If your pen comes with a cartridge, even if you intend to go with a converter or eye dropper, use the cartridge till it’s empty and cut the tail end off. Then it’s just a matter of finding a syringe with the right size tip to shove into the cartridge and you’ve got a diy flushing tool for any pen that fits that cartridge.
I found some short bristled make-up brushes at the dollar store or whatever cheapy-deapy store you have in your area. You can also use a soft bristled artist brush. And don’t throw away the brush from discarded mascara. They are particularly good if ink has dried in the cap or barrel of your pen.
Old school trick. Get a bulb syringe like for babies. Great for squirting water through most pens using a cartridge or converter. And solder bulb, sans the white tube fits most sections, making cleaning them and the nib and feed a breeze, for most inks. And older Parker Quink with Solv-X gets most other dried inks out.
I was today years old when I learned Sailor Doyou was not only a great colour but heckin' MAGIC too. ✨🤯 Also echo the suggestion of using a bulb syringe for flushing pens. Inexpensive and easy.
I generally never put anything besides water based ink in fountain pens so clean up can be done in mostly water. When cleaning technical (yes i still use those) and dip pens where Indian and dye based inks are used Greased Lightning degreaser is my go to cleaner, it literally melts ink. I works great on fountain pens as well but should be diluted, just be sure to flush with plenty of warm water.
nice, the lamy converter doesnt need to be dissassewmbled, you can dip the whole thing in water as the section behind the piston is essentially like the front portion it can suck up ink or water in this case, just submerge the whole thing and work the screw and all will be fine.
I just found another colored pen set that inclueds yellow: Retractable Gel pens (quick dry gel ink) by Pen+Gear (24 pens, Med point). Also, if I ever get back into using fountain pens, I'll have to look into some of these cleaning kits to make sure my pens get cleaned good. I never really gave much thought b4 about cleaning them.
I use Zest-It cleaning solutions when I have a really dirty/dried out pen. They work well, and the best thing is you can re-use the solution, even if it has other ink in it. It makes a couple of small bottles last quite awhile.
This is so perfect! Just yesterday I got ink stuck in my lamy converter and I couldn’t figure out a way to get it out. Thank you so much for this video!
for my part, I dismantle the nibs and soak them for several hours. Then, I use a pipe cleaner to rub the inside well. It works great with demonstrator pens
If a pen with a built-in piston, eg; Montblanc 149 or 146, is not to be used for some considerable time, would it help after thoroughly flushing, to keep it filled with distilled water?
@@Ink2Screen I am worried it might "shake loose" some parts. Cell phone PCB components have been known to shake loose and fall off when overkept in cleaning phase. That would go for anything that is BGA-mounted or similarly fixed. Sure, a pen is by far more resilient, but I'm having second thoughts nevertheless.
I hope you guys could do a You Tube video on how to clean the Pilot Con-70 since it’s a push converter not sure how to clean it. Starting to think I should only use the fountain pen that I inked it with and don’t use any other color than that.
At my secondary school we were shown how to use fizzy water like soda water - unflavoured obvs! - to clean out fountain pen nibs etc. I haven’t tried it in a while tho
A bulb syringe can be used to flush a pen. You won't get a perfect fit with your international standard pens, or your Japanese style pens, but it works well.
actually I use alcohol to clean my fountain pen nib & feed, but I use diluted, not full strength. Alcohol come in three type, and what I use is 96% Ethanol, which safer on plastic due higher water content, compared to Methanol (sometime named as Methylated spirit) and Iso-Propyl Alcohol (IPA is short term of that) that can melt plastic. but again I use it diluted with water until around 60%-ish strength (use online calculator if you want to know your ratio). and like most of the method in the video, make sure you flush again with clean water after. I found it make my nib & feed very very clean, especially if I using a dye based ink on my pen.
HI! I have a Sailor Imperial Black with a plated nib. Do you think ammonia-based solutions, like the Monteverde fountain pen flush, can cause plating to strip? Thank you.
Another way I used to clean the fountain pen is to use the syringe to poke a hole onto the back of the cartridge and push the needle in. It will create a natural seal that works just fine for me. Just be careful with the poking. Protect your finger. =)
If you need to clean the inside of a Platinum Preppy's inner cap without it twisting around, or if you need to clean the space between the main cap and the inner cap, you can remove it by sticking an ink syringe with the needle removed inside and pulling the plunger back so that when the syringe is removed, the suction pulls the inner cap with it. This should work with any Luer lock syringe, like the one sold by JetPens with their name on the listing; in fact, I just use a spare medical syringe that uses the same Luer lock system. This may or may not work for other Platinum pens; I haven't tried.
