# Is the nib & feed trapping a bubble?



## redfishsc (Jul 17, 2008)

I have a customer who experienced the same thing I did using a standard ink cartridge. He's been a fountain pen user for eons, so he knows how to care for a FP--- the pen he has from me is about a year old and looks like it's never been touched though I know quite well to the contrary. 


After a good soak and rinse, the nib would not prime up with ink no matter what-- only dry scratches or maybe a faint ink line.  I disassembled the nib and feed for him to inspect--- there was ink in there but it was fresh ink. I rinsed it all off and reassembled, plugged in the old cartridge and it primed up nearly immediately. 


Perhaps when we rinse them out we are creating an air/water bubble in the feed that disrupts the priming (like when you get air into a hose when you are trying to siphon gas out of Ed's truck). Perhaps.


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## Dan_F (Jul 18, 2008)

What were doing to prime it?. If you squeeze the cartridge enough to cause ink to well out onto the feed, it should force any air out. I wonder if there was a little bit of dried ink that was clogging the feed, but rinsed out when you disassembled and rinsed the pen?

If by priming you meant dipping the nib in the ink bottle, the fresh, wet ink may not have reached the clog, or had time to dissolve it.

Ooops, just reread your post, but I still think the feed must have been clogged, with dried ink that the rinsing didn't reach. I suppose it could also have been some debris caught between the tines, which prevented the ink from reaching the paper. Maybe this was dislodged when you removed and rinsed the nib. 

I guess the good news is that whatever sort of bad boogie got into that pen, it was exorcised. 

Dan


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## redfishsc (Jul 18, 2008)

> _Originally posted by Dan_F_
> 
> I suppose it could also have been some debris caught between the tines, which prevented the ink from reaching the paper. Maybe this was dislodged when you removed and rinsed the nib.
> 
> ...




Stuff caught in the tines was my second guess, I reckon I'll never know. 

BTW since I'm a Baptist, we don't do exorcisms, we just pray that the nib will repent from it's sinful ways.


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## DCBluesman (Jul 18, 2008)

Without sounding too glib, there is an article in the Library which probably would have solved your problem. 
Behind the Nib 
Installment #2 
Prepping a New Nib


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## redfishsc (Jul 18, 2008)

Naw, not too glib, just a little glib. I'm glad you have those there, I did read them last night (and previously when you first put them up). Good info. I'm basically thinking out loud and seeing if anyone else can give an opinion. 

I appreciate what you and the guys do here, and always point us to those articles, they are very helpful.


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## Dan_F (Jul 18, 2008)

> _Originally posted by redfishsc_
> 
> 
> 
> ...



I guess we can all celebrate it's repentance!

Dan


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## redfishsc (Jul 18, 2008)

> I guess we can all celebrate it's repentance!
> 
> Dan




Yes, indeed, it's shoutin' time in heaven!


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