Extend length of lever bar?

**linkoiram** · November 19th, 2020, 06:09 AM

I am restoring a Moore l-96 and the lever bar is not very efficient. It doesn't really push down the sac all the way, it fills but I only get about 4 drops of ink or so. I took the flat lever bar and took a strip of brass to turn it into a j bar and soldered the brass to the existing bar, which seemed to do very little. I feel that adding something to the pressure bar so that when the lever actuates it will extend the bar down all the way the sac will get a better fill.

What can be done and am I better off sending it to someone to fashion a new j bar? I don't have good pictures here but there's a couple without the attached brass U

**Chuck Naill** · November 19th, 2020, 06:56 AM

I've bought replacement j bars from Andersons for Esterbrook restorations. They have several sizes, but not familiar with the brand you have.
https://andersonpens.com/anderson-pe...nt-j-bar-54mm/

**linkoiram** · November 19th, 2020, 07:26 AM

Originally Posted by Chuck Naill

I've bought replacement j bars from Andersons for Esterbrook restorations. They have several sizes, but not familiar with the brand you have.
https://andersonpens.com/anderson-pe...nt-j-bar-54mm/

Can a ring be inserted with those lever bars? That is how the bar is held in place with this Moore pen company pen

**FredRydr** · November 19th, 2020, 07:33 AM

Is there more than one hole in the lever for the wire ring to pass through? If so, the ring may need to be moved.

**linkoiram** · November 19th, 2020, 07:48 AM

Originally Posted by FredRydr

Is there more than one hole in the lever for the wire ring to pass through? If so, the ring may need to be moved.

There is a bit at the top of the bar that is looped around to hold the ring in place, there is no hole.

**FredRydr** · November 19th, 2020, 08:08 AM

Originally Posted by linkoiram

Originally Posted by FredRydr

Is there more than one hole in the lever for the wire ring to pass through? If so, the ring may need to be moved.

There is a bit at the top of the bar that is looped around to hold the ring in place, there is no hole.

I was thinking of another brand. If your lever and ring have provision for the lever to be moved to different positions vis a vis the ring, they may be set for a smaller diameter Moore (e.g., L-92). Or is your pressure bar so heavily corroded that it lacks stiffness?

I do like Moores from this era, especially their nibs.

**linkoiram** · November 19th, 2020, 09:57 AM

I believe it is possible that the bar had two rings to hold it in place and one is broken and/or stuck far in the barrel where it is difficult to reach. The pressure bar isn't stiff enough to stay in place so that the lever pressing the back of the bar extends the secondary part of the pressure bar to depress the sac

**linkoiram** · November 19th, 2020, 05:15 PM

I did what I think will fix the problem. I soldered a big ball of solder below where the lever bar touches the j bar. I bent the pressure bar a slight bit to give it some initial travel before pressing the sac, and very carefully maneuvered the sac around the bar. This way I get quite a few drops of ink out when I use the lever, and it isn't loose like it was.

Not the most elegant solution but it works

**Ron Z** · November 21st, 2020, 08:29 AM

Late coming to this discussion... I think that the issue is with the lever, not the pressure bar.

We are used to seeing a lever that is straight with the fulcrum part way up the lever opening, and maybe sticks down below the inside of the barrel a bit. But there are many that have the fulcrum near the end of the slot, with a piece that hangs down inside the barrel, shaped something like this ----------\___ If the front piece is snapped off (as sometimes happens if the lever is pulled hard against a petrified sac) , the lever will work, but it won't press the pressure bar down enough.

You were on the right track with the blob of solder in that it made the lever a bit longer, but not quite enough. Take it a little farther - solder a heavy paper clip on the underside, in the angled part of the lever. You'll need to have the lever out of the barrel to do thisUse a paste flux and silver bearing solder for additional strength. After the solder has cooled, bent the paper clip so that it goes straight out, a step down from the lever itself. Cut it off between 1/16" and 1/8" from the end of the angle. File it even at the end and deburr the piece. I think you'll find that the lever action is much more effective.