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Mabie Todd Swan 6260 Self-Filler Nib 2


pieemme

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Hello, I am applying for help with this strange problem. I've bought via Ebay this Swan and have been able to disassemble, clean and polish it to a quite satisfactory extent. I am currently waiting for a replacement sac. I have noticed however that the thread does not allow to screw the cap to full closure. It looks like the pen is too long for the barrel's thread to fully grip the cap's one. I noticed that if I remove the section from the barrel, I have no problem in screwing the cap firmly in. The issue is not with the nib and feed being too long, because the problem comes up even when the nib and feed are removed. I have wondered whether the section is possibly not the original one. However the name Swan is engraved on the section. Maybe a Swan specialist here could tell me if he knows of Swan having used considerably different section lenghts. I am enclosing some pictures of the pen.

1.jpg

P1080727.jpg

P1080728.JPG

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Most likely the nib is out too far. Try to set the nib and feed deeper and see if that does the trick.

 

You can also make a quick and easy depth gauge to check the difference in length from the deepest part of the inner cap to the lip of the inner cap. I have two narrow wood rods (the blunt ends of wood skewers) held together with twist ties. Push one against the inner cap lip, slide the other down to the far inside end of the cap, and remove the unit. Compare the ends of the sticks you pushed inside to your section and nib set up to see if the nib is hitting the end of the cap or if it has enough clearance.

 

Pics to follow

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In case you are more visual, or in case my explanation was not worded well.......

 

fpn_1451868751__depth_01.jpg

fpn_1451868756__depth_02.jpg

fpn_1451868761__depth_03b.jpg

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Does the cap have an inner cap?

 

If so the inner cap may have "let go" & isn't deep enough in the cap, or else the inner cap has broken radially & the part nearest the opening has slid towards the opening; in either case I suspect that there's an inner cap making contact with the section too soon. This is consistent with your observation that the cap doesn't screw on properly even with the nib/feed removed.

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I found the source of the contradictory responses.

 

(from the OP)

" I noticed that if I remove the section from the barrel, I have no problem in screwing the cap firmly in. The issue is not with the nib and feed being too long, because the problem comes up even when the nib and feed are removed."

 

We will need a clarification regarding contradictory the trouble shooting comments.

For the first statement: " I noticed that if I remove the section from the barrel, I have no problem in screwing the cap firmly in." - use my suggestion

For the second statement: "The issue is not with the nib and feed being too long, because the problem comes up even when the nib and feed are removed." - use the advice from Viclip.

 

Good Luck! :) Swans are usually a pleasure to use once you get the problem straightened out.

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Thanks all of you for your prompt and helpful suggestions. I'll give the skewers idea a try. I suwpect that Viclip has a point with the possibly misplaced inner cap (yes,there is one). Unfortunately I have no idea how to disassemble the cap and how the clip is fixed. I would hate to damage it by inexperience at this point. Any further clues ?

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So - which is it? When you remove the section and nib, does the barrel screw on well, or still not catching? That will change the advice a great deal.

 

If you have a good light - look inside to see if there is anything strange about the inner cap, or just some crud, or maybe even something up inside the cap - it happens.

 

All of the pen parts look correct to me, and the nib is not that far out. Sometimes the cap threads are stripped - which is a different problem altogether.

 

I can offer different or better advice if you clarify for us if the cap screws on tight with the section and nib removed.

Edited by Greenie
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Look, the problem is definitely not with the nib&feed, as it still happens when they are removed. The threads stop engaging, as soon as the section is on. I wish I could properly disassemble the cap, as I think the inner cap must have got displaced. Thanks for your prompt support.

Edited by pieemme
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Same thing on my swan self filler 3120. Even if the nib/feed is removed, the cap don't screws completely. if i remove the section too, it screws a lot further.
Maybe a design lack of that kind of pens?

Edited by drop_m
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I have been checking out both ideas: in fact the inner cap doesn't seem to have moved. I tried pushing it back, but it made a rather strong resistence, so I chose not to insist, before finding out the correct way to disassemble the inner cap.

 

I also measured the distances with the 2 sticks. It looks like there's enough room for the lib&feed and that was never the issue anyway. If I find no better option, and as it is a matter of a couple of millimeters, I am very tempted to shorten the top of the section by carefully shaving away some of the hard rubber collar.

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If the cap allows you to screw it a couple of twist - as in my case - i think it's enough to prevent evaporation of any sort.
with mine, which i use periodically, i screw the cap as tight as it goes - without forcing it too much, of course - and i never had any problem

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In my case it just screws half a turn and then comes free again. In fact, it is not engaging the thread.

Edited by pieemme
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Aha. Now I finally understand what I kept misreading! You were clear, and I just didn't get it. :wallbash:

It reminds me of a snarky saying. "I can explain it to you, but I can't understand it for you." So I feel pretty foolish, but will gladly admit it in hopes that I can now contribute something useful instead of useless as I did above.

 

 

With the long distal flared out portion on this particular section, you can shave it down little by little until the threads engage. This should not alter the function or look of the section. It takes surprisingly little material removal to make this work.

 

(Another option is to try to tighten the barrel threads with heat and a band clamp, but that can leave a mark on the cap if you are not careful.)

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Inner caps are often fouled with an unbelievable amount of dried ink.

 

Any chance that there's a "ring" of dried ink which is intercepting the section before the section snugs up against the inner cap?

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Thanks viclip and Greenie, your ideas made a lot of sense. I tried to scrape the inner cap with a sharpened screwdriver. However very little came off and it didn't have the kind of irregular lip that I was expecting. So I used the 2 skewers method and measured the distances. Then I took some toothpaste (which I also use for polishing) and marked the bottom of the cap when screwed on without the section. The distance was about one mm or less, therefore I decided to go for the shaving option. I took my section and sandpapered some material off the section's top.

 

Lo and behold: my cap now closes snugly and precisely, with nib and feed on. I just wonder how the previous owner managed to use this pen.

Edited by pieemme
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Thanks for the feedback! Glad to hear it all works now.

 

So - how does it write?

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At last the sac arrived and I was able to fill my Mabie Todd 6260. Truly a great writer, with great line variation. Here it is, between a Conway Stewart 388 and an Esterbrook Relief, three lovely British oldies, all of them wonderful writers. Maybe my favourite one is my buttery CS.

 

post-110538-0-51330200-1452548848.jpg

post-110538-0-77766800-1452549022_thumb.jpg

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