Air bubbles in my converters

**Spideysgirl** · April 29th, 2017, 02:09 PM

I have noticed when I draw up on my converter lots of air bubbles come up in the ink. I also hear gurgling as well. Am I filling the pens wrong or is this normal?

**jar** · April 29th, 2017, 02:30 PM

Put the nib in deeper. Many pens like to have the whole nib and part of the section submerged.

**Spideysgirl** · April 29th, 2017, 03:27 PM

Originally Posted by jar

Put the nib in deeper. Many pens like to have the whole nib and part of the section submerged.

Ok. Since I'm a newbie, I'm filling from sample vials. Is this why it happens?

**jar** · April 29th, 2017, 04:16 PM

Originally Posted by Spideysgirl

Originally Posted by jar

Put the nib in deeper. Many pens like to have the whole nib and part of the section submerged.

Ok. Since I'm a newbie, I'm filling from sample vials. Is this why it happens?

Very likely.

**kevmid** · April 29th, 2017, 07:47 PM

If you have a blunt syringe you can draw up all the ink from the sample and then inject it into the converter before putting the converter into the pen keeping the converter upside down of course. The pen may take a little longer to get started as the ink then needs to work its way down the feed to the nib or you inject the very last bit of the ink into the nib feed to speed up being able to start writing. Goulet pens (no affiliation) has some 101 videos on how to fill pens if that helps you.

**Jon Szanto** · April 29th, 2017, 08:02 PM

Originally Posted by kevmid

If you have a blunt syringe you can draw up all the ink from the sample and then inject it into the converter before putting the converter into the pen keeping the converter upside down of course. The pen may take a little longer to get started as the ink then needs to work its way down the feed to the nib or you inject the very last bit of the ink into the nib feed to speed up being able to start writing. Goulet pens (no affiliation) has some 101 videos on how to fill pens if that helps you.

I'll second this with one addition: after you have filled the converter and placed it back into the section, and then screwed the section into the barrel, there is one more step. Turn the pen over so the feed is facing up and the nib facing down. Then take your converter (you might want to do this over the sink or over some paper towel) and slowly press the plunger until you see a drop of ink starting to come out. Touch the tip of the needle to the underside of the tip of the nib, right by the tip of the feed, and the ink drop will get sucked into the feed by capillary action. Do this, I dunno, 5-6 times. This is called "priming the feed", and it puts ink into the feed and collector so you can start writing immediatly, and the capillary action will start pulling ink in from the converter.

This method - filling the converter and priming the feed - is not only the best way to get the most ink filled into the pen, but also the neatest, cleanest way to do so, since you aren't dipping the nib and section into an ink bottle and having to wipe off a bunch. When done, eject any remaining ink from the syringe into the bottle. Mad Science over for the moment!

**jar** · April 29th, 2017, 08:34 PM

Ink is cheap. Pens are made part of the communion through full immersion baptism.

**Jon Szanto** · April 29th, 2017, 08:38 PM

Originally Posted by jar

Ink is cheap. Pens are made part of the communion through full immersion baptism.

Yeah, well, when I drink whisky I don't stick my head in up to my neck into a barrel of it. Not to mention the great number of agnostic pens I have here with me.