Finned feeders for Indian eye dropper filled pens.

[HartGummi]

Has anybody tried using Kanwrite's plastic feeds to prevent burping? Gem & Co. are out of NN feeds so I am on the hunt for alternatives.

[Savit]

25 minutes ago, HartGummi said:

Has anybody tried using Kanwrite's plastic feeds to prevent burping? Gem & Co. are out of NN feeds so I am on the hunt for alternatives.

 

I do not experience burping in KW Desire when used as eyedropper.

 

[HartGummi]

1 hour ago, bestillmysoul said:

 

I do not experience burping in KW Desire when used as eyedropper.

 

I too have 2 Kanwrite Desires but their tanks are not as big as a Gama Supreme's. 

[HartGummi]

Update:

Kanwrite's Palstic feed is too narrow. The nib slips out of the section of a Gama Supreme when put in with a Kanwrite Desire plastic feed.

[cvk]

On 1/17/2022 at 1:15 PM, cvk said:

 

It is winter, and I am very happy to report that I can still write my Wality 69T dry after all these months. The Sheaffer NN feed is indeed an amazing thing. I think that all feeds should be designed that way. No burps, no leaks, large ink capacity regardless of the weather/temperature. It made an already very good pen into a great reliable, tension-free pen. Thanks for suggesting that @hari317 ! 

Just to follow up on my previous observations, a full year after using NN feeds in eyedropper pens, I can say that the burping is eliminated completely. There are no leaks or burps or skipping in any of the pens. Just consistent ink flow.

 

I recently got a Gama Eyas Eyedropper pen. It came with the regular simple ebonite feed  and in hot Chennai weather, there was no burping whatsoever. But in cooler climates, as the ink level dropped to about 30%, I was able to observe the ink overwhelm the feed and drip on to the paper. Instead of refilling the ink, I replaced the feeder thanks to advice from @hari317 just as before. And it has been more than 2 weeks since then (no refilling of ink was done in the meantime, so air in the barrel could have only increased) and I have not seen any more burps or leaks whatsoever, no matter the weather. I am very confident that I will be able to write the Gama Eyas pen dry.

 

Just reinforces my belief that the NN feed is a wonderful thing. It makes an Indian eyedropper pen burp free in any climate.  

 

Now I wonder if there are other similar feeds that I can use with my smaller eyedropper pens that take the No 5 and No 4 nibs (Eg. Ranga Cruiser and Camlin 36)

[hari317]

1 hour ago, cvk said:

Now I wonder if there are other similar feeds that I can use with my smaller eyedropper pens that take the No 5 and No 4 nibs (Eg. Ranga Cruiser and Camlin 36)

 

Thanks for the long term update!

 

I  haven't found a drop in replacement for the smaller feeds. The KW feed does not work much better than the stock ones. I have done several experiments with schmidt mo 5 feeders in friction fit mode but that requires some precision modifications to the section.

[Aravind_A_2310]

2 hours ago, hari317 said:

 

Thanks for the long term update!

 

I  haven't found a drop in replacement for the smaller feeds. The KW feed does not work much better than the stock ones. I have done several experiments with schmidt mo 5 feeders in friction fit mode but that requires some precision modifications to the section.

This is just a thought, as I don't have the tools Nor the skills or precision to pull this off, what if, we deepened the side channels on the kanwrite feeds? The main thing I've noted Is that while there are many channels for ink buffering, the grooves are very shallow, I've gotten a kanwrite feed where the grooves look like they were just drawn in... If the side channels could be deeper, I think it could eliminate burps to an extent... 

[Aravind_A_2310]

3 hours ago, cvk said:

Just to follow up on my previous observations, a full year after using NN feeds in eyedropper pens, I can say that the burping is eliminated completely. There are no leaks or burps or skipping in any of the pens. Just consistent ink flow.

 

I recently got a Gama Eyas Eyedropper pen. It came with the regular simple ebonite feed  and in hot Chennai weather, there was no burping whatsoever. But in cooler climates, as the ink level dropped to about 30%, I was able to observe the ink overwhelm the feed and drip on to the paper. Instead of refilling the ink, I replaced the feeder thanks to advice from @hari317 just as before. And it has been more than 2 weeks since then (no refilling of ink was done in the meantime, so air in the barrel could have only increased) and I have not seen any more burps or leaks whatsoever, no matter the weather. I am very confident that I will be able to write the Gama Eyas pen dry.

 

Just reinforces my belief that the NN feed is a wonderful thing. It makes an Indian eyedropper pen burp free in any climate.  

 

Now I wonder if there are other similar feeds that I can use with my smaller eyedropper pens that take the No 5 and No 4 nibs (Eg. Ranga Cruiser and Camlin 36)

Thank you for the long term update... It's just a shame that they're not as readily available as they once was...

[cvk]

17 hours ago, Aravind_A_2310 said:

Thank you for the long term update... It's just a shame that they're not as readily available as they once was...

True. In my opinion, the feeder and kw nibs. makes our regular 69t, 71jt and gama eyedroppers more safe and reliable than pens like opus 88. No burps no leaks and with a big ink capacity. I would have never believed that was possible before trying it myself. Not sure why the feeder cannot be replicated by other makers. Given the age of NN I think The patents would have expired. I am very interested to learn about the physics of this feeder and what sets it apart. I tried to search but could not find anything. 

