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How to make my Faber Castell Ambition wetter?


YGingras

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I love writing with my Ambition, but I feel like it's on the dry side, even with an M nib. I can force some ink out of the converter to fully saturate the feed and then it provides an incredibly satisfying writing experience. I'm wondering if I could adjust the feed to make it behave like that all the time. I know I can pull the feed and nib out, but I'm not sure how to reposition then in there to increase the ink flow. Any guidance from those who have walked this road in the past?

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12 minutes ago, YGingras said:

I love writing with my Ambition, but I feel like it's on the dry side, even with an M nib. I can force some ink out of the converter to fully saturate the feed and then it provides an incredibly satisfying writing experience. I'm wondering if I could adjust the feed to make it behave like that all the time. I know I can pull the feed and nib out, but I'm not sure how to reposition then in there to increase the ink flow. Any guidance from those who have walked this road in the past?

Well, to start....what ink are you using.
It could be that the ink you use is too dry for your pleasure.
Try an Iroshizuku ink...they are always my go-to for when I feel like my pen is too dry.
Load up a nice fill of "Kon-Peki", "Ama-Iro", "Shin-Ryoku" or "Tsukushi" and I'm back in juicy heaven.

Eat The Rich_SIG.jpg

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That's part of the equation for sure! I like Noodler's bulletproof inks, in particular, Noodler's Black, Brown #41, and Green Marine. All of those are on the dry side, hence my desire to teach my pen how to compensate for that.

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7 hours ago, YGingras said:

That's part of the equation for sure! I like Noodler's bulletproof inks, in particular, Noodler's Black, Brown #41, and Green Marine. All of those are on the dry side, hence my desire to teach my pen how to compensate for that.

Hmmm...well, considering you're not using an ebonite feed...there are not many options for you to make the experience "Wetter" outside of changing inks.
However, lets start with your desire for more tooth in your writing.
Do you have a "paper bag" on hand?
I would recommend doing a few figure-eights on the paper bag with your pen lightly.
Do 3...test how it writes on normal paper...if not satisfactory, do 3 more...test how it writes...and so on until you get the amount of tooth you desire.
Mind you...this is just a suggestion, I would still amass a collection of advice from various sources and choose which is the best before taking ANY action on your pen.
These actions can be costly to recover from...sometimes impossible...if you aren't satisfied with the outcome.

Eat The Rich_SIG.jpg

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7 hours ago, YGingras said:

I love writing with my Ambition, but I feel like it's on the dry side, even with an M nib. I can force some ink out of the converter to fully saturate the feed and then it provides an incredibly satisfying writing experience. I'm wondering if I could adjust the feed to make it behave like that all the time. I know I can pull the feed and nib out, but I'm not sure how to reposition then in there to increase the ink flow. Any guidance from those who have walked this road in the past?

As Detman101 already did, I would recommend to use a more 'wet' ink, such as deAtramentis, Rohrer & Klingner, Diamine, Ferris Wheel Press or Iroshizuku.

Many black inks and many waterproof inks tend to have high surface tension and a bit elevated viscosity. This combination of properties makes them perfect for writing and drawing on absorbent paper but causes sort of unsteady ink flow on high quality paper.

To my knowledge, using another ink may do way more than bending the nib tines (you may find some video guidelines) - and be aware: bending the nib is risky!

 

I use a F-C Ambition with M nib quite often. I'm sure, it is one of the best performing steel nibs I ever held in my hands.

One life!

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The F-C Ambition steel nib is exactly the same as the excellent steel nib in many different F-C models. I have a few and they are all great performers straight out of the box. Suggest the nib and feed doesn't play well with Noodler's ink.

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2 hours ago, Detman101 said:

Hmmm...well, considering you're not using an ebonite feed...there are not many options for you to make the experience "Wetter" outside of changing inks.
However, lets start with your desire for more tooth in your writing.
Do you have a "paper bag" on hand?
I would recommend doing a few figure-eights on the paper bag with your pen lightly.
Do 3...test how it writes on normal paper...if not satisfactory, do 3 more...test how it writes...and so on until you get the amount of tooth you desire.
Mind you...this is just a suggestion, I would still amass a collection of advice from various sources and choose which is the best before taking ANY action on your pen.
These actions can be costly to recover from...sometimes impossible...if you aren't satisfied with the outcome.

