What is on your bench?

[LoveBigPensAndCannotLie]

I am at my wits' end with pen repairs. Every one goes worse than the last, and I'm starting to think I should get into crocheting instead or something. I got a short size Doric, okay condition. Cleaned out everything, resaced it. Barely (bleep) fills.

 

The issue is that the stupid track piece at the end of the barrel that the pressure bar is supposed to slide against, it's not sliding down properly. When I pull the lever, it only depresses a very small part of the sac, meaning barely any ink gets in. I don't know if the back of the pen is deformed, it had some crazy gunk on it which I mostly removed.

 

How do I get this pressure bar out of the pen so I can either widen that track piece or failing that, throw it in the trash? In my experience, I'm roughly two days off from completely breaking this pen in frustration, so I sure do hope I can fix it instead.

 

Edit: I give up. This pen beat me. For the sake of my sanity and the sake of this pen, I'm leaving it as is. It fills at probably 50% of its capacity (and I'm being optimistic here) but filling 50% is better than filling 0% after I break it trying to fix it.

[es9]

13 hours ago, Paul-in-SF said:

I finally got around to working on this some more. I could not blow through the feed at all. I had tried to clean out the hole into which the tube had been inserted, so maybe I messed something up there. The mystery to me was that I could not see any exit into the feed for the ink that would be coming in through the tube. When I could not blow through it either, I basically gave up on that feed. I have since replaced it with a Vacumatic feed from Pentooling -- it was the right shape and about the right diameter, but too long, so I sawed off the extra length on the back, popped the tube back in, and tried it out. It is now writing with a very wet line, and rather broader than I usually like. I may pour more money down this hole by having a nibmeister make a finer point and try to stem the flow a little. In any case, I consider that part of the pen fixed. 

 

The other problem I had was the nib drying out very quickly due to the lack of sealing in the inner cap against air getting in. I ran water through it, and it dripped quite steadily until the water was gone. I tried a couple of things, but nothing seemed to help, the gaps were too big. I would not do this to anyone else's pen, but since it is mine, I took the liberty of removing the clip (which in the process I broke off from its anchor in the cap) and filled in the top space that was revealed there with thread sealant. I heated it up a little and let it flow down and fill everything evenly and then harden to a smooth shell, under the actual surface of the cap. The cap is now very well sealed. If I can figure out a way to put the clip back on (it curves over the top of the cap) so that it will stay, I will consider that to be done. I don't mind using it without a clip, but it looks a little naked. If I had a tiny jeweler's drill, I would consider popping a couple of tiny brass screws into it and into the plastic of the cap, but I don't. 

I’d personally try a few things before resorting to a nibmeister, especially considering the value of the pen and the fact that you haven’t been able to open it yet. Have you heat-set the feed? Have you checked the tine spacing? 

[Paul-in-SF]

5 hours ago, es9 said:

Have you heat-set the feed? Have you checked the tine spacing? 

Thanks for the suggestions.

 

I have not heat-set the feed. I've usually heard that advice for lack of ink flow (because the feed is too far from the nib), not for excess of ink flow -- does heat-setting the feed help with being too wet? How does that work?

 

The tine spacing per se is fine, but the tipping on one side is narrower than the other and it makes an extra gap at the tip; I don't know what effect that is having. Looking at it, I wonder if it wasn't ground once as a left oblique or something, but it's been messed about with so I can't really tell. 

 

Anyway, I wouldn't be sending it off to a nibmeister, I would wait for the next pen show and take it there. 

 

5 hours ago, es9 said:

the fact that you haven’t been able to open it yet.

I haven't tried to open it yet, because I don't need to -- the filling system is working. I am (very) curious about how it works, but I'm not willing to risk opening it up just to scratch that itch. Sorry if that wasn't clear. 

[Nightjar]

On 5/26/2025 at 5:32 AM, LoveBigPensAndCannotLie said:

... filling 50% is better than filling 0% after I break it trying to fix it.

 

🤣💯

[Nightjar]

FIXED A BROKEN FEED

 

I broke a Blackbird feed, the older spoon type 😫 [I bought a nibless pen with the feed, I was going to fit a nib… I snapped the feed while tapping it out, basically because I was using a crudely constructed wooden nib block, with drilled hole neither the right diameter nor the right depth. What a total idiot!]

