, pour away from the electrical socket on the rear and front control panel. • Do not let items rest on the base of the bath, always use a glass beaker or basket. • . Do not place hands or fingers in the bath. Contact exposure to ultrasonic cavitation is suspected to cause living tissue and bone damage. • Do not use any fluids which could potentially damage the stainless steel bath e.g acids. • Do not use fluids exceeding 80 °C. • When submerging parts ensure fluid is not displaced out of the bath. • Maximum running time for a single cycle is 45 minutes. • Always allow a rest time of 20 minutes between cleaning cycles. • Never drop an item onto the base of the bath. • Always clean bath after use. • Never change the fuse for a higher rated one. • Aqueous solvent/detergent solutions should be made up with deionised, demineralised or distilled water as calcium carbonate and other impurities in tap water can effect/ reduce the cleaning properties of the solutions and produce undesirable side effects such as deposits and staining. • Volatile solvents with low boiling temperatures should not be used. The ultrasonic action can cause them to heat rapid and the vapour is a fire risk.

Edited December 11, 2015 by El Gordo

[PaperQueen]

I use one of those vials that are supposed to be used in ink exchanges. I put the pen part that I want to clean off in one of those, along with a dish detergent solution, most of the time, and then I put that into the ultrasonic cleaner, which is filled with plain tap water. This way I don't have to mix up a pint or more of dish detergent to clean off a nib or something.

 

I use a combination of twist ties and rubber bands, all affixed to the matrix of the plastic tray, to keep my plastic vials right in the "sweet spots" of the ultrasonic cleaner. I have been surprised that the rubber bands have lasted for quite some time while doing this chore.

 

Excellent suggestions---thanks, Ink Stained Wretch.

[pen2paper]

exposure to ultrasonic cavitation is suspected to cause living tissue and bone damage

 

cue Ron Zorn's analog salad spinner (besides that's more fun to watch)

 

http://www.mainstreetpens.com/pix/centandpen.jpg

Edited December 11, 2015 by pen2paper

[PaperQueen]

cue Ron Zorn's analog salad spinner (besides that's more fun to watch)

 

http://www.mainstreetpens.com/pix/centandpen.jpg

 

Okay. I'll bite.

 

Salad spinner...???

[JonSzanto]

Okay. I'll bite.

 

Salad spinner...???

 

As shown in the photo. Maybe not the first to do it, but Ron was the first person I ever saw document his use of a standard "salad spinner", as outfitted in the photo, to use as a centrifuge to spin out the liquids in a barrel of a pen after cleaning. Especially handy for pens like a Parker 51 with the collectors that hold so much fluid. The clever part of the orange holder, tied down with zipties, is all Zorn. You don't want the pen flying, nib first, into the outer wall of the salad spinner while you are centrifuging out the water!

[Ink Stained Wretch]

 

 

Excellent suggestions---thanks, Ink Stained Wretch.

 

You're quite welcome .

[PaperQueen]

As shown in the photo. Maybe not the first to do it, but Ron was the first person I ever saw document his use of a standard "salad spinner", as outfitted in the photo, to use as a centrifuge to spin out the liquids in a barrel of a pen after cleaning. Especially handy for pens like a Parker 51 with the collectors that hold so much fluid. The clever part of the orange holder, tied down with zipties, is all Zorn. You don't want the pen flying, nib first, into the outer wall of the salad spinner while you are centrifuging out the water!

 

Dang. Yet another great idea I wish had been mine.

 

Out of curiosity, what the heck IS the orange thing? I understand it's (brilliant) purpose, but can't for the life of me figure out what it's original intent was.

[Ron Z]

The orange thing is a cut off funnel from the automotive department at Wal Mart. The funnel is glued down with hot glue, and tye-wrapped for extra security, sort of like wearing a belt and suspenders. Full instructions on how to make the centrifuge can be found here.


You'll also find an article and instructions in the October 2010 issue of the Pennant - in the PCA library.

 

I still use this one BTW. It gets used for large pens like a MB 149 or an oversize Balance that is too big to fit into the holder on my motorized centrifuge.