Notch On The Underside Of Nib

[bertrandhustle]

I have a 9555 with a curious V-shaped notch on the underside of the feed. Readymade posted a picture of a similar nib here and I'm wondering if anyone knows what it's for.

[Hobiwan]

Well, if you're talking about this:

 

 

It sorta goes through to the rear ...

 

 

And is explained by the following patent information. I think it's part of the ink channel/air breather system. If you can figure it out from the description, you're a better patent figure-outer than I ...

 

 

856,881. Reservoir pens. ESTERBROOK PEN CO. April 2, 1957 [April 9, 1956], No. 10694/57. Class 146(3). A fountain pen comprises a feed-bar having an internal duct wholly within its body extending through its entire length and communicating at one end with the ink reservoir, the duct providing communicating capillary ink and air channels in juxtaposed relation of which the ink channels are located on that side of the air channel nearest the nib, the feed bar also having a transverse slot of capillary dimension underlying the nib and communicating with the capillary ink channels. As shown the feed-bar 10 is formed of extruded plastic material of circular cross-section having an internal duct of U- shaped cross-section which provides a capillary air channel (15b) and ink channels (15a) of slightly greater capillarity. The transverse slot (17) of greater capillarity than the ink channels 15a is cut in the upper part of the feed bar and intersects the ink channels to convey ink therefrom to the underside of the nib. A longitudinal capillary groove 21 is also provided on the upper surface of the feed-bar underlying the forward end of the nib and is intersected by the slot 17. Semi-annular capillary grooves 18 are cut in the underside of the feed-bar to serve as overflow chambers for any excess of ink which has been fed to the underside of the nib through the channels 15a, slot 17 and groove 21. When the pen is inverted the ink in the grooves 18 returns to the reservoir along the feed passages mentioned above. The air channel 15b is blocked in front of the slot 17 by a plug 22 of metal or plastic, air being fed to the channel 15b via the open front ends of the ink channels 15a. In a modification annular capillarygrooves extending completely round the feedbar replace the grooves 18, and the groove 21 extends backwards beyond the front end of the nib-section. A method of making the feed-bar is described wherein a blank of material extruded with the internal duct therein is held horizontally by a member which enters the air channel 15b at the front end of the blank while a notch 30 is cut in the rear end of the blank. The notch 30 is then used to key the blank in a holding fixture while the front end thereof is bevelled and rounded and the grooves 18, 21 and the slot 17 are cut. The nib and feed-bar may be assembled in a sleeve to form a removable insert which is screwed into the nib section.

 

HTH

 

[bertrandhustle]

That appears to be it. Thanks!

[OcalaFlGuy]

Ok, this is just a SWAG.

 

These I believe were a later rendition nib. I have always been told for a good fill with an Estie to bring the ink up onto the section to be sure the whole nib was covered.

 

The time of these nibs would have been mid to late 50's, just about the time of the Snorkel and TipDip from Sheaffer. I am guessing this is Estie's rendition of a TipDip feed such that you no longer have to put the Whole nib down into the ink for a fill. Assuming of course, that your pen had been in use prior to the fill and your feed was already fully charged.

 

Bruce in Ocala, Fl

[Hobiwan]

Well, Bruce, absent any other info, that would sound like as good a reason as any to depart from the old "tried and true" fissure-feed design. I figured it was later, but couldn't conceive any possible reason why.

 

BTW, in case you noticed, "15a" is missing. It's the "V"-shaped channel. I got the original pics and was trying to clean them up from the original copy of a copy of a copy of the original, especially the numbers, which were almost unreadable. Missed the 15a.

 

I pulled one apart to examine more closely, and planned to post an "expose" on it, but just couldn't understand how it worked. The slot (17) is barely 1/2 a hair's width wide, and would provide greater capillarity, for sure. But it seems to me that it could also be subject to clogging, should the pen be left unused for a period of time without being flushed out. That was the problem I had with one that was on an ebay purchase. Couldn't get it to flow despite all efforts.

 

Thanks for the idea. Now the Sheaffer Tip-dips. Would they be any late-'40s to mid '50s pen that wasn't a Snorkel?

[lahlahlaw]

It's for squirting ink into your friends eye, just for kicks!

[Hobiwan]

Bruce, you nailed it! :notworthy1:

 

And it's patterned after the King of TDs, the snorkel. I tried to shut down last night, but the brain went on auto-search, and found where I'd seen that kind of arrangement before. It's in the snorkel. The esty engineers must have gotten bored listening to the the Republican Convention, and decided to see if they could stuff a snorkel into a feed.

 

The plugged opening in the snout.

 

 

And the transverse and linear slots that guide the ink to the top of the feed.

 

 

The slot in the feed goes all the way through to the snorkel tube hole...

 

 

A neat job, to be sure, but aside from the "tip-dip" feature, I can't figure why they'd want to go to all that trouble. I'd think most people would be content enough to dip the whole nib. And after dumping the Visumaster in 1942 and not picking it back up after the war, it was a just little bit late for them to get fancy, sez me..

 

If Sheaffer were to gripe about anything Esterbrook did, it should have been this item, or the Plunger Filler. Maybe they just didn't notice ... or care?.

 

Anyway, thanks for solving the mystery, Bruce. I've been stewing over this for some time.

 

And thanks, bertrandhustle, for opening the thread. See what you started?

[OcalaFlGuy]

Perhaps the better question is why apparently, didn't Esterbrook Promote this "new improved" feed? They could maybe have gotten away with, "cleaner filling" if the avoided to Tip word.

 

Late 50's would have been when I'd think money started to run thin at Esterbrook, I would have thought they would have jumped at a new advertising angle to increase sales.

 

Bruce in Ocala, Fl

[Hobiwan]

I would also wonder how they got the patent through the review process. I don't know patent law, but I'd say their attorney took a few liberties with the finer points, and the guy at the patent office got snowed by the absence of the moving tube and missed the fact that the principles involved were the same....

 

Probly talking through your hat, Hobi, ya need a life...

 

[pajaro]

Well, Bruce, absent any other info, that would sound like as good a reason as any to depart from the old "tried and true" fissure-feed design. I figured it was later, but couldn't conceive any possible reason why.

 

BTW, in case you noticed, "15a" is missing. It's the "V"-shaped channel. I got the original pics and was trying to clean them up from the original copy of a copy of a copy of the original, especially the numbers, which were almost unreadable. Missed the 15a.

 

I pulled one apart to examine more closely, and planned to post an "expose" on it, but just couldn't understand how it worked. The slot (17) is barely 1/2 a hair's width wide, and would provide greater capillarity, for sure. But it seems to me that it could also be subject to clogging, should the pen be left unused for a period of time without being flushed out. That was the problem I had with one that was on an ebay purchase. Couldn't get it to flow despite all efforts.

 

Thanks for the idea. Now the Sheaffer Tip-dips. Would they be any late-'40s to mid '50s pen that wasn't a Snorkel?

 

I have Sheaffer Cadet and Craftsman Touchdown filler models that have the Tip Dip nibs. The nib modules unscrew like Esterbrook.