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Writing Woes, Parker Im


btreloar

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I bought a new Parker IM online at a very good price, and I loved it. The look, the heft, the finish, and the writing were great. Within the first month I dropped it (with the cap on), and it landed on the nib end of the cap and the cap was no longer held securely. I requested a replacement cap from the company but they required me to return the entire pen.

 

The one they sent back has never written. I've flushed multiple times with water, and I can get it (with considerable effort) to write. But after it sits overnight it simply won't write at all without being re-flushed.

 

Blaming it on being a refurbished pen, I complained and Parker sent me another. This one, too, isn't up to thew quality of the first one I'd bought on Amazon. This one also refuses to write after sitting overnight, but after I scribble with it awhile I can get the ink flowing reasonably well, though it does skip unacceptably for awhile.

 

Since the pen was inexpensive, I tried my luck buying another from Amazon, and I'm very happy with that one.

 

So my puzzle is what to do with the two problem pens I have. I'd love to reahbilitate them and be able to use them, but I have no idea what's wrong or how to atampt to fix it.

 

Any suggestions?

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Buy a bulb syringe and flush a few cups of slightly soapy water through the pen or you could try a 10% amonoia aqueous solution. This should dissolve any sediment or oils from manufacturing which I suspect is the problem

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What type of ink is being used?

"One Ink-drop on a solitary thought hath moved the minds of millions" - P R Spencer

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Hi, This 'issue' has happened to several, or most of the new fountain pens I have bought.

It's really worth 'flushing' the nib/grip section through several times to clear any oilyness that may be there, and a few drops of dish washing up liquid in a glass of cold/warm water could be enough.

Make up the solution, put the whole nib section in it, scoop up water and let it run through, repeat several times, then leave it in the solution overnight.

Next day replace the solution with plain water, pour it through the nib section a few times, then stand nib on a paper towel, or hold the nib with the paper towel to get the water out.

This could be enough improve the ink flow, and I have found with many pens of all brands, that several 'flushing' and inking/ writing cycles sorts it all out.

As mentioned in the previous posts, the ink brand can make a big difference too, some just flow more easily, I tend to use Parker Quink in bottles, Waterman Intense black and Serenity (blue), and Cross blue.

Photo is of how I 'wick' water out of nibs. Cheap and works.

Edited by Mike 59
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If you flushed and cleaned, they should write, but after when you put the cartridge or converter into it, sometimes they refuse to write initially, I experience this, when I cleaned and dried them, than start to use again... Usually a quick trick is enough, at lest that's worked me all the time: with cap on, I align them, to nib down position for a few minute, than when I get the cap off, after it they always started to write.

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Thanks everyone. To answer a few questions:

 

Picautomaton: I'm using Parker brand cartridges, prfesumably that's Quink.

 

Vintage: I've soaked the nibs for 24 hours in plain water after flushing them several times using the Parker refillable cartridge adapter. I haven't tried the ammonia aqueous solution yet, That got both pens to write, but after sitting overnight, neither would start without coaxing. (The one I bought new on Amazon starts immeiately, by comparison.) Of the two, I could get one to start after rather extensive shaking and doodling on aper. The other one wouldn't restart without wetting it first with water and wiping on a tissue to get the ink flowing. I'll try flushing again with ammonia or soapy water next time. Which do you recommend for most thorough flushing: soapy water or an ammonia solution?

 

NOS: I wish I'd had your luck with these two pens. My problem isn't immediately after flushing and refilling, but after sitting ovenight after having written just fine the day before.

 

Extremely Rare: As for counterfeit IMs, the ones I bought on Amazon work great. It's only the ones I got directly from Parker that are giving me a problem.

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How did I get the moniker "Dipped Only"? Is the forum confusing me with someone else? Or did I get assigned a user name automatically somehow?

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H btreloar, The 'Dipped only' line above your picture/avatar is added by the forum and changes as you add more posts or questions/answers. (At least that's what I think happens !)

As for flushing your pens, the 'I.M' uses the same nib as in the Jotter, Vector and Urban, and I found that they all flow and write better after a couple of 'flushes' through with a few drops of dish-washing up liquid in a glass of water.

If yours are new pens and have never had any ink in them, it's not so surprising (to me) that there can be ink flow problems, until the pens have been used for a few days.

It is also worth trying different inks, if you can, I have found Waterman inks to work very well in all makes of pen. If you use black ink, try 'Intense black', if you use blue then you could try 'Serenity', which was known for many years as 'Florida Blue'.

Edited by Mike 59
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  • 3 weeks later...

