Pull, Push, Or Is It Twist? I'm So Confused

[MadAsAHatter]

I have a mix of pens with pull off caps and twist off caps. I keep finding myself doing the wrong thing trying to twist the pull offs and pull the twist offs; and I feel dumb every time. At least I'm gentle when taking off the cap so if I do it wrong I shouldn't do any damage. Does anyone else do this or is it just me?

[Violet.Ink]

It happens to me too with the Italian pens. For whatever reason I dont get confused with the German pens.

[taimdala]

Well, I guess the default action is to unscrew with a *gentle* push/pull.

If the cap is a push/pull, the unscrewing motion will not hinder pulling it off.

If the cap is a screw/unscrew, the gentle pull will not damage the threads.

 

The tricky bit here is knowing how strong a pull is needed to *start* a push/pull cap on its way off your pen WITHOUT going any stronger.

 

On a push/pull cap, the start threshold is generally all that's needed to get the cap off without further pushing.

Going beyond that threshold with a screw on/off cap might misalign or damage the screw threads.

 

I guess it's a matter of feeling as you go until you memorize which pen needs which method. For that to happen, you merely need to use your pen(s) often enough to retain the memory.

 

Then again, if you keep a record of your pens somewhere as to make and model, perhaps it would be helpful to note also the style of cap the individual pens have.

[Estycollector]

Had the '42 51 and late '40's Sheaffer today. It was funny how I caught myself trying to pull off the cap on the Sheaffer.

[Paul-in-SF]

I have one pen that has confused me, a Cross Peerless 125. It's a threaded cap, but when you post it, the cap clicks on and off the back with a positive connection. So when I un-post the cap and feel that click, my muscle memory kicks in and I try to push it on the front for a second before I remember to screw it on instead.

 

My solution with this pen is not to post it. I generally post by default because most of my pens are vintage, but this cap is so heavy it feels out of balance posted anyway, so not posting is best all around.

 

I have a couple of vintage Sheaffers with slip/clutch caps that I forget and end up unscrewing the barrel sometimes. But most of my vintage pens have threaded caps.

[praxim]

If I do not immediately remember the pen's operation then I start with a light clockwise twist. If it rotates then it is a pull cap, otherwise unscrew it. It becomes a habit. The one bayonet cap I just have to remember.

[JotterAddict62]

When in doubt unscrew the cap.

[A Smug Dill]

The one that I get wrong most of the time is the Lamy Accent, because most Lamy models I have — other than the Imporium — have snap caps, and the threaded part on the section is so narrow, it looks like a snap cap too. (It also clicks onto the other end of the pen when the cap is posted.)

If I do not immediately remember the pen's operation then I start with a light clockwise twist.

I'd probably have described the (un)screwing motion as counterclockwise, irrespective of which end of the pen the user's looking down.

[praxim]

I'd probably have described the (un)screwing motion as counterclockwise, irrespective of which end of the pen the user's looking down.

and you would be perfectly right, while missing my intention.

If the slight clockwise twist (tightening a screw thread) is resisted then it is a screw thread so must be unscrewed (counter-clockwise). If the cap or pen turns, pull it apart. Only a bayonet fitting confuses the issue.

 

The problem for me with starting with an unscrewing (as mentioned by another poster) rather than tightening action is that cap threads differ significantly in their pitch, so until one turns further one still does not know which it is. The Imporium you mentioned is an example of fine pitch.

[A Smug Dill]

and you would be perfectly right, while missing my intention.

_...‹snip›...

until one turns further one still does not know which it is. The Imporium you mentioned is an example of fine pitch.

Ah. Thank you for the explanation! Makes sense to me now.

[loganrah]

I hadn't thought about this until now, but I realise I've been unconsciously using an unscrewing motion when I uncap my snap caps. I much prefer screw caps so there aren't many of them anyway.

[ISW_Kaputnik]

If I stop and think for a second before uncapping, I generally remember which kind of cap it is. Well, my thought processes have been getting slower. Say five seconds.

 

I proceed gently enough that I'm unlikely to cause any damage before I catch myself. But the one snap cap pen that I have inked now, a Sheaffer School Pen, has a very tight cap, and it feels as if I have to pull hard enough to cause damage if it were threaded. Sometimes I don't wait those five seconds and start unscrewing it. Then the section comes out and I remember.