Syringe blunt needle for cartridge refills

[A Smug Dill]

18 minutes ago, kavanagh said:

I would love to try some of those Blackstone Inks from Australia

 

I'm afraid Blackstone Ink as an ink manufacturer is, as far as anyone (including former stockists on different continents) is aware, out of business. You may still be able to find the last of old stock from this retailer or that if you look hard enough, but I don't think you'll be able to try a selection of colours of your choice.

[kavanagh]

5 minutes ago, A Smug Dill said:

 

I'm afraid Blackstone Ink as an ink manufacturer is, as far as anyone (including former stockists on different continents) is aware, out of business. You may still be able to find the last of old stock from this retailer or that if you look hard enough, but I don't think you'll be able to try a selection of colours of your choice.

Thanks for letting me know.
Just saw the review of that Blackstone ‘Barrier Reef’ blue here:

https://www.mountainofink.com/blog/blackstone-barrier-reef-blue

I’ve ordered the syringes and can not wait to experiment by diluting with distilled water

[Daosus]

Since no one's mentioned it yet, I've been using fountain pens about 15 years and have yet to contaminate a bottle using a syringe.  After you're done filling the cartridge, dump the rest of the ink back in the bottle and then suck up some water and expel it into the sink.  Repeat the flushing until the water runs clear. 

[Karmachanic]

14 hours ago, kavanagh said:

I would love to try some of those Blackstone Inks

 

https://fountainfeder.de/Inks-Refills/Bottles/Blackstone/

 

[kavanagh]

7 hours ago, Daosus said:

Since no one's mentioned it yet, I've been using fountain pens about 15 years and have yet to contaminate a bottle using a syringe.  After you're done filling the cartridge, dump the rest of the ink back in the bottle and then suck up some water and expel it into the sink.  Repeat the flushing until the water runs clear. 

Daosus, thanks will use that technique.

 

7 hours ago, Karmachanic said:

 

https://fountainfeder.de/Inks-Refills/Bottles/Blackstone/

 

Karmachanic, thanks for the link. 

[sansenri]

On 2/24/2021 at 10:55 PM, kavanagh said:

Ruth, to blunt the end of a syringe with a sharpening stone is dedication to the cause!. Thank you. 

 

Ron Z, will do - Karmachanic sent me a useful link.

 

 

Would it still be worth investing in an empty ink bottle, and take the batch of ink from that for the cartridges ? - I don’t want to contaminate or introduce flora in to the original ink bottle as it could encourage mould growth. 

 

Well, honestly I've never been concerned about contamination with filling ink from the bottle with a pen, let alone with a syringe.

With a syringe it's in any case much easier to prevent that, just wipe the needle in methylated spirit before dipping it in the ink.

 

[sansenri]

On 2/26/2021 at 2:03 AM, Daosus said:

Since no one's mentioned it yet, I've been using fountain pens about 15 years and have yet to contaminate a bottle using a syringe.  After you're done filling the cartridge, dump the rest of the ink back in the bottle and then suck up some water and expel it into the sink.  Repeat the flushing until the water runs clear. 

I do that too, moreover, if you have a metered syringe you can fill it to the quantity sufficient to fill the cartridge so that you don't need to empty the excess in the ink bottle (a potential risk of contamination).

 

If you fill the cartridge with water with the syringe, empty the syringe and then suck back the water in the syringe, you measure the exact quantity needed to fill it...

[Paganini]

Just to add a data point, I use 3ml blunt-tip dispensing syringes, filled from the bottle, and rinsed with water, as others have described. I get mine from Amazon, where there are a myriad of sellers offering these things.

 

One thing about this is that the rubber plungers do wear out and get sticky after a while. This is not really a problem, because they are cheap, and it takes a while; I bought a ten-pack about 2 years ago and still haven't gone through all of them - but I don't fill pens every day the way some people need to. 

 

The reason I bring it up is that you can buy the syringes *without* the needles in boxes of 100 for around $10 - $15. The needles have a screw-on attachment thing, so when a syringe wears out, you can take your needle off and just put it on the next syringe. That way you won't be throwing out a perfectly good steel needle every time your rubber plunger wears out. 

[kavanagh]

9 hours ago, sansenri said:

I do that too, moreover, if you have a metered syringe you can fill it to the quantity sufficient to fill the cartridge so that you don't need to empty the excess in the ink bottle (a potential risk of contamination).

 

If you fill the cartridge with water with the syringe, empty the syringe and then suck back the water in the syringe, you measure the exact quantity needed to fill it...

Sansenri - great idea, thank you

 

8 hours ago, Paganini said:

Just to add a data point, I use 3ml blunt-tip dispensing syringes, filled from the bottle, and rinsed with water, as others have described. I get mine from Amazon, where there are a myriad of sellers offering these things.

 

One thing about this is that the rubber plungers do wear out and get sticky after a while. This is not really a problem, because they are cheap, and it takes a while; I bought a ten-pack about 2 years ago and still haven't gone through all of them - but I don't fill pens every day the way some people need to. 

 

The reason I bring it up is that you can buy the syringes *without* the needles in boxes of 100 for around $10 - $15. The needles have a screw-on attachment thing, so when a syringe wears out, you can take your needle off and just put it on the next syringe. That way you won't be throwing out a perfectly good steel needle every time your rubber plunger wears out. 

Paganini, I’ll give Amazon a try, thank you

[Daosus]

12 hours ago, sansenri said:

I do that too, moreover, if you have a metered syringe you can fill it to the quantity sufficient to fill the cartridge so that you don't need to empty the excess in the ink bottle (a potential risk of contamination).

 

If you fill the cartridge with water with the syringe, empty the syringe and then suck back the water in the syringe, you measure the exact quantity needed to fill it...

 

I totally agree that you can do that, and that it's even better than what I do.  I, however, am super lazy.  And, it hasn't bitten me in the behind yet, so I don't see reason for caution

[sansenri]

the only problem with filling cartridges with a syringe is the risk of making a mess!

I've done it properly hundreds of times... but the odd time you squirt in a drop too much does happen!

I've learned my lesson long ago and do it over the sink or over a plastic tray...

[Daosus]

I'm in the process of replacing a cabinet door that I tipped over a sample vial onto.