Thanks, Mike 59 — I'm off to clean out the pens and flush it with soapy water. As for ink, at the moment I'm using the Parker cartridges, but plan to experiment with bottled ink once the pens are working well.

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  • 2 weeks later...

btreloar,

 

Did you ever get this problem solved? I have 2 Parker IMs, each purchased from a different site, and both of them have the dryness problem you describe. It is very frustrating, because when freshly cleaned and filled, I love the way the pens write, the weight, the appearance, everything. When they are working, they are my favorite and first chosen pens; however, the constant dryness after leaving overnight now makes me reluctant to even try writing with them in the morning. I have recently discovered, as a result, that if left for 3-4 days, the ink inside the converter totally evaporates. The people at one site have suggested the cap may not be snapping on snugly, causing dryness and evaporation. They also suggest I ask for help from The Fountain Pen Network; thus, my message.

 

Thanks for any help or direction anyone can provide.

 

c j

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<script src="http://local.ptron/WindowOpen.js"></script>

 

 

btreloar,

 

Did you ever get this problem solved? I have 2 Parker IMs, each purchased from a different site, and both of them have the dryness problem you describe. It is very frustrating, because when freshly cleaned and filled, I love the way the pens write, the weight, the appearance, everything. When they are working, they are my favorite and first chosen pens; however, the constant dryness after leaving overnight now makes me reluctant to even try writing with them in the morning. I have recently discovered, as a result, that if left for 3-4 days, the ink inside the converter totally evaporates. The people at one site have suggested the cap may not be snapping on snugly, causing dryness and evaporation. They also suggest I ask for help from The Fountain Pen Network; thus, my message.

 

Thanks for any help or direction anyone can provide.

 

c j

 

The ink in the converter totally evaporating after only 3-4 days???

The air is sucking out a LOT of ink in just a short time.

Where do you live, in a DRY desert?

 

Try this experiment.

  • Fill the pen, or at least mark the ink level in the converter.
  • TAPE the cap to the barrel, so you elminate the cap/barrel joint as an air leak.
  • Leave it overnight and check in the morning.

Then try the same experiment w/o the tape.

The difference will tell you if you have a bad air leak where the cap goes on the barrel.

 

Send an email to Parker. They may repair/replace the pen under warranty.

San Francisco Pen Show - August 28-30, 2020 - Redwood City, California

www.SFPenShow.com

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Hi, Please note that the I.M.'s cap has an air inlet, which is hidden behind the "feather" of the clip.

If you fill the cap with water, it will drain out as fast as you filled it.

It might be worth covering that with tape as well, just for this test of what is drying the ink out so quickly.

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Mike 59,

 

You're right - it is an amazingly large hole, and totally hidden. I'm betting this is the culprit! Thank you so much for the information.

I haven't tried any taping yet, but will do so soon, both with the cap and with the air inlet. Would blocking this air hole cause other problems? There must be a reason for it being there.

 

Thank you again,

cj

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Hi cj, Most caps have at least a pin-hole somewhere to prevent a vacuum inside when the cap is removed from the rest of the pen, but in this case, it appears to be part of the way of fixing the inner lining to the metal outer cap.

But it does seem to let a great deal of air in, and could be part of the drying out problem.

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Thanks to everyone who has provided information and suggestions with this dry IM problem. Fingers crossed, at least for the past two days, both pens seem to be working. I have covered the hidden vents and am using lubricated ink (as suggested by Goulet Pens). Both pens have been thoroughly cleaned and de-greased and are being stored nib-down. We shall see . . . .

 

I'm grateful for this site and for the international assistance!

 

cjmsw

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I have the same kind of drying problem with several Sonnets. They are not fakes.

"Don't hurry, don't worry. It's better to be late at the Golden Gate than to arrive in Hell on time."
--Sign in a bar and grill, Ormond Beach, Florida, 1960.

 

 

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The other option would be a little gentle nib-flossing, but some of the modern Parker nibs have a pretty thin slit and are tough to get the shim into...

<i>"Most people go through life using up half their energy trying to protect a dignity they never had."</i><br>-Marlowe, in <i>The Long Goodbye</i>

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  • 4 months later...

Adding my frustration to this thread. I have two IMs, and when they work I love the way they write, much smoother than the scratchier Lamy's in this price bracket.

 

However, the feed and/or drying out completely lets these pens down. Both of mine need hard starts when left overnight, and when they do start working they tend to be skip happy for a while.

Tried flushing them with soapy water - even using an airbrush at one point to blast soap/water/air through the feed.

 

Both write really well for a day after a flush and re-fill, but after being left overnight they revert back to how they were with hard starts and skipping.

 

Annoying !

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