Maintenance Required On Sheaffers

[TheDutchGuy]

Being the happy owner of a '59 PFM-III, a mid-'80s Targa M and a mid-'80s Targa Slim XF, I've noticed that these pens (all with inset nib, hidden feed and snap-on cap) require more regular flushing and cleaning than all my other pens, vintage or otherwise. After a few weeks the performance of the pens goes down mostly due to dryness. During the first page or so, the ink appears super-saturated in terms of colour yet the flow is much reduced. I attibute this mostly to the caps, but I could be wrong. These snap-on caps dont' seem to seal nearly as well as my pens with screw-on caps. So the water evaporates from the ink that's trapped in the feed, the ink gets darker, it clogs in the feed, and gradually the pen's performance is impaired. It's not really a problem to flush a pen every few weeks, it's just an observation and a difference compared to my other pens.

 

Do other recognize this? Any general maintenance tips specific to Sheaffers with an inset nib such as the Targa and the PFM-III?

 

Thanks!

[pajaro]

My Touchdown filling Imperials sometimes seem to perform better if I floss the nib with a brass shim every few months. That's about the extent of it. It wouldn't surprise me if an occasional flush would help any pen with a Snorkel filler. Maybe a flossing as well. That's not a lot of maintenance, about what a C/C filler might need.

[surprise123]

For any pen, If I'm pulling it in for a month-long rotation, I usually sit down and floss them every now and then to prevent crud and paper fibers from building up. I use dental floss that has had its minty coating flushed off, as it is more gentle on the tines.

[FarmBoy]

For any pen, If I'm pulling it in for a month-long rotation, I usually sit down and floss them every now and then to prevent crud and paper fibers from building up. I use dental floss that has had its minty coating flushed off, as it is more gentle on the tines.

Curious how this works without removing the nib.

 

Generally one doesn't remove the nib and feed for cleaning.

[tamiya]

For any pen, If I'm pulling it in for a month-long rotation, I usually sit down and floss them every now and then to prevent crud and paper fibers from building up. I use dental floss that has had its minty coating flushed off, as it is more gentle on the tines.

yeah I give mine a floss, but not with string - that'll take 3 hands.

I use either a 0.02" brass shim, the waxy backing paper from a sheet of stickers or a sliver of 35mm negative film

[Ron Z]

hmmm. In 50 years of using fountain pens, and nearly 3 decades of repairing them, I've never needed to floss a nib for maintenance. Once, with a recalcitrant nib after restoring to get the pen writing, is usually enough.

 

Lifting and separating the tines to force material through the slit opens you to the risk of knocking the tines out of alignment, and nicking the inside of the slit if the wrong tool is used. I wouldn't use anything wider than 0.002" thick. For maintenance cleaning and flushing with a pen flush then clear water, or a cycle through an ultrasonic is sufficient, though I wouldn't use an ultrasonic on a regular basis with a Sheaffer inlaid nib.

[surprise123]

Curious how this works without removing the nib.

 

Generally one doesn't remove the nib and feed for cleaning.

 

I don't.

[surprise123]

I guess I'm just more OCD than everyone else, but a bit of paper fiber underneath the tines ticks me off. I guess I didn't phrase it right, I was saying I flossed in that area where the nib ends and the feed starts. I loop the dental floss and push out the crud, then wipe the pen a little. That's all.

[langere]

Yes, gentle maintenance is best. Just flush pen with water after using up the ink.

 

Erick

[crescentfiller]

hmmm. In 50 years of using fountain pens, and nearly 3 decades of repairing them, I've never needed to floss a nib for maintenance. Once, with a recalcitrant nib after restoring to get the pen writing, is usually enough.

 

Lifting and separating the tines to force material through the slit opens you to the risk of knocking the tines out of alignment, and nicking the inside of the slit if the wrong tool is used. I wouldn't use anything wider than 0.002" thick. For maintenance cleaning and flushing with a pen flush then clear water, or a cycle through an ultrasonic is sufficient, though I wouldn't use an ultrasonic on a regular basis with a Sheaffer inlaid nib.

 

 

 

I agree with Ron. And, I'm not at all convinced that the frequent, or even repeated use of an ultrasonic is advisable. Simply put, we don't know enough about long-term effects of doing so. And, more simply, it is not necessary. If your pens are getting that cruddy, then you're doing something wrong. This plague of OCD (Obsessive Cleaning Disorder), the endless soaking, disassembly/reassembly, polishing, flossing, and sonicating all come at a price. I doubt that many of these vintage pens would be around and usable today if this OCD had been practiced during the entire life of these pens.

 

Be gentle. Do no harm. And remember: it's a fountain pen and not a surgical instrument!

 

Happy Writing!

[TheDutchGuy]

Well said!