You seem to be making a recommendation to breaking at least two of Richard Binder's nib tuning commandments in this one paragraph. No brown paper bags and no figure eights. He says "no just no!"

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I would suggest you not touch the nib/feed because you seem to accept that your ink is dry. Try this: https://vanness1938.com/products/vanness-white-lightning-ink-additive?_pos=3&_sid=71c169321&_ss=r (no personal experience but they are a well respected retailer)


alternative methods: 

 

 

also: FOLLOW BINDER’S NIB TUNING COMMANDMENTS. (As listed by Dione) there is a reason so many people hold his work up as the standard to strive for. His reputation is, from all indications, extremely well earned.

Just give me the Parker 51s and nobody needs to get hurt.

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Thanks for all the great recommendations, everyone. I definitely do not want to do any permanent modifications to the pen, such as bending the tines. I was hopeful that changing how deep the feed is set into the pen would have a noticeable impact on the flow, but it does not seem to be the case, so I will focus on the ink, possibly probably by adulterating small batches with some of the recommendations in the thread shared by IThinkIHaveAProblem. In very last resort, if things like bending the tines can work, I might give it a shot on a #5 JoWo replacement nib, but I have no intention to touch the F-C one.

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1 hour ago, YGingras said:

I might give it a shot on a #5 JoWo replacement nib, but I have no intention to touch the F-C one.

 

Replacement nib units for the Ambition can be bought as a retail product anyway, and since Faber-Castell as a fountain pen brand is known for its consistently good steel nibs, you should be able to readily get a replacement/spare nib unit, decide whether that or the original is to be slated for surgery, and just work on one but preserve the other. It's not as if you're putting (the spend on) the entire pen at risk if you choose to fiddle with it, no matter who said what about dos and don'ts.

I endeavour to be frank and truthful in what I write, show or otherwise present, when I relate my first-hand experiences that are not independently verifiable; and link to third-party content where I can, when I make a claim or refute a statement of fact in a thread. If there is something you can verify for yourself, I entreat you to do so, and judge for yourself what is right, correct, and valid. I may be wrong, and my position or say-so is no more authoritative and carries no more weight than anyone else's here.

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10 hours ago, Dione said:

You seem to be making a recommendation to breaking at least two of Richard Binder's nib tuning commandments in this one paragraph. No brown paper bags and no figure eights. He says "no just no!"

Precisely why I recommended the OP get more than my opinion on the matter.
What works for me, may not work for anyone else...much less the sagelike "Richard Binders" that are revered here....

Eat The Rich_SIG.jpg

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16 hours ago, Detman101 said:

Do you have a "paper bag" on hand?
I would recommend doing a few figure-eights on the paper bag with your pen lightly.
Do 3...test how it writes on normal paper...if not satisfactory, do 3 more...test how it writes...and so on until you get the amount of tooth you desire.
Mind you...this is just a suggestion, I would still amass a collection of advice from various sources and choose which is the best before taking ANY action on your pen.
These actions can be costly to recover from...sometimes impossible...if you aren't satisfied with the outcome.

How Odd, I used the brown paper bag trick to smooth old nibs that sat in the dark of the drawer for two or three generations, having micro-corrosion or 'iridium' rust...drag), not to roughen up a nib, (not ever chasing butter smooth never thought of taking butter smooth down to good and smooth) back when I didn't know the three grit nail buffer was great for pens...

.Use the second roughest  half of the nail buffer for a couple passes, and the smooth side to smooth that up a bit to get rid of that Butter Smooth nib.:P

(So many insist on nibs smoother than butter.)

 

You can put your fingernails under the shoulders of the nib, if it has shoulders and pull slightly apart...try once before trying it two pulls. That spreads the tines a touch....care is needed, or you will be crossing the nib tips under each other to tighten up the slit.

 

Try slick paper like Rhoda 80g.........that helps a dry ink to flow more. Paper makes such a difference with inks, including the color shades.

Look at Sandy1's ink reviews, she used 4-5 regular pens, and 4-5 good to better papers, and often one can not believe it is the same ink.

