Cleaning a Nakaya Pen

[Scrawler]

A friend has recently had to have an extended stay in hospital and has asked me to take care of his pens. The first thing I was going to do was flush them to make sure the ink does not dry up in them. One of the pens is a Nakaya. I have never touched one before and I know they are made of special materials. This particular pen has leaked into the cap leaving a sticky inky mess on the section and inside the cap. Being as I am inexperienced with these pens, and I do not want to make a bad situation worse, I thought to ask if there is anything I need to know about flushing, washing, drying and gently polishing the pen. It is one of those covered in flowers and sparkly bits. If I get my sticky inky fingers on the barrel is there any problem just washing it off with water?

[earthdawn]

First off do not soak it for any period of time.

The converter just pulls out.

Use luke warm water and paper towels.You can put the nib and section under running water for the initial washing.

Try not to get ink on the body area etc. BUT by doing the initial rinse under running water if you do get ink somewhere it will be diluted with the water.

The cap... oof... I would use paper towel twisted and stuck up inside. Then add a little water in the cap and cover it with your thumb and shake it to loosen the ink. You could do this a few times and then use a damp paper towel inside it to see if theres still ink there. Last step is to dry it with paper towel.

If it gets wet it won't melt lol. They are actually pretty tough pens BUT having one with flowers and shell or flakes I would use a little extra care.

AND using water and paper towel is all I would use especially if it was someone else's.

Last thought. Most of the nibs are heat set into the section so don't try and remove it to clean it.

[Scrawler]

First off do not soak it for any period of time.

The converter just pulls out.

Use luke warm water and paper towels.You can put the nib and section under running water for the initial washing.

Try not to get ink on the body area etc. BUT by doing the initial rinse under running water if you do get ink somewhere it will be diluted with the water.

The cap... oof... I would use paper towel twisted and stuck up inside. Then add a little water in the cap and cover it with your thumb and shake it to loosen the ink. You could do this a few times and then use a damp paper towel inside it to see if theres still ink there. Last step is to dry it with paper towel.

If it gets wet it won't melt lol. They are actually pretty tough pens BUT having one with flowers and shell or flakes I would use a little extra care.

AND using water and paper towel is all I would use especially if it was someone else's.

Last thought. Most of the nibs are heat set into the section so don't try and remove it to clean it.

Thank you that is what I needed to know. I suspected that these hand made pens should not be soaked. I was actually worried about my inky fingers leaving residue of some sort. I am certainly going to take great care with a pen that costs more than I make in a month, and I have seen the video of how those bits of flaky, sparkly and gold dust bits are applied. It has a music nib, and I am sorely tempted to write a letter with it, just for the experience. I am a bit surprised that it has leaked into the cap like this as that is no longer a common problem, and not one I would have expected with an item like this.

[earthdawn]

Yea having it leak into the cap is something I have not seen but theres a lot of things that could cause that.

Like I said they are very durable and not fragile but extra care should be taken for sure. It is probably a very good thing you looked at it and found the ink leaking as it could have stained over time.

Good luck and I give a big +1 to inking it back up and writing a letter or 2 with it. I want one of those music nibs so bad.

and.... umm... if you do ink it up you could post some pics

[Laura N]

Everything Earthdawn said in Post 2. I tend to use cool water so I know that works, too.

I wouldn't hesitate to clean out the ink inside of the cap with a bit of flowing or squirted water. Of course, I'd take it easy and dry carefully and thoroughly. Mine looks like you could even unscrew the cap top and take off the clip if you need to. But I strongly agree with the "don't soak" advice.

Though I don't have a Nakaya with flowers or sparkly bits myself, I've got two urushi pens and I've had a raden Vanishing Point, and I don't think either material needs to be handled with kid gloves. The urushi finish is very tough. What you worry about is UV exposure, so don't leave it out in the sun.

By the way, no need to polish a Nakaya. Just wipe it with a soft cloth, like a microfiber square or even soft cotton.

You can also call the wonderful folks at Nibs.com tomorrow morning, tell them which Nakaya model you are cleaning, and ask them just to make sure.

[Scrawler]

Everything Earthdawn said in Post 2. I tend to use cool water so I know that works, too.

I wouldn't hesitate to clean out the ink inside of the cap with a bit of flowing or squirted water. Of course, I'd take it easy and dry carefully and thoroughly. Mine looks like you could even unscrew the cap top and take off the clip if you need to. But I strongly agree with the "don't soak" advice.

Though I don't have a Nakaya with flowers or sparkly bits myself, I've got two urushi pens and I've had a raden Vanishing Point, and I don't think either material needs to be handled with kid gloves. The urushi finish is very tough. What you worry about is UV exposure, so don't leave it out in the sun.

By the way, no need to polish a Nakaya. Just wipe it with a soft cloth, like a microfiber square or even soft cotton.

