Maintaining your Pen

A fountain pens is an amazing creation, look after your pen

Your pen, whether a ball point, mechanical pencil, roller boll or fountain pen should receive good and proper care.

The finish of the the pen is specific to the type of material. As a general rule use a soft cloth and water clean. Avoid cleaning fluids as it could damage the finish of the pen.

For sterling silver trim, clean the silver with a silver polishing cloth. If you have to use silver cleaner, put some on the cloth and then rub the cloth on the pen. Don't put silver cleaner on the pen itself. It can get into small places and be difficult to get off.

Lacquers are often though as being delicate surfaces, but they are quite durable. Use a moist soft cloth to clean the pen and avoid abrasive cleaners or chemicals.

 

Don't Leave Pens Filled and Unused

This is easy to say, but something that many pen users, incuding myself, tend to forget. If you are not going to use your for for a long time, do not leave the pen filled with ink. More than one pen? Why Not! Rotate rotate pens so they area all used on some type of schedule. Give the pen a flush with water. Then wipe an dry the nib section.

 

Stand Pens Vertically

If you are going to store a fountain pen for a period of time, flush the ink out of the pen. But try to stand the pens vertically. Nib pointing up in the cap. Any ink will flow down the tiny channels back into the pen rather than into the cap of the pen.

 

Flush on a Regular Basis

It is a good idea to give a fountain pen a good flush every couple of months. This means, pushing in and out the converter or piston while hold the nib of the pen under a stream of water. Then dry out the nib and ink mechanism with a towel. I have my pens stand in a glass with a rolled up paper towel in the bottom. The paper nicely pulls out water from the nib/feed.

 

Room Temperature Water Rather than Hot Water

When cleaning a pen, use lukewarm water, never hot. Hot water could impact seals.

If the pen is clogged, and after a flush of water there is still an ink flow problem, then I let the nib section stand in a glass of water for a couple of hours. This is okay for most modern pens. Some older vintage pens may have materials that can be impacted with standing in water for an extended period of time. This is the case with pens made from rubber or casein pens (it looks like plastic but made from protein). Prolonged period of time in water could damage the pen.

I am always amazed at the trail of ink that flows from the nib as the pen sits in water.

 

Testing the Nib

If you have not used the pen for a while, and you go to write with it and no ink flows, don't just press harder and harder on nib to get the flow going. You may damage the nib. Make light short strokes. Use the same pressure as you would write. The strokes will activate the flow. If nothing happens, then dip the nib in some water.