 

To Me Japanese inks are very expensive....so check over in the ink section if diluting your ink makes them flow better.

My only dry semi-flex nib was cured by Waterman ink............other than that  pen, I've not had a problem.

 

How ever I want a dryer ink because I like two toned shading inks....not the vivid boring monotone supersaturated ink line.

In reference to P. T. Barnum; to advise for free is foolish, ........busybodies are ill liked by both factions.

 

 

The cheapest lessons are from those who learned expensive lessons. Ignorance is best for learning expensive lessons.

 

 

 

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48 minutes ago, Bo Bo Olson said:

How Odd, I used the brown paper bag trick to smooth old nibs that sat in the dark of the drawer for two or three generations, having micro-corrosion or 'iridium' rust...drag), not to roughen up a nib, (not ever chasing butter smooth never thought of taking butter smooth down to good and smooth) back when I didn't know the three grit nail buffer was great for pens...

.Use the second roughest  half of the nail buffer for a couple passes, and the smooth side to smooth that up a bit to get rid of that Butter Smooth nib.:P

(So many insist on nibs smoother than butter.)

 

You can put your fingernails under the shoulders of the nib, if it has shoulders and pull slightly apart...try once before trying it two pulls. That spreads the tines a touch....care is needed, or you will be crossing the nib tips under each other to tighten up the slit.

 

Try slick paper like Rhoda 80g.........that helps a dry ink to flow more. Paper makes such a difference with inks, including the color shades.

Look at Sandy1's ink reviews, she used 4-5 regular pens, and 4-5 good to better papers, and often one can not believe it is the same ink.

 

To Me Japanese inks are very expensive....so check over in the ink section if diluting your ink makes them flow better.

My only dry semi-flex nib was cured by Waterman ink............other than that  pen, I've not had a problem.

 

How ever I want a dryer ink because I like two toned shading inks....not the vivid boring monotone supersaturated ink line.


See OP, I told you the voice of experience would chime in with time!
Go with what Bo Bo Olson advises 😉

Eat The Rich_SIG.jpg

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I agree that it would be best trying alternative inks and papers before moving to nib tuning techniques which can be a bit hair-raising.  Be that as it may, a nib tines/feed adjustment can be liberating in that with good results, you will have a nib with good flow across inks and papers.  The likely required adjustment is either to increase the gap between the tines or the gap between nib and feed. 

 

Trying nib tuning techniques with cheaper nibs you don't mind ruining, is a good and logical idea/starting point.  However, I personally dove in, trying with steel nibs first.  I don't have any nibs that I don't mind ruining, but steel nibs aren't anywhere nearly as expensive as gold nibs and also, I ensured that I could find a replacement nib if needed. 

 

My latest fix was the nib on a Pelikan M605.  It is a M custom ground to a stub.  The darned thing wrote dryly.  I tried different inks with some improvement but I was never really satisfied, especially after switching to far better tuned nibs and then back to this one. 

 

Anyway, I eventually got great results by holding the nib, underbelly/feed up, then while 'hooking' a thumbnail between each nib shoulder and feed, pulled/levered outwards, watching as the tines separated a bit.  I repeated this a couple times and vuala.... great flow.  My best adjustment yet!! Now this is with a gold nib.  Haven't tried it with a steel nib, and I do suspect the positioning of the shoulders in relation to the slit is important for this method to work.  I briefly inspected a Waterman Hemisphere nib and the nib slit actually ends way before reaching the shoulders, while with the Pelikan, the slit ends well below/beyond the shoulders, making the Pelikan nib particularly suited to this method of tuning.  I couldn't budge the tines on the Waterman nib using this method.... no surprise! 

 

Here's a decent article description of the flow issue:

http://newpentrace.net/articleGA04.html

I have tried both methods described with success as well, but the method I used above (can't recall where I read it), worked particularly well with this M605 nib.  I thought it less finicky and moreso, no brass shim or acetate film required.  Just your fingers.

 

Finally, I first used a 10x loupe to inspect the nib, paying particular attention to the gap between the tines.  If there's no visible gap, then I know that separating the tines a bit, will help.

