PDA

View Full Version : Ink bottle standup game !



Woody
January 31st, 2014, 04:56 PM
So bring on the best ideas. I haven't spilt from a Noodlers bottle but every dog has his day. What's the best way to make sure those ink bottles stay in place when filling. Irishzu bottles are the best, Lamy bottles are great. But Noodlers give me nightmares. Diamine bottles are pretty good. How do you make sure your bottle doesn't fall over.

Jon Szanto
January 31st, 2014, 05:09 PM
I found a chunk of high-density foam, probably was something used in packing stuff in the mail. It's about 6 inches long and 2 inches thick, maybe 4 inches wide. I cut out a rectangular hole that a Noodler's bottle fits in (Aurora bottles, of which is my favorite ink, fit as well). I also drilled a couple of hole (drills just make it easy) that fit ink sample vials.

Works a charm - doesn't have to be a heavy holder, just gives a bigger footprint to the bottle to keep it from tipping over. Never a problem. The extra holes for the vial size are also good to rest the pen in while you put the cap back on the bottle, and that was my one lesson: fill the pen, and then BEFORE YOU DO ANYTHING ELSE AT ALL, PUT THE CAP ON THE BOTTLE! I'd get so excited to see the ink in the pen in action that I'd start messing around and - Bam! - I'd knocked over a vial or bottle. No more.

HTH

rdcalhoon
January 31st, 2014, 05:43 PM
My son-in-law recently built himself a 3-D printer. I think I will challenge him to make an interesting version of your foam block for me to use in the office.

If you were designing it from scratch how would you adjust the dimensions?

I should probably find my own piece of foam in the meantime. If he does take on the project I probably won't see it till Christmas.

Right now my method is to shove stuff on my desk to the side and lay down a towel. I then pat the towel to see if I left anything underneath or left a fold in the towel. Then using one hand I hold the bottle while using my other two hands to fill the pen.

Woody
January 31st, 2014, 11:43 PM
I bet plasticine would work. You could ribbon a chunk around the base of the bottle then fill the pen. One could also gather a couple of good pilot bottles. I have a couple of heavy ones. A wood tray could be made with inch and a half holes or so .. The diameter of Noodler bottles.

cafinn
February 1st, 2014, 12:21 AM
I have not had this issue since most of my ink bottles are very squat - J Herbin, Lamy, Edelstein - maybe not so much Waterman.

That said I am waiting on some Noodler's and some sample vials in the mail right now. Thanks for the heads up!

VertOlive
February 3rd, 2014, 04:48 PM
I have several sizes of cast off test tube racks and short centrifuge buckets from the lab where I work. Some are large enough for the more narrow, tippy bottles. Mostly I use them for samples.

But Jon Szanto has the best tip--every lab person knows to CAP IT immediately when you're done....

Adhizen
February 3rd, 2014, 07:16 PM
You can take a bowl and fill it with rice, salt or sand and push your bottle into it and then fill...

Jon Szanto
February 3rd, 2014, 07:21 PM
You can take a bowl and fill it with rice, salt or sand and push your bottle into it and then fill...

I love elegant ideas like that. And you could keep the bowl on your desk and use it as a candle holder...

rdcalhoon
February 3rd, 2014, 08:11 PM
Our office cat would probably vote for a bowl of kitty litter.