Which ink lube piston?

August 15, 2025

I'm looking for lubricated ink, not only how it writes / feels, but will also lubricate the piston vs inner barrel. Is there such an animal? The MB 169 I bought last Oct 2024 is starting to feel a bit stiff. While the 25 yr old Pelikan 400 I have can easily be lubricated by removing the nib and applying a little silicon grease, the 169 not so easy. Recommendation. Thx

August 15, 2025

I put my thoughts on "lubricating" inks here:

But I'll copy and paste part of it. To my knowledge, the only inks that use the term "lubricating" to mean that the ink is designed to lubricate the piston, are Noodler's eel inks:

Quote

For Noodler's "Eel" inks: offering a lubricant for the pen's or converter's piston (assuming one is present). This per Nathan Tardif, the maker of said ink (and per JetPens, ChaletPens, and GouletPens). (Personally, I'm dubious of this use and claim. The whole point of that piston is to prevent ink from getting past it. If ink isn't meant to get past it, then ink needs to not get between it and the body of the pen / converter. Because if ink got between, ink could get past. So if ink can't get between, how, exactly, is ink going to lubricate? I suppose maybe, possibly, it could lubricate the leading (ink-side) edge... But really, there's a reason we tell people to use silicone grease when reassembling these mechanisms, and it's both to lubricate and to keep ink getting between and past said piston.)

Having said that, and knowing nothing of a MB169, I'll note that it has been suggested that for pens that aren't easily disassembled, and where the piston is starting to lose its seal with the wall of the ink chamber, one could potentially apply a little silicone grease to said wall and then operate the piston several times. The theory is that the grease would be worked into any gaps, thereby reestablishing the seal. Afterwards, one can ink the pen without worry. (Or, potentially, if excess grease were applied, use something like a long swab to wipe out some of the excess grease.)

I don't know if that would work, but the theory is sound. In essence, rather than relying on the theoretical lubricating ink to get into the gaps and lubricate (and also remain there and potentially get behind the piston head), you use silicone grease to do its thing - and don't care if a little works its way behind the piston head - it can't hurt there...

But all that relies on being able to remove the nib unit or grip so that you can access the ink chamber sufficient to apply the grease.

August 15, 2025

Thanks, Liz. I read that about Noodler's too online. I don't believe there's leakage since the pen less than a year old. The piston just feels a bit sticky for my taste. It's been like that since the very first draw when I first filled it up. Not sure if that is normal for MB169. I would like to grease directly into the inside of the barrel, like I did with my Pelikan 400, but I would rather try the lubricated ink route first since I'm wary of trying to remove the nib of the MB169 because it's still under seller warranty for the next 14 months. I'll give the Noodler a try, unless anyone else can suggest more ink out there.

August 15, 2025

14 minutes ago, 400146towny said:

It's been like that since the very first draw when I first filled it up. Not sure if that is normal for MB169.

Maybe they're supposed to be that way. (Or did you get it pre-owned? ) Have you talked to MB? I thought they offered free service on their pens, but maybe not anymore.

It's only a subset of Noodler's inks that claim to be lubricating - basically the Eel and Polar series. I strongly recommend you check out reviews first - Noodler's inks come with their own set of things to know before you try them.

August 16, 2025

I would send it in for service, there’s no reason for a new pen still under warranty to have a stiff piston. Either contact MontBlanc directly or go through your seller.