Fountain Pens

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hsl@wayfarershaven.eu

Can drying out be a converter problem? (feddit.de)

submitted 1 year ago by bassocontinuo@feddit.de to c/fountainpens@wayfarershaven.eu

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My Kaco EDGE is drying out, even when using it the next day. I feel that the issue is related to the converter, because usually I can fix the issue (even for a couple of days) by driving the converter just a little bit outwards and then cleaning the pen. The converter is a rather cheap one made of plastic. It came in a set with the pen and the schmidt EF nib. I saw this set of many places, but it looked like this:

https://www.amazon.com/Matte-Fountain-Schmidt-Cartridges-Original/dp/B07HG1J9M1

What is the "right way" to fix this. I know the TWSBI Eco wants to be greased regularly – is this a thing with converters?

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[–] bassocontinuo@feddit.de 1 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Do you mean you screw the converter a little to lower the piston and that gets it going again?

Yes, that's what I am doing. I had no trouble with the cartridge I used before, so I could try that again to identify the converter as the issue. The ink is Parker Quink Black (but two decades old, so possibly alcohol-based? I read something about a change in formula). It is supposed to be one of the more reliable ones.

If I don't have problem with a cartridge, then I can exclude the cap as the source of the problem, right?

[–] WARPed1701D@wayfarershaven.eu 2 points 1 year ago

If a cartridge behaves fine then the cap seal is less likely to be the problem, but again different inks behave in different way that may accentuate a cap seal problem. Very few pen caps create perfect seal anyway but some are better than others (I think Platinum have the Slip and Seal system).

If your ink is alcohol-based (never heard of this but then I don't have any old ink) then I would imagine it would be highly susceptible to evaporation and drying out. I'd pick up some different water-based ink if you prefer the CC over cartridges.

[–] notlookingfornemo@lemmy.world 2 points 1 year ago

As a follow up to warped, do you have the old cartridge and a blunt syringe? I can't tell if you tested with an unused or refilled cartridge. I will run with the assumption you only tested with an unused one. You can test if this is an ink compability or an evaporation issue by filling the old cartridge with the Quink. No need to fill it completely and waste ink. 1/4 should be enough to tell. Use the pen as you did with the converter and see if you have the same evaporation issues. If it's also evaporating, it is either a cap seal issue or a pen and ink combo. I second Warped's recommendation to try the ever reliable Waterman Serenity Blue (the "standard" blue shade") ink. That will give you a good idea if your pen has an evaporation issue (still drying out quickly) or a pen/ink combo issue. If there is no evaporation (no dry out and ink isn't getting darker), then you can start branching out to different inks to figure out what works with the pen. If you do not have any issue with the refilled with Quink cartridge, then I think that might suggest a converter related issue. The agitator might help. A new converter might help too. This scenario is a bit harder to diagnose to be honest.

If I was a gambler, I would bet it's either an evaporation or pen/ink combo issue.

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