How Do I Clean My Esterbrook Eight Ball?

[wvbeetlebug]

I have two Estie desk sets. On both of them, the pens are always inked and ready to go. One of them however the pen is often hard to start without a bit of coaxing. I typically have to wet a tissue and wipe down the nib to get it going. The other starts up just fine. Even after a week of non-use.

 

So what is going on here? Is there some sort of seal inside that prevents the nib from drying out? I have never cleaned the inside as I am not sure how to do this.

[corgicoupe]

Are you sure it's not an issue with the nib? First step would be to swap the pens in the two holders to eliminate this possibility. No seal that I can see, but you could have some dried ink in there. It's a simple tapered cylinder. Scrub it with a Qtip.

[wvbeetlebug]

Thanks for the quick reply. Never thought to try the obvious and switch the pens out.

[corgicoupe]

Please report back. I have taken one of my 8-balls apart, but there's not much there.

[wvbeetlebug]

Sorry for the late reply. So I ended up cleaning out the little well with a damp Qtip until it finally came out clean. I am pretty certain it had never been done. I took a look at the other desk set and noticed that the little well in that desk set has little ridges in it. There was another post about this somewhere on this board but I can't find it now. I haven't had a chance to swap the pens but I will say that the desk set that I have issues with drying out is the one WITHOUT those ridges in the well. This desk set also has the little piece where the pen would've been chained to the ball. My guess is that this is not the correct pen for the ball.

 

So now I need to find a pen that is appropriate for this desk set.

 

I will definitely keep you posted.