Need help with Sheaffer 875

[Dr Honeywell]

I acquired a Sheaffer 875, the plunger moves up and down freely, but does not take in any ink. How do I disassemble the pen to check if the gaskets need to be replaced? Is there anything else that may cause this issue, is it worth repairing? Thank you in advance for any replies.


10005

[mhosea]

Well, if you have to ask...

Is it bent, or is that just an optical effect? If really bent, it might be a problem.

Repairing this is a bit of work. Disassembly is accomplished by removing the grip section (it threads on) and the blind cap (there will be a slotted retaining ring-some kind of spanner helps, even if homemade). There is a gasket on the plunger head, and there is layered packing at the other end. Replacing this packing is more work on some models than others. Most people send these off to a professional.

I normally avoid them and focus on the lever fillers because they're easier, but as a rank beginner then, nowhere near to being up to the plunger repair, and mine being common, user-grade pens of little cost or interest, I converted a couple to eyedropper fill by removing the plunger, fashioning a correctly-sized polypropylene disk, pushing it in the barrel, and back-filling silicone from behind it through the piston rod hole. They make excellent eyedropper filled pens, as they have just the right capacity and also have tight, threaded sections. They suffer from no ink-burping issues--they work as well or better as ED than they ever did as plunger-fill. Sometimes the sections are little too tight for easy access, though.

[Dr Honeywell]

Mike,

Thank you for the information, the bend is just an optical illusion. I tried removing the grip section with no luck, perhaps it needs to be heated. If all else fails I will convert it into a ED.

Bob

[mhosea]

Heat is usually required. Bear in mind that this joint was never meant to be unscrewed except at the factory.

[Jeph]

If it is not bent and the nib is in good shape then it is definatley worth getting fixed. Sometimes you can get lucky like I did and only the end seal was bad and I was able to get the cap off without special tools or breaking anything.
Richard Binder's site has a section in the Reference Pages called "Anatomy of a Fountain Pen V: Sheaffer’s Vacuum-Fil" that does a masterful job of showing what is going on inside. http://www.richardspens.com/

[Dr Honeywell]

Jeph,

Thank you for the link, very helpful information.

Bob