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Richard had access...and pushing the beauty shop buff stick wasn't pushed big time back in the day....not as such, just the for me hard to get micro mesh stuff. I actually had to order from Richard, to get some in Germany....I certainly was surprised that the kit had two or three buff sticks.

Ol'Griz a past poster and repair man, said figure 8's cause baby bottom.

 

Good Quality brown paper bags will Never give you butter smooth. The Only thing it does is remove drag from vintage nibs. Semi-vintage seems lesser rusted, so is not so needed on them.

How ever back in the day....good and smooth was the as far as I can tell from memory, was the normal nib.....butter smooth came in with the big and blobby over polished nibs...as far as I can tell.

What good does the good quality brown paper bag, which us relics well...............................Some young fella who only knew round plastic bag shopping, used a hairy brown paper bag, and had a fuzz problem, which was solved.

Youth don't have the half forgotten knowledge of good to poor paper bags.

A brown paper bag was cheap having 8 sides...good only for smoothing drag. However one learned

to rotate the nib at all times.

Making circles left and right, squiggles up and down, and left and right sideways became automatic.............it was all the space you needed.

One learned how to do that easily, so one could do that on a buff stick.......................How Ever, I highly suggest sheets of micro-mesh so you don't have to work so tiny.....and do the work on a pad of paper.

and lapping paper.....for the OCD Butter Smooth polisher.

 

Being lazy, I could bring a nib with drag up to good & smooth mostly with three 15 second sets of circles and squiggles on the good quality brown paper bag..............if one rotated the nib, it was very hard to damage a nib with a brown paper bag.

 

It is very easy to damage a nib with micro-mesh...What is Gone is Gone.

Once you have practiced on a regular piece of paper your rotation of the nib while drawing light, circles to both sides, and squiggles up-down and left-right and right left. You can move to smoothing for SECONDS on micro-mesh.

That removes drag from ancient pens.

To make butter smooth requires a loupe, and lots of fiddly time.

 

I being lazy and liking a tad of a touch of paper under my nib, do just good and smooth.

 

Butter smooth is great for P. poor paper, and or 100-50% cotton paper.

 

Any new Good pen is smooth enough. Some like the 400-1000 Pelikan are butter smooth, which is why some have baby bottom.

 

I can imagine the Chinese nibs are not that smooth.

 Do ask your self, do you need smoother than butter, slide on good slick paper.....or good and smooth which is controllable on good to better and slick paper.

 

I do realize paper is a wild jungle to the noobie....

Do not do as I did, pens first, then the inks and finally the paper.

Get a ream or box of good '90g and or (+)ream of laser paper or a 100 sheet box of good paper with every three inks you buy.

 

Writing is 1/3 nib width/flex, 1/3 paper and 1/3 ink, and in that order.

 

Yes, many grind at their nibs for years and centuries  or more minutes than I want to count, (eventually ending up with a butter smooth stub):rolleyes:, when buying better paper would/could be the cure.

 

I don't know US normal paper.....at Staples and Target or Home Office....get the Viet Nam paper over the once good Brazilian.

I have fun with Southworht good papers; bought at one of those three joints, a decade ago....but the decade before when I got to the States, I wasn't into fountain pens.... so needing nothing at all from them, being on vacation, never gave them a single thought.

Mohawk did make good to very good paper.

In reference to P. T. Barnum; to advise for free is foolish, ........busybodies are ill liked by both factions.

 

 

The cheapest lessons are from those who learned expensive lessons. Ignorance is best for learning expensive lessons.

 

 

 

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10 minutes ago, maclink said:

or the gap between nib and feed. 

I think that should be pretty tight to the feed....have once did the hot water trick, with pressing the nib tighter to an ebonite feed. Don't think that works good on plastic feeds.

 

But considering all the problems many folks have I've been very lucky with the mostly vintage and semi-vintage pens I've bought over the last 12 years...........and the few new pens I've bought work well.

 

Didn't consider removing drag on aged pens to be anything but normal....once I discovered her on the com it could be done.

 

12 years ago, the Brown Paper Bag trick was in big use on the Com....real Big....in none seemed to know of the ladies buffing stick.............many of us not being ladies and using steel files on our nails. :rolleyes:

In reference to P. T. Barnum; to advise for free is foolish, ........busybodies are ill liked by both factions.