 

Anyway, I set out to fix it, and much to my surprise it appears to have worked. Long story short: drilled two holes into each piece of the feed, made wire pins extending into each piece, glued the pins in and assisted the join with Loctite 480. Strong enough to withstand tapping-in to section and nib placement, and in use the join is well protected by section tight around it.

 

Full details below, in case of use to anyone in future.

 

I like repairing parts, as opposed to buying replacement parts, which often seem to be costly or very hard to find, and unnecessary cannibalisation seems a pity.

 

***

 

The very long version...

 

I drilled two holes on each side of the break (jeweller’s Archimidean hand drill, bit diameter 0.7mm). Because of irregular “craggy” break surfaces, it was very hard to precisely start the holes and precisely align the holes in each piece of the feed: so I sort of eyeballed it. I then used 0.7mm nickel wire, which is thinner than the hole created by a 0.7mm bit, so loose-fitting; each piece was about 8mm length, creating a pin extending about 4mm into each side. Because the holes on each side were not precisely aligned, I glued the pins in to one piece, then bent and tinkered to get reasonable fit into the holes in the other piece. [In other circumstances it would be good to use tight-fitting wire that can be tapped in, which would be stronger than loose-fitting (i.e. tap pins in to one side, then tap the other piece onto the pins): but in this case, given that it wasn’t possible to precisely align holes, this wasn’t really an option.] I then glued it all together with an unsightly excess of Loctite 480, making sure that there was lots of glue in the holes. The result is ungainly, but fortunately a) my eyeballing appears to have been sufficiently accurate, b) the ugly bits are hidden in use, c) the stress on the feed during tapping-in is longitudinal, not across the join, and d) the join is very tightly supported once inside the section. I’m not sure how strong it is, evidently the fix wouldn’t resist much lateral bending; but then, neither would the undamaged part. It’s certainly strong enough to have survived tapping into section and nib placement (about 10 attempts, it was tricky), and I think it's strong enough (supported by section tight around it) to withstand normal use. And the feed works fine, i.e. the pen writes well, it hasn’t messed up flow properties.

 

I know that no adhesive (Loctite 480 or whatever) is going to work with hard rubber, not even when unstressed, let alone when the join will be under stress. But hybrid solutions using Loctite 480 and metal pins (or similar mechanical device, depending on the nature of the problem) can perhaps sometimes work. [Mechanical-only solution was not possible in this case because not possible to precisely align the holes; at least, I couldn’t see a way to achieve this.] My fix may of course degrade and cause problems over time, ask me in 3 years!

 

I guess other possible solutions here would be hand-forming a new feed from ebonite (but that would be very very difficult, it's an intricate shape), or 3D printing in some material that works functionally and aesthetically. 

 

 

[FarmBoy]

Nib is too far out on the feed. Also looks like the feed is too deep in the section. 

[VacNut]

I applaud your DIY. 👏👏👏

 

I have to say this method is reminiscent of “surprise” repair techniques that collectors on this forum have uncovered in restoring vintage pens.
 

Just my opinion, but I think there is an ongoing myth that there is a shortage of repair parts for common pens. One certainly cannot order parts from a popular on-line retailer and expect next day delivery,  but I don’t think there is a shortage of parts from donor pens (Yes, there are pens which should only be considered donor pens. Whether a pen should be restored is the decision of the pen’s owner). There are very hard to find parts, but they tend to correspond with hard to find pens. (I speculate there are conservatively still several hundred thousand Vacumatics available as donor pens).

 

Many of the vintage pen restorations we discuss on this forum are about pens that have not been touched in 30-40 years, if not longer. These pens were not restored or were already damaged before they were tucked away in a drawer to be discovered by heirs a generation later.  With the internet, collectors are now also able to buy these pens from across the world. More are now available to a wider amateur audience.  The collectors of these pens expect to buy just the needed replacement parts from a “parts warehouse” - let me know if you find one of those, rather than source a donor pen from antique shows, pen shows, estate sales, or weekend flea markets. We hear more about these pens because they can more easily acquired by average collectors who can communicate their need across a broader spectrum.
 

