Watch me unbox my new Kurateke #40 Sumi Brush Pen and then replace the water-based ink with waterproof black India ink. With bonus unintentional ASMR audio for the cool kids. Enjoy.
If you buy a 1ml or 5ml syringe with a blunt needle, you can use that to much more quickly and efficiently clean out those cartridges. You can get them at craft stores, or on Amazon, for abut a buck. You're already using one to refill your ink cartridges--why not also use it to suck the original ink OUT too? Or you could just spend the $5 and buy a real piston converter--a Platinum converter works with this brush pen. Also, that Speedball ink is probably going to ruin your beautiful pen if you leave it in long enough that it starts to dry. It will eventually gunk up your bristles and clog the feed. It is formulated for regular brushes and dip pens ONLY. Look into some "fountain-pen-friendly" permanent, waterproof inks like Platinum Carbon, Noodlers Eel Black, or Dr.Ph.Martins HiCarb. They are designed for fountain pens and technical pens, and won't dry in the feed or on the bristles, and ruin your pen...
The clear liquid in the cartridge when you start with a new pen is referred to as "clear ink" in the little booklet. (Thank Google translate, my Japanese isn't that good.) The instructions say to simply install a cartridge of regular ink and use the pen for awhile until the black ink flows. I recently picked up one of these. I sped up the process by using a Platinum converter and moving distilled water through the nib/bristles a few times. Even with the rinse it took maybe a page full of drawing to get full flow and a good black from the supplied ink. I believe the liquid is essentially conditioner to keep the natural bristles "shelf stable" until first use.
Won't it clog in the long run though? Cause the waterproof inks have arabic gum which hardens later on or does the few drops of water counter that? I only tried refilling my Kuretake brushpen with that same ink but my friend immediately told me to get it out or else it would destroy my brushpen
Have you tried filling a brush pen with just straight india ink? I filled my pentel pocket brush with undiluted ink, and the flow was horrible. It was even one of the recommended inks for brush pens. Had to flush it out and use something else.
