how to open this pen. Aurora 88

[Maarten73]

Hi,

I found this pen, and I would like to use it. I have a few questions.
How do I fill it with ink? I can turn the back part around so a cilinder inside slides up and down.
Should I be able to screw the front top off? It is completely stuck.

 

 

 

[mizgeorge]

It's a piston filler. Screw the knob at the bottom to 'open' and then turn it back to fill via the nib. You shouldn't ever have any need to separate the section from the barrel unless there's a problem.

 

Flush it through with water a few times first to clear any old ink and ensure that the mechanism is watertight - it might need a bit of a soak to remove any deposits. Give it a bit of a clean up too!

 

These are legendary pens - the nibs are fantastic - with a little feedback and often a bit of flex too. They are super comfortable to use, even after 50 or 60 years. I love mine.

 

If you can read the serial number, do add it to the list here: 

 

Enjoy your Aurora - that was a nice find

 

(and welcome to FPN!)

[Maarten73]

Hi Thanks,
Can I just dip the tip in a pot of ink?
The serial number is 364834

Groeten,
Maarten

[Karmachanic]

First thing I would do is to put it nib down in a glass with water up to the section, and leave it that way for several hours. If it leaches ink, change the water and repeat as required, until the water remains clear. Then try using the piston to flush. Once it's clean; fill with ink (from a bottle).

[Maarten73]

thank you, that's what I will do.

Groet,

Maarten

[Nethermark]

I may already be too late, but do not soak the pen in water! The section of your pen is made of hard rubber. Judging by the color, it has already deteriorated, and you risk making it worse by soaking in water.

 

Use some dry heat (hairdryer) and heat the pen just behind the metal ring. Don't overheat, as that may damage the plastic. After heating up, you should be able to remove the section rather easily. If not, heat a bit more, etc. Now you can flush the pen out, but again, make sure you don't get too much water on the outside of the section. You should also clean out the barrel as much as possible. Then reassemble the pen and see whether you can get water into the pen by turning the piston knob on the end of the barrel. If it does, you're basically finished and can enjoy the pen!

 

However, I often find the piston seals of these pens have deteriorated and need to be replaced or that the piston head itself has crumbled. In that case, you will need some more help. So please tell us how your project is going!

 

Veel succes!

[sansenri]

if the piston turns and the pen fills (yes you dip it in a bottle of ink, turn the knob and fill it as a normal piston filler...) there is no need to dismantle the section. Actually I don't advise you to do it if you don't know what you are doing....

That is a vintage Aurora 88 first version, and as you've been told the section is made of ebonite, which might not be in best shape due to age. So if it works, leave it alone.

If the piston does not fill, then you will be forced to dismantle the section to change the piston stopper, but only in such unfortunate event.

If the piston is stuck, probably by dried ink, dipping the section in water for a limited time should not harm it too much. You could also attempt feeding the nib with water with an eye dropper so the section does not get too wet...

[BamaPen]

A friend of mine who is an Aurora 88 aficionado, repaired my 88k. The process for an original 88 should be the same. He carefully documented how to take the pen apart, the repairs he did, and how to reassemble it. That document is in this post on my blog site:

 

https://cigarboxpenstorage.wordpress.com/2017/02/16/my-aurora-88k/

 

John 

[como]

On 3/19/2021 at 6:54 PM, Nethermark said:

I may already be too late, but do not soak the pen in water! The section of your pen is made of hard rubber. Judging by the color, it has already deteriorated, and you risk making it worse by soaking in water.

+1. The damage you can do to vintage ebonite by soaking or even rinsing is much quicker than trying to restore the ebonite, which might not even be possible, depending on the degree of the oxidisation, chemical composition (how well it can react to de-oxidizer). 

[Aysedasi]

13 hours ago, BamaPen said:

A friend of mine who is an Aurora 88 aficionado, repaired my 88k. The process for an original 88 should be the same. He carefully documented how to take the pen apart, the repairs he did, and how to reassemble it. That document is in this post on my blog site:

 

https://cigarboxpenstorage.wordpress.com/2017/02/16/my-aurora-88k/

 

John 

 

The document is really useful, I used it (along with advice from Praxim) to put a new piston seal in my 88 Aquila a couple of years ago.    

[Karmachanic]

 

 

[Maarten73]

On 3/21/2021 at 1:46 AM, BamaPen said:

A friend of mine who is an Aurora 88 aficionado, repaired my 88k. The process for an original 88 should be the same. He carefully documented how to take the pen apart, the repairs he did, and how to reassemble it. That document is in this post on my blog site:

 

https://cigarboxpenstorage.wordpress.com/2017/02/16/my-aurora-88k/

 

John 

Woow that is really cool, All those little perfect details. I love it.

[Maarten73]

This is what I did:
I Have not soaked the nib for hours.  I have flushed the pen with demineralised water by turning the knob.

I could already write with the mixture of water and old ink.

I have bought a bottle of Aurora ink, filled it and it works fine. 🙂

 

thanks a lot for all the advise.