Why is there SO LITTLE INK in Sheaffer's cartridges???

[marcelo]

I really can't understand why... Such a waste of plastic and blister cards...

[inkstainedruth]

This is why I prefer getting converters for my c/c pens.  I've seen plenty of posts from people over the years about how cartridges hold more ink than converters, but using converters and bottled ink give you a MUCH better range of colors and properties.

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[PAKMAN]

Old carts are the worst, somehow the liquid evaporates and there is nearly nothing left inside.

[TSherbs]

3 hours ago, PAKMAN said:

Old carts are the worst, somehow the liquid evaporates and there is nearly nothing left inside.

Yes, I noticed this also with some years-old cartridges....And Sheaffer cartridges aren't big to begin with.

[VillersCotterets]

[International short - Sailor - Pilot - Sheaffer standard]

I don't find Scheaffer cartridges particularly small compared to other brands.
 

On 1/23/2011 at 9:44 AM, rockspyder said:

I also looked at the volumes of some cartridges, not the sold ink volume, but an empty cartridge filled with water and aspirated:

Standard converter: 0.75 ml

International short: 0.87 ml

Sheaffer slim: 1.20 ml

Parker: 1.47 ml

Sheaffer standard: 1.50 ml

International long: 1.66 ml

I prefer converters and piston-filled pens, because when the ink is sucked out of the nib, the reservoir also fills up with at least half a millilitre more. If you want a pen that holds a huge amount of ink, there's nothing better than dropper-filled barrels.

[Licue]

3 hours ago, PAKMAN said:

Old carts are the worst, somehow the liquid evaporates and there is nearly nothing left inside.

Evaporated cartridges can usually be revived with a little bit of water.

 

And partial evaporation sometimes creates a nice sheening ink 😉

[marcelo]

On 11/2/2022 at 2:37 PM, VillersCotterets said:

[International short - Sailor - Pilot - Sheaffer standard]

I don't find Scheaffer cartridges particularly small compared to other brands.
 

I prefer converters and piston-filled pens, because when the ink is sucked out of the nib, the reservoir also fills up with at least half a millilitre more. If you want a pen that holds a huge amount of ink, there's nothing better than dropper-filled barrels.

 

This is an unused Sheaffer cartridge. The ink fills half of the cartridge volume.

[inkstainedruth]

How old is the cartridge, marcelo?  It could still have had some evaporation.

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[A Smug Dill]

3 hours ago, marcelo said:

This is an unused Sheaffer cartridge. The ink fills half of the cartridge volume.

 

2 hours ago, inkstainedruth said:

How old is the cartridge, marcelo?

 

Exactly the question that needs to be asked. The user outcome, when it comes time to use a cartridge, is not necessarily a reflection of 1. whether the Sheaffer ink cartridge physically holds “so little ink”, or 2. whether Sheaffer filled the cavity of the plastic container with “so little ink”. If the product owner/user is left with “so little ink”, that isn't necessarily the product manufacturer's (wrong)doing or problem, any more than stale crackers or shattered potato chips (that the consumer finds disagreeable or “can't understand”) are their respective manufacturers' doing.

[marcelo]

12 hours ago, inkstainedruth said:

How old is the cartridge, marcelo?  It could still have had some evaporation.

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

 

I bought it two years ago. In fact all the Sheaffer cartridges I bought along the years hold the same volume of ink.

 

About evaporating, aren't they sealed?

[marcelo]

9 hours ago, A Smug Dill said:

 

 

Exactly the question that needs to be asked. The user outcome, when it comes time to use a cartridge, is not necessarily a reflection of 1. whether the Sheaffer ink cartridge physically holds “so little ink”, or 2. whether Sheaffer filled the cavity of the plastic container with “so little ink”. If the product owner/user is left with “so little ink”, that isn't necessarily the product manufacturer's (wrong)doing or problem, any more than stale crackers or shattered potato chips (that the consumer finds disagreeable or “can't understand”) are their respective manufacturers' doing.

 

😆

[A Smug Dill]

41 minutes ago, marcelo said:

About evaporating, aren't they sealed?

 

They are; but the plastic used is not a perfect non-porous barrier to prevent all evaporation. I've had unused Pelikan ink cartridges dry out completely over a number of years in storage, but they certainly weren't empty of liquid when I first received them (and that could have been some time after manufacture; there is no guarantee that the eBay seller was selling then-fresh stock). There are probably other brands of ink cartridges I keep in storage (as they came supplied in the retail packages of fountain pens I bought) that are mostly dried out by now, but since I just about never use them, I don't check until it's too late.

[VillersCotterets]

2 hours ago, marcelo said:

About evaporating, aren't they sealed?

They use low density polyethylene, a milky white plastic, minimally porous. It takes several years, more than a decade, but yes, the water eventually evaporates through the polymer. The dye remains, so this inconvenience is easily remedied. Pierce the cartridge by inserting it into a pen. Remove it. Add the missing water. Reinsert the cartridge.

