Squeeky Vanishing Point

[saturation]

Its entirely possible to have a true defect in the VP nib that causes a squeek, but it also might cause other isses like poor ink flow. So, if the problem persists, it maybe worth sending it back.

 

I recall seeing an abused VP nib at a Pen store, as they had one VP out for test writes. It wrote quite smoothly though, although it would skip at times, and the tines were not aligned like a new pen.

 

While I have 4 VP nibs, 2 squeeked when new. One took at least 5-10min of stroking the nib on paper to get the nib squeek free, whereas on another it took only a few test strokes. Two were perfect from the get go. I knew there was nothing physically wrong with the nib because I examined it with a loop, checking alignment etc., against my other nibs.

 

The only thing I didn't do was break out my old high school microscope to examine the tip in detail, and in retrospect I'm sorry I did not, because I still wonder exactly what it is about this shellac like coating, or if its simply minute imperfection at the nib's tip. Whatever it truly is never returns once the squeek ends.

Edited February 2, 2006 by saturation