You can also call the wonderful folks at Nibs.com tomorrow morning, tell them which Nakaya model you are cleaning, and ask them just to make sure.

Thanks for the advice about light. I will take it off my desk and store it in darkness. When I said polish, I actually meant a mild wipe with a microfibre cloth.

[Laura N]

Everything Earthdawn said in Post 2. I tend to use cool water so I know that works, too.

I wouldn't hesitate to clean out the ink inside of the cap with a bit of flowing or squirted water. Of course, I'd take it easy and dry carefully and thoroughly. Mine looks like you could even unscrew the cap top and take off the clip if you need to. But I strongly agree with the "don't soak" advice.

Though I don't have a Nakaya with flowers or sparkly bits myself, I've got two urushi pens and I've had a raden Vanishing Point, and I don't think either material needs to be handled with kid gloves. The urushi finish is very tough. What you worry about is UV exposure, so don't leave it out in the sun.

By the way, no need to polish a Nakaya. Just wipe it with a soft cloth, like a microfiber square or even soft cotton.

You can also call the wonderful folks at Nibs.com tomorrow morning, tell them which Nakaya model you are cleaning, and ask them just to make sure.

Thanks for the advice about light. I will take it off my desk and store it in darkness. When I said polish, I actually meant a mild wipe with a microfibre cloth.

By the way, you deserve huge thanks for taking care of these pens so diligently. I'm sure that is a load off your friend's mind, which helps him focus on getting better. You are a great friend.

[Scrawler]

Everything Earthdawn said in Post 2. I tend to use cool water so I know that works, too.

I wouldn't hesitate to clean out the ink inside of the cap with a bit of flowing or squirted water. Of course, I'd take it easy and dry carefully and thoroughly. Mine looks like you could even unscrew the cap top and take off the clip if you need to. But I strongly agree with the "don't soak" advice.

Though I don't have a Nakaya with flowers or sparkly bits myself, I've got two urushi pens and I've had a raden Vanishing Point, and I don't think either material needs to be handled with kid gloves. The urushi finish is very tough. What you worry about is UV exposure, so don't leave it out in the sun.

By the way, no need to polish a Nakaya. Just wipe it with a soft cloth, like a microfiber square or even soft cotton.

You can also call the wonderful folks at Nibs.com tomorrow morning, tell them which Nakaya model you are cleaning, and ask them just to make sure.

Thanks for the advice about light. I will take it off my desk and store it in darkness. When I said polish, I actually meant a mild wipe with a microfibre cloth.

By the way, you deserve huge thanks for taking care of these pens so diligently. I'm sure that is a load off your friend's mind, which helps him focus on getting better. You are a great friend.

Thanks, but I am only doing what I would want others to do for me. It is just that some of his pens are unfamiliar to me and so I need advice on how to take care of them.

[Scrawler]

<snip>

You can also call the wonderful folks at Nibs.com tomorrow morning, tell them which Nakaya model you are cleaning, and ask them just to make sure.

It is similar to the one at the top of the page here http://www.nakaya.org/en/default.aspx except that it has more flowers on the barrel and is liberally sprinkled with gold dust. Even though the body looks black, as you turn it in the light you can see the blackness is an illusion and it sparkles all over.

[tandaina]

Honestly I just rinse the pen. Run water into the cap u til it stops spilling over inky and then use a twist of paper towel to finish the process, dry it out. Rinsing has never hurt my Nakaya one bit. I wouldn't soak it but it won't be hurt just by getting wet.

[tandaina]

These pens really are pretty tough. The lacquer protects all the fancy bits. Just rinse and wipe and don't worry.

[Filipson]

Your friend has good taste in pens. Nakaya pens are beautiful. I would want a pen "sitter" too. You are a good and kind friend!

[GING GING]

Don't use a paper towel to wipe this pen. Use a microfiber cloth. Once you're finished cleaning; you can polish it out with a little Turtle wax quick detail.

[Farmboy]

Don't use a paper towel to wipe this pen. Use a microfiber cloth. Once you're finished cleaning; you can polish it out with a little Turtle wax quick detail.

I'm going to disagree on the final step. Turtle Wax belongs on the airbrushed paint job on a car, not on a pen.

[brewsky]

Don't use a paper towel to wipe this pen. Use a microfiber cloth. Once you're finished cleaning; you can polish it out with a little Turtle wax quick detail.

Ummm.... What? Please for the future of your nakaya's finish do not ever use a car wax to clean your pen.

[tandaina]

Agreed. Never, ever put Turtle wax on a Nakaya. Heck on any pen. A soft cloth to polish of the fingerprints is all that is needed.

[Scrawler]

Don't use a paper towel to wipe this pen. Use a microfiber cloth. Once you're finished cleaning; you can polish it out with a little Turtle wax quick detail.

I'm going to disagree on the final step. Turtle Wax belongs on the airbrushed paint job on a car, not on a pen.

And certainly not administered by me, a mere caretaker of another person's treasure.