I speculate replacement parts are actually easier to find than in the past, as they are being disseminated across more amateur collectors. Professional technicians find it more difficult to find donor pens at a low price.

 

A collector may decide not to pay the cost of the part and postage given the value of the pen, but this does not necessarily correlate to the availability of replacement parts. IMHO.

 

[FarmBoy]

There are a lot of parts that are mostly postage. 

[Nightjar]

@FarmBoy "Also looks like the feed is too deep in the section." Yes you're correct, I realised that already and will fix it.

 

@VacNut "I have to say this method is reminiscent of “surprise” repair techniques that collectors on this forum have uncovered in restoring vintage pens." Haha. Though if I were to sell this pen (not my current plan), I would make the repair clear.

 

If you did discover this particular repair, would it be a problem? It works functionally and aesthetically (the visible bits, anyway). And given protected location in section, and the primary dependence on pins not cyanoacrylate, I suspect it will probably be durable. The only issue as far as I can see is that it uses metal pins and cyanoacrylate, which is an unconventional technique (?"DIY"). But it could reasonably be argued that it's more "original" and museum-sense "conservative" than a replacement part from another pen.

 

@VacNut "I think there is an ongoing myth that there is a shortage of repair parts for common pens." Perhaps you're right. But I'm not sure it's easy to find this feed at a sensible price, as with various other parts that are missing/broken on other pens in my drawer.

 

But certainly, if I do this sort of thing again, I need to work out a way of drilling with greater precision, and of applying the adhesive without unsightly excess!

 

 

 

 

[VacNut]

12 hours ago, Nightjar said:

But I'm not sure it's easy to find this feed at a sensible price, as with various other parts that are missing/broken on other pens in my drawer

Like many collectors, I do not like to leave repairs unfinished. If I was doing this repair and was more patient, I could very easily find the feed at a pen show parts bin for a low price. Swan and Mabie Todd parts are simple to find. It is also likely I could find a substitute feed that would work on the pen. My problem is having the patience of digging thru the bins to find the part. I have learned it is best to have the pen and check for fit when finding replacement parts.

 

I do not know what would be a sensible price for a Blackbird donor pen, but $5 would be a fair price without a nib IMHO. You will likely also get a cap, clip, and barrel.

 

I still like the DIY!!!👏👏👏

[VacNut]

Reputable and conscientious suppliers will not want to resend parts that have been lost in the mail. So even though the parts will fit inside an envelope, the preferred method of postage is USPS Priority Mail in a box, hence the higher postage rate.

[VacNut]

 

I needed a replacement lever. The Pen Guy ask me what size?

😆😆😆

[LoveBigPensAndCannotLie]

Just picked up a UK Duofold, one of the very late aerometric ones. The sac has the usual small breather tube in it, but it also has a long metal spacer bar. Is this supposed to be here?

 

 

I am assuming it's there to keep the sac upright but I haven't worked on one of these before.

[VacNut]

Interesting…does it fill as-is?

[LoveBigPensAndCannotLie]

Yeah, it fills fine. The sac protector is really loose which is strange but not having any issues flushing it out. 

[VacNut]

I don’t have an English duofold handy, but something looks missing. Was there a partial alum or sheet metal sleeve around the sac? It fills by unscrewing the barrel and depressing the sac, correct?

[VacNut]

6 hours ago, LoveBigPensAndCannotLie said:

Just picked up a UK Duofold, one of the very late aerometric ones. The sac has the usual small breather tube in it, but it also has a long metal spacer bar. Is this supposed to be here?

 

 

I am assuming it's there to keep the sac upright but I haven't worked on one of these before.

Is that a bar or a filling tube?
 

 

[LoveBigPensAndCannotLie]

2 minutes ago, VacNut said:

I don’t have an English duofold handy, but something looks missing. Was there a partial alum or sheet metal sleeve around the sac? It fills by unscrewing the barrel and depressing the sac, correct?

 

Yeah, I took that off for the picture. It's there, I have it. And to answer your other question, it's a bar, not a tube. The smaller dark bit is the filling tube.

[VacNut]

I also needed a Vac Filler. Restorer said pick one…

[Nightjar]

@VacNut many thanks for this reply, I will take the pen to next available pen show, see if I can find a feed!