General fountain pen and MB question....

I have a very humble collections of pen and they are all ballpoints and rollerballs. I was recently gifted a MB rollerball and have always wanted to try a fountain pen. I have decided on a MB 146 in the near future. In the meantime, I bought a cheap Parker Jotter to see whether I like using a fountain pen. I love it and the various inks you can choose to distinguish your signature.

I have been throwing this fountain pen around and it's a converter. There seems to be splashes of ink inside the barrel.

Is this a common thing with fountain pens or because this is a cheap Parker Jotter? I don't want the 146 to have any ink spots. I guess having spots on the nib is common but this Parker is quite messy.

Thanks in advance.

I have no experience with the Jotter but it is probably roughly similar to my 45 or other c/c fountain pens.

Some pens are more prone than others to dripping from the nib if given a strong jostle or bump.

A slight air leak due to insufficiently seated converter or cartridge or worn converter (air leaking by the piston and wall of converter) can cause drips from nib or ink leaking in the barrel near the converter seat.

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Originally Posted by mbpenguin

I have been throwing this fountain pen around and it's a converter. There seems to be splashes of ink inside the barrel.

Is this a common thing with fountain pens or because this is a cheap Parker Jotter? I don't want the 146 to have any ink spots.

Thanks in advance.

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I suppose what you describe are ink splatters inside the cap, not the barrel (which is the "body" of the pen). If it's in the cap, and you have indeed thrown the pen around, then stop throwing it around and it will stop. If you have ink in the cap while handling the pen gently, it probably means that your cartridge or converter is cracked and lets in some air, which leads to the ink gushing out of the nib. Replace the cartridge or converter, and it will stop.

If there is ink inside the barrel, it means your cartridge or converter is defective or has been knocked out of place.

Bottom line: check if the cartridge/converter has any visible cracks or leaks, don't throw fountain pens around, and store the either horizontally or preferably nib up. If you are worried about ink spills with an expensive fountain pen, you can go for a model (other than a Montblanc) that has an ink shut-off valve.

Don't throw fountain pens around!

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Originally Posted by jar

Don't throw fountain pens around!

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Exactly. :blink:

Well, sometimes gravity has its own ideas. :cry:

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Originally Posted by FredRydr

Well, sometimes gravity has its own ideas. :cry:

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Best avoid gravity, it only tries to bring you down.

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Originally Posted by GreyFool

Best avoid gravity, it only tries to bring you down.

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On the other hand, gravity helps to keep you grounded. :)