They likely sold you "new old stock", merchandise that sat on a shelf for decades. In hotter climates, the evaporation happens quicker.

[Ink Stained Wretch]

Well, I see that the question of why there's so little ink left in old Sheaffer cartridges has been described. As to the question of capacity, Sheaffer Type I cartridges are the largest cartridges I've handled. They hold 1.5 mL of ink, or anything else you can fit through the hole in the top. I posted a small chart of cartridge capacities up here quite a number of years ago. The Sheaffer Type I topped them all.

 

When I was buying those cartridges when they were new in the '60s and '70s they were filled pretty much to capacity. I've noticed over the years that manufacturers have been filling cartridges with progressively less ink.

 

My beef with the new Sheaffer Type I cartridges is that they're slightly bigger than the old ones. This makes them not fit old fountain pens well. The newer cartridges leave a gap in the pen when I screw it back together. I don't want to force the pen together because I'm concerned that constant pressure from the polyethylene will break the plastic over time. I had that happen once with a Kaweco Sport using a short international cartridge. To stop the cartridge from falling off the nipple I had put a small, cut off chunk of another cartridge under it. That kept the cartridge with ink in it engaged, but one day the pen fell apart .  I don't want that to happen again.

 

 

[marcelo]

11 hours ago, VillersCotterets said:

They use low density polyethylene, a milky white plastic, minimally porous. It takes several years, more than a decade, but yes, the water eventually evaporates through the polymer. The dye remains, so this inconvenience is easily remedied. Pierce the cartridge by inserting it into a pen. Remove it. Add the missing water. Reinsert the cartridge.

They likely sold you "new old stock", merchandise that sat on a shelf for decades. In hotter climates, the evaporation happens quicker.

 

If that's the case, they have a HUGE new old stock of Sheaffer cartridges, since they are the only seller at Amazon Brazil and I've been buying from them for several years.

[VillersCotterets]

You are dissatisfied with the cartridges sold to you by this reseller.

What do you expect from us, who are in no way related to them? It seems to me that you have obtained all the explanations and tips that it is possible to provide you. If refilling the cartridges yourself, adding water and/or switching to a converter are not solutions that work for you, I don't know how to console you other than to suggest that you deal with another vendor next time.

[marcelo]

On 11/10/2022 at 12:01 AM, VillersCotterets said:

You are dissatisfied with the cartridges sold to you by this reseller.

What do you expect from us, who are in no way related to them? It seems to me that you have obtained all the explanations and tips that it is possible to provide you. If refilling the cartridges yourself, adding water and/or switching to a converter are not solutions that work for you, I don't know how to console you other than to suggest that you deal with another vendor next time.

 

Are you nervous? Don't be, it's ridiculous.

Who said I'm dissatisfied with the cartridges "sold buy this reseller"??? What I said is that Sheaffer cartridges are filled only BY HALF. 

[VillersCotterets]

The cartridges you purchased from this particular retailer are half empty. Although you have been shown that new cartridges sold elsewhere by other retailers are not half empty, you still think that all cartridges are half empty. Explanations of why this is the situation and all the solutions to remedy this inconvenience have not prompted you to have a positive response. You seem to me to be inconsolable, fishing for sympathy rather than a solution. If you are now telling us that you are not unhappy with half-empty cartridges, then all you wanted was for others to join you in complaining that Sheaffer has wronged you, confirmed by the fact that you feel that trying to help you is ridiculous and symptomatic of some neurosis. You do not care to learn that your cartridges are most probably dehydrated and you do not intend to do anything about it. Rest assured that your ingratitude and insult have convinced me not to interact with you any further.

[marcelo]

13 hours ago, VillersCotterets said:

The cartridges you purchased from this particular retailer are half empty. Although you have been shown that new cartridges sold elsewhere by other retailers are not half empty, you still think that all cartridges are half empty. Explanations of why this is the situation and all the solutions to remedy this inconvenience have not prompted you to have a positive response. You seem to me to be inconsolable, fishing for sympathy rather than a solution. If you are now telling us that you are not unhappy with half-empty cartridges, then all you wanted was for others to join you in complaining that Sheaffer has wronged you, confirmed by the fact that you feel that trying to help you is ridiculous and symptomatic of some neurosis. You do not care to learn that your cartridges are most probably dehydrated and you do not intend to do anything about it. Rest assured that your ingratitude and insult have convinced me not to interact with you any further.

 

"Although you have been shown that new cartridges sold elsewhere by other retailers are not half empty, you still think that all cartridges are half empty."

 

No, I have not been shown.

 

I shared a photo I took myself of a sealed Sheaffer cartridge half empty. Has anyone shared a photo of a sealed Sheaffer cartridge more than half filled? No.

[TSherbs]

On 11/2/2022 at 1:55 PM, Licue said:

Evaporated cartridges can usually be revived with a little bit of water.

 

yup. I have done this several times.