[cvk]

17 hours ago, Aravind_A_2310 said:

This is just a thought, as I don't have the tools Nor the skills or precision to pull this off, what if, we deepened the side channels on the kanwrite feeds? The main thing I've noted Is that while there are many channels for ink buffering, the grooves are very shallow, I've gotten a kanwrite feed where the grooves look like they were just drawn in... If the side channels could be deeper, I think it could eliminate burps to an extent... 

Other  pens that i have seen with 0 burps are  the inexpensive cello exceed and flair inky pens. They have wicks and the feeders are full of fins similar to pilot varsity pen. We can eyedropper it and no burps happen regardless of ink level. 

[Aravind_A_2310]

24 minutes ago, cvk said:

Other  pens that i have seen with 0 burps are  the inexpensive cello exceed and flair inky pens. They have wicks and the feeders are full of fins similar to pilot varsity pen. We can eyedropper it and no burps happen regardless of ink level. 

I've heard from saji sir of kiwi pens, that there are only a couple of makers of ebonite feeds in India remaining and they're barely clinging on... Mostly because of makers like airmail, Gama, ranga etc. But a change to the current feed design doesn't seem far fetched, if Kim and co used to make it, surely others could've made it. But I think the design seems too complex for hand cutting, like most ebonite feeds on eyedroppers are made today. 

[cvk]

On 7/18/2022 at 11:53 PM, cvk said:

Just to follow up on my previous observations, a full year after using NN feeds in eyedropper pens, I can say that the burping is eliminated completely. There are no leaks or burps or skipping in any of the pens. Just consistent ink flow.

 

I recently got a Gama Eyas Eyedropper pen. It came with the regular simple ebonite feed  and in hot Chennai weather, there was no burping whatsoever. But in cooler climates, as the ink level dropped to about 30%, I was able to observe the ink overwhelm the feed and drip on to the paper. Instead of refilling the ink, I replaced the feeder thanks to advice from @hari317 just as before. And it has been more than 2 weeks since then (no refilling of ink was done in the meantime, so air in the barrel could have only increased) and I have not seen any more burps or leaks whatsoever, no matter the weather. I am very confident that I will be able to write the Gama Eyas pen dry.

 

Just reinforces my belief that the NN feed is a wonderful thing. It makes an Indian eyedropper pen burp free in any climate.  

 

Now I wonder if there are other similar feeds that I can use with my smaller eyedropper pens that take the No 5 and No 4 nibs (Eg. Ranga Cruiser and Camlin 36)

Just to close this report, I finally ran out of ink in my Gama Eyas Eyedropper. There was no burping or leaking or any misbehavior till the last drop of ink.  

[Aravind_A_2310]

7 hours ago, cvk said:

Just to close this report, I finally ran out of ink in my Gama Eyas Eyedropper. There was no burping or leaking or any misbehavior till the last drop of ink.  

Glad to know that👍

[sniyogy]

I have experimented in the past with KW feeds by deepening the fins using a jewellers saw. No burping even with sharp rise in temperatures ( ˜ -10˚ C to +15˚C) within 10-15mins.

 

 

[Aravind_A_2310]

46 minutes ago, sniyogy said:

I have experimented in the past with KW feeds by deepening the fins using a jewellers saw. No burping even with sharp rise in temperatures ( ˜ -10˚ C to +15˚C) within 10-15mins.

 

 

Nice... So my theory does seem to be correct... Now I need to get my hands on a jeweller's saw

[hari317]

1 hour ago, sniyogy said:

I have experimented in the past with KW feeds by deepening the fins using a jewellers saw. No burping even with sharp rise in temperatures ( ˜ -10˚ C to +15˚C) within 10-15mins.

 

 

Very neatly and nicely done. Since there is no drop in solution for no 5 nibs deepening the fins of the KW feed might be the only option.  I will try it. Can you share which saw works best for this. 3/0? 

[sniyogy]

1 hour ago, Aravind_A_2310 said:

Nice... So my theory does seem to be correct... Now I need to get my hands on a jeweller's saw

Hello Aravind, Even though I didn't get mine here, it does seem to be available here on amazon:

https://www.amazon.in/dp/B07DQQFFKG/?coliid=I1EBK33YKPHRP2&colid=2XTA52MHNEKLL&psc=1&ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it

 

Mine is similar to this.

 

Hope this helps.

[sniyogy]

42 minutes ago, hari317 said:

Very neatly and nicely done. Since there is no drop in solution for no 5 nibs deepening the fins of the KW feed might be the only option.  I will try it. Can you share which saw works best for this. 3/0? 

 

Thanks sir. Please see the link I have shared in the reply above.

 

I should mention that cutting it neatly can be tricky and to be honest, I had to practice on a couple of feeds to get it right. But at least, covid lockdown 2020 was useful in certain ways!

 

Thanks,

Soubhik.

[Aravind_A_2310]

48 minutes ago, hari317 said:

Very neatly and nicely done. Since there is no drop in solution for no 5 nibs deepening the fins of the KW feed might be the only option.  I will try it. Can you share which saw works best for this. 3/0? 

That does seem like an option... but kanwrite's feed is the traditional spoon style with very few fins, and its cut back a fair bit, deepening the fins might require a bit of finesse

[sniyogy]

51 minutes ago, hari317 said:

Very neatly and nicely done. Since there is no drop in solution for no 5 nibs deepening the fins of the KW feed might be the only option.  I will try it. Can you share which saw works best for this. 3/0? 

Verry sorry. I didn't see the last part. I have been successful with 3/0 and 2/0 both. But I think the 2/0 might be more suitable for the KW #5 feeds.