 

 

The cheapest lessons are from those who learned expensive lessons. Ignorance is best for learning expensive lessons.

 

 

 

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On 6/13/2021 at 9:29 PM, YGingras said:

...... I know I can pull the feed and nib out, but I'm not sure how to reposition then in there to increase the ink flow. Any guidance from those who have walked this road in the past?

 

That's an interesting question.

 

Below is one example of a successful feed-shifting experiment that did increase the wetness of one of my pens.

Though the details are specific to a Sailor fude-nib pen, the general physics principles are valid for all fountain pens.

 

A pen feed serves at least three functions: 1) Mechanically its tight fit with the nib and housing/section holds all the parts together. 2) It channels ink from the ink chamber down to the tines of the nib. 3) It allows air to enter the ink chamber, and in combination with the surface tension properties of the ink it regulates that air, controlling the pressure in the ink chamber to be slightly below atmospheric pressure.

When you screw down the converter more ink flows to the nib because both 2) and 3) above have been manually altered.

 

My aim in this pen adjustment was to shift the feed to admit more air, without altering anything else in the functions 1) and 2).

 

Here is a Sailor feed, nib, and grip section.

 

large.IMG_0851-01.jpeg.997a459f5a52a3fe8930609536c856b4.jpeg

 

In this specific feed design air enters a wide open space under the feed fins, travels around the sides of the feed as the speech bubble in the image above, meets the ink fissure up at the top of the feed, and then passes through a wide passage on top of the ink fissure into the ink chamber.

large.IMG_0853-01.jpeg.2e04d56ff2d5e7d0c7f1178282544a86.jpeg

The rear tip of the feed is held inside a short tube in the grip section. In the photo above the rectangular rear opening where air bubbles form is clearly visible, and just below that larger opening the tiny ink fissure is also visible.

 

My idea was to shift the tail of the feed slightly sideways, inside the tube in the grip section, enlarging the space where air bubbles form. Possibly giving less "negative pressure" inside the ink chamber, and so increasing wetness. In this specific feed and section design that aim would require something pressing down on both nib and feed. (This plastic feed does have a little lateral flexibility.)

 

large.IMG_0854-01.jpeg.754d9f8e9d9b0a775e2c78a1a36c7a8a.jpeg

 

A thin soft shim on top of the nib could give the required result. Nib-to-feed fit is unaltered. Nothing is damaged, if the shim is soft and thin enough. So no reason not to give it a try....

After some searching the perfect shim was found to be a plastic coated aluminium peel-off sealing sheet on the top of a tin of Nescafe coffee! Easily flattened out by rubbing, and then cut to size with scissors.

 

The Sailor pen is now noticeably wetter. It still suffers from occasional ink starvation though - when the ink decides it wants to stay up at the back end of the converter, with just an empty air space down at the feed tail point.

 

But that's another different problem. 😭.

As long as there is ink at the bottom of the converter the shim-shift seems to have worked.

 

 

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Wow, @dipper! How ingenious. I actually have two nibs for my Ambition so I can pull the feed from the clean one and study the grooves to see if something like that would be applicable.

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Take a look at the YouTube video. "Faber-Castell Ambition a silent review".

 

The flow and wetness demonstrated in that video is impressive, especially with super fast scribbling - almost unreal!

 

Perhaps all you need do is try the ink used in the video?

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After I shut down my computer last night, I suddenly realized how very brilliant it was that someone found out the brown paper bag, was a solution to the too butter smooth nib problem.

 

Absolutely brilliant!!!:notworthy1:

 

Many noobies start off looking for butter smooth or better at all costs. Some after a year, decide there must be more to writing than too smooth to control easily.....and ask how to get out of butter smooth. (Especially once they discover the joys of slick paper.)

The brown paper bag, solves that problem, dirt cheap and super easy. B)

In reference to P. T. Barnum; to advise for free is foolish, ........busybodies are ill liked by both factions.

 

 

The cheapest lessons are from those who learned expensive lessons. Ignorance is best for learning expensive lessons.

 

 

 

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