I have one fountain pen which I cannot get to work anymore. It had ink in it for a while and I didn’t use it for maybe two weeks or so and the ink started to mold. I washed it with water and let it dry. But it didn’t work anymore. Any tips?
Hi there! Unfortunately we haven't tried it out with Baystate Blue. Since it's a highly staining and permanent ink, you probably won't be able to remove stains unless you use dilute ammonia or dilute bleach. Just be sure you only use one or the other as mixing the two will create a toxic gas.
I, drop my nibs into a jar of water or cleaning solution. However, I put a folded piece of paper towel or piece of sponge in the bottom of the jar. Maybe I’m being over cautious but the thought of the point of my nib hitting the bottom of the jar makes me cringe. It may be overkill but it won’t cause any harm. I am also one of those people that loves the finest nibs I can find and I want my pen to lay down ink with the lightest touch. We all have our own little quirks. Don’t try to tell me that you don’t. One other thing. I am amazed at the places those little Qui Yogurt Jars show up. I keep threatening to find a way to make lids for them so I can find even more uses for them.
I have a few old Parker 51 Specials (c. 1955 with aerometric fillers - these pens don't disassemble without much effort) that have been sitting for who knows how long with gunked ink in them. I squeezed clear water thru filler (and got some of ink out), soaked in clear water for 24 hours, squeezed water thru filler again and a little more ink came out. Still, the sac is totally black, and if I soak in water (30+ hours now) and squeeze sac, a little more ink comes out. I'm going to try the Monteverde Flush, but is there any other/better way to clean an aerometric filler Parker 51 Special?
Which technique or product should I use to clean a pen that dried with deAtramentis Document Ink? Since it's not a water-soluble ink, water isn't helping. I need to USE my fountain pens more often, but most of the paper I use doesn't work well for fountain pens. Until I use up my current notebooks and journals, I'm out of luck.
That’s an interesting question. I Would also like to hear recommendations. I just got into this document inks and this was the reason why I hesitated using them…
A dilute solution of ammonia, or rarely very dilute bleach might be helpful. However, don’t ever attempt to make a solution that includes both bleach and ammonia -this produces a gas that is incompatible with human health and well-being.
Hi there! Yes, we don't recommend using solvents like alcohol to clean your pen. Rubbing alcohol is a harsh chemical that can eat at and potentially ruin your fountain pen. We carry some cleaning solutions designed just for fountain pens: www.jetpens.com/Platinum-Cleaner-Kits/ct/3214 and www.jetpens.com/search?q=id%3A23253+OR+id%3A12356+OR+id%3A123533 We also have a blog dedicated to cleaning techniques and solutions (including homemade ones): www.jetpens.com/blog/How-to-Clean-a-Fountain-Pen/pt/259#Homemade
a) If a standard flushing does not help, I do use a BAKU BK-3550 ultrasonic cleaner. b) After using one bottle Monteverde Pen Flush, I decided to compose my one flushing solution. It contains 250 ml of 25% ammonia, 250 ml of Foma Fotonal (you may use Ilford Simplycity), 250 ml of 96% ethanol, 250 ml of 99.7% isopropyl alcohol, 4 l of distilled water. Warning! This amount of ammonia smelled strong, caused some inhale poison, although I worked in the respiratory half mask and vented the flat. d) Dried and clogged KWZ Standard Inks get dissolved under the influence of two to three drops of the solvent I use to clean acrylic paints. One part of IPA, one part of Ethanol, one part of Propylene glycol. Rinse with water immediately after solvent starts dripping from the nib. c) Almost always I rinse with distilled water in ultrasonic cleaner as the last step.
Holy cow! You can just buy a syringe (btw why is it that buying a syringe in the USA grants you odd stares?) and attach a used ball-less cartridge to it with instant glue like cyanoacrylate and voila! Also, best use distilled water you get in your car supplies store. A 2 quart bottle will last you plenty. Distillate is "hungry" for binding with something, so it eagerly enters disassociation reaction.
isopropanol and ethanol can melt some polymers like acrylic over long periods of time. It's possible to use them and immediately rinse them with water but not all inks are very alcohol soluble (as opposed to water, despite both of those alcohols being miscible in water).
I’m a huge fan of distilled water ONLY! And strongly urge fountain enthusiasts do not try to make your own cleaning solution with mentioned chemicals like ammonia or bleach. The best way to avoid the need for more aggressive cleaning methods is to make sure you never leave ink in your pen for more than 3-4 weeks. Good luck.
