Anyone Want A Few Spare Wicks For Their Traveling Inkwell? (Making A Bunch)

June 12, 2017

Sorry if I posted this in the wrong place.

I got an inkwell from goulet, and no wick came with it! Annoyed, I emailed Coles, who sent me a wick, no problem, but was told that they don't sell them. It looks like carded felt.

So I found some 1/4 inch carded wool felt and now have way more than I could ever use in my lifetime.

So I figured I'd share. Not making any money on this, just trying to use up my square foot of this felt. At what I'm asking I could afford to buy more stock and keep going if this becomes weirdly popular, since they don't take very long to make, I'll do this for you guys.

To cover my shipping costs of envelopes and stamps, I'm asking $3 for 3 wicks of carded wool felt. They can be rinsed off several times and are highly absorbent of ink, doing a great job of cleaning nib creep (shown is a picture of cleaning the hardest pen to clean in the world - the faber castell loom. Ink gets stuck EVERYWHERE, including the grip on this pen.)

They're about 1.5 inches long and of slightly varying thickness, since I hand cut them. I test them all in my inkwell to make sure they won't be too tight. They won't fall out when inverted, you have to pinch them with your fingernails to pull them out, but thusfar have been plenty happy with mine.

When you put the wick back into the inkwell, I suggest not pushing the wick down, but leaving it at least 1/4 inch above the neck and use the cap to push it down. Not only does that avoid ink on the fingers, but will give you a good grab point to pull the wick out from when you uncap. It's not a tricky thing, just gently set the wick back in any amount at all, and then use the cap to press it in, which it'll do easily and effortlessly, and give you the perfect amount to grip as well.

Ignore all the excessive stray felt fibers in the pictures, I have been playing around with different cuts all morning.

The one used to clean the loom has been used about 6 different times so far. Most pens barely leave a mark on the felt, the loom is a really messy pen to clean (I don't even fill it by dipping anymore, it's such a pain to clean)

Edited June 12, 2017 by Honeybadgers

June 22, 2017

110 views and nobody wants some spare wicks for their inkwell?

July 3, 2017

This is a nice offer, but I've got a knucklehead question: What are the wicks for? I would guess cleaning the nib after filling? I have a few of the traveling inkpots and none came with wicks, as far as I can recall. Sorry if this seems like a daft question. Your's is a generous offer.

July 19, 2017

Hi HoneyBadgers. That's very resourceful of you and kind of you to offer, but I've never used mine. I just grab a tissue or piece of paper towel whenever I use the inkwell. Postage to Australia would probably be prohibitive anyway.

July 19, 2017

Thank you for your kind offer.

I must admit I've never used the wick in my Visconti travelling inkwell. I thought it was there for dipping into the ink so that you knew what colour was in the inkwell. I just grab a piece of kitchen towel or tissue to clean my nibs.

One keyword that might have helped in your title is: Visconti.

When I first saw this title in the New Posts list I couldn't understand what travelling inkwells needed wicks. I visualised vintage versions.

July 22, 2017

Sorry if I posted this in the wrong place.

I got an inkwell from goulet, and no wick came with it! Annoyed, I emailed Coles, who sent me a wick, no problem, but was told that they don't sell them. It looks like carded felt.

So I found some 1/4 inch carded wool felt and now have way more than I could ever use in my lifetime.

So I figured I'd share. Not making any money on this, just trying to use up my square foot of this felt. At what I'm asking I could afford to buy more stock and keep going if this becomes weirdly popular, since they don't take very long to make, I'll do this for you guys.

To cover my shipping costs of envelopes and stamps, I'm asking $3 for 3 wicks of carded wool felt. They can be rinsed off several times and are highly absorbent of ink, doing a great job of cleaning nib creep (shown is a picture of cleaning the hardest pen to clean in the world - the faber castell loom. Ink gets stuck EVERYWHERE, including the grip on this pen.)

They're about 1.5 inches long and of slightly varying thickness, since I hand cut them. I test them all in my inkwell to make sure they won't be too tight. They won't fall out when inverted, you have to pinch them with your fingernails to pull them out, but thusfar have been plenty happy with mine.

When you put the wick back into the inkwell, I suggest not pushing the wick down, but leaving it at least 1/4 inch above the neck and use the cap to push it down. Not only does that avoid ink on the fingers, but will give you a good grab point to pull the wick out from when you uncap. It's not a tricky thing, just gently set the wick back in any amount at all, and then use the cap to press it in, which it'll do easily and effortlessly, and give you the perfect amount to grip as well.

Ignore all the excessive stray felt fibers in the pictures, I have been playing around with different cuts all morning.

The one used to clean the loom has been used about 6 different times so far. Most pens barely leave a mark on the felt, the loom is a really messy pen to clean (I don't even fill it by dipping anymore, it's such a pain to clean)