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Changing Ink In Con-70

davidtaylorjr

By davidtaylorjr
in Fountain & Dip Pens - First Stop

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davidtaylorjr Mint

davidtaylorjr

Posted
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Does anyone have any good suggestions on getting ink out of a Con-70 Converter in order to try a different ink?

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A Smug Dill Museum Piece

A Smug Dill

Posted
Posted

My procedure is:

  • Flush converter by cycling with (lukewarm, or room-temperature) water while attached to the nib.
  • Detach from nib and squirt a pressurised jet of water into the converter using something like a blunt syringe or small rubber bulb (used for ear canal irrigation).
  • Reattach to nib, then immerse the assembly into my temperature-controlled ultrasonic cleaning tank filled with a very dilute solution of ammonia and dishwashing detergent, and fill the converter through the nib. Soak and clean for a three-, four- or five-minute cycle.
  • Repeat step 2.
  • Repeat step 1.
  • Dry nib and converter separately, first removing larger droplets by centrifugal force — as in holding them firmly in my hand, with the 'nipple' of the feed and the mouth of the converter both facing away from me, then swinging my arm in a wide arc with a rapid whipping motion — then resting the nib gently, tip-down on a soft paper towel to draw the remaining moisture out from the feed by capillary action while the converter airs.

I endeavour to be frank and truthful in what I write, show or otherwise present, when I relate my first-hand experiences that are not independently verifiable; and link to third-party content where I can, when I make a claim or refute a statement of fact in a thread. If there is something you can verify for yourself, I entreat you to do so, and judge for yourself what is right, correct, and valid. I may be wrong, and my position or say-so is no more authoritative and carries no more weight than anyone else's here.

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Honeybadgers Donor Pen

Honeybadgers

Posted
Posted (edited)

get a syringe. You will thank me later. that metal "rod" inside the con-70 is actually a tube, and that's where all the "extra" ink that keeps them perpetually dirty comes from. A syringe squirting water through that tube will flush the converter out completely in 5 seconds.

Edited by Honeybadgers

Selling a boatload of restored, fairly rare, vintage Japanese gold nib pens, click here to see (more added as I finish restoring them)

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r3nekton NOS (New Old Stock)

r3nekton

Posted
Posted

...I feel like we're using very different converters. I have a Custom 74 with the Con-70 converter, and change ink colours in it frequently (maybe three times a month), all inks I've used in many other pens so I know what the colour should look like, and using colours such as yellow immediately after dark blues, for instance, where it would be obvious that there is contamination.

 

I flush the converter four times with water while the nib unit is attached, then let it dry. That's all.

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A Smug Dill Museum Piece

A Smug Dill

Posted
Posted (edited)

...I feel like we're using very different converters. I have a Custom 74 with the Con-70 converter,

 

It wasn't so easy to clean Diamine Iridescink Robert and Diamine Presidential Blue completely out of mine.

Edited by A Smug Dill

I endeavour to be frank and truthful in what I write, show or otherwise present, when I relate my first-hand experiences that are not independently verifiable; and link to third-party content where I can, when I make a claim or refute a statement of fact in a thread. If there is something you can verify for yourself, I entreat you to do so, and judge for yourself what is right, correct, and valid. I may be wrong, and my position or say-so is no more authoritative and carries no more weight than anyone else's here.

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sirgilbert357 Antique

sirgilbert357

Posted
Posted (edited)

My procedure is:

  • Flush converter by cycling with (lukewarm, or room-temperature) water while attached to the nib.
  • Detach from nib and squirt a pressurised jet of water into the converter using something like a blunt syringe or small rubber bulb (used for ear canal irrigation).
  • Reattach to nib, then immerse the assembly into my temperature-controlled ultrasonic cleaning tank filled with a very dilute solution of ammonia and dishwashing detergent, and fill the converter through the nib. Soak and clean for a three-, four- or five-minute cycle.
  • Repeat step 2.
  • Repeat step 1.
  • Dry nib and converter separately, first removing larger droplets by centrifugal force as in holding them firmly in my hand, with the 'nipple' of the feed and the mouth of the converter both facing away from me, then swinging my arm in a wide arc with a rapid whipping motion then resting the nib gently, tip-down on a soft paper towel to draw the remaining moisture out from the feed by capillary action while the converter airs.
+1

 

This is my procedure almost exactly except I lack an ultrasonic cleaner.

Edited by sirgilbert357
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sirgilbert357 Antique

sirgilbert357

Posted
Posted

...I feel like we're using very different converters. I have a Custom 74 with the Con-70 converter, and change ink colours in it frequently (maybe three times a month), all inks I've used in many other pens so I know what the colour should look like, and using colours such as yellow immediately after dark blues, for instance, where it would be obvious that there is contamination.

 

I flush the converter four times with water while the nib unit is attached, then let it dry. That's all.

Some inks clean easier than others. I've also had pens that seem perfectly clean after flushing give up LOADS more color as I use the "centrifugal force into a paper towel" flinging technique.

 

And usually if you fill a pen with water after fully cleaning it, and put it nib down in a tall shot glass with paper towels folded up in the bottom of it, you can detect a slight color to the paper towel later.

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A Smug Dill Museum Piece

A Smug Dill

Posted
Posted

I've also had pens that seem perfectly clean after flushing give up LOADS more color as I use the "centrifugal force into a paper towel" flinging technique.

 

 

I made that mistake with a 'cleaned' CON-70 converter once and neglected to wrap it up in a paper towel first.

 

Luckily, I was doing the flinging in a shower cubicle. The glossy white tiles don't lie.

I endeavour to be frank and truthful in what I write, show or otherwise present, when I relate my first-hand experiences that are not independently verifiable; and link to third-party content where I can, when I make a claim or refute a statement of fact in a thread. If there is something you can verify for yourself, I entreat you to do so, and judge for yourself what is right, correct, and valid. I may be wrong, and my position or say-so is no more authoritative and carries no more weight than anyone else's here.

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sirgilbert357 Antique

sirgilbert357

Posted
Posted (edited)

 

 

I made that mistake with a 'cleaned' CON-70 converter once and neglected to wrap it up in a paper towel first.

 

Luckily, I was doing the flinging in a shower cubicle. The glossy white tiles don't lie.

LOL, no they don't! I swear I've almost stained one of our white porcelain sinks cleaning pens. I now do it all in the kitchen at the stainless steel sink. Edited by sirgilbert357
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Mongoosey Extremely Rare

Mongoosey

Posted
Posted (edited)

I just cleaned my con70 this morning.

 

I use two tiny screwdrivers, the way the paper clip is used in the video below, to open up the converter completely. Once you do the first time it's easier to disassemble completely:

 

 

If you don't disassemble it this way, the left over ink in that upper section will always get into the ink in the converter.

 

EDIT: You gotta be careful though because you can bend the metal rod of the agitator. I ruined a con70 rushing this process and I bent that metal rod : (

Edited by Mongoosey
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Honeybadgers Donor Pen

Honeybadgers

Posted
Posted (edited)

Seriously - just use a syringe and squirt it straight into the middle of the metal tube in the center of the converter. It cleans out completely, instantly.

 

Do I need to post a video? It's really, really simple. You don't need to ever disassemble a CON-70 unless it's gotten insanely stiff and needs lubrication (none of my 70's have become stiff yet)

Edited by Honeybadgers

Selling a boatload of restored, fairly rare, vintage Japanese gold nib pens, click here to see (more added as I finish restoring them)

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