Montegrappa nazionale skip/hard start

[mcannad1]

Does anyone else have the Montegrappa Nazionale and have problems with really bad skipping/hard starting? I recently got one and it is almost unusable for me in its current state. I likely send off to a nib meister, but was curious if there were widespread problems with these pens.

[carlos.q]

I don't have one of these pens but I would suggest you first try the more traditional methods of dealing with this problem:

1. Make sure the pen is completely clean. Flush the nib assembly with a dilute solution of water and dishwashing liquid. Then flush with only water.
2. If you have an ultrasonic cleaner use it on the nib assembly. If you don't, leave the nib assembly in a glass of water overnight.
3. After cleaning try the pen with a wet ink (Waterman) and then with a dry ink (Pelikan 4001). Take a note of which ink works better with your nib.
4. Write on different papers to see if there is a difference. Take a note of which paper works better with your nib.
5. Make sure you are not writing on paper on which you have previously rested the palm of your hand (which will leave hand oils on the paper and produce skipping)

If you do all this and the pen still hard starts and skips you should really send it to a nibmeister and explain all that you have done to deal with the problem. This will help him/her diagnose and solve the problem.

This is a rather conservative approach which I strongly believe should be the first step before any other action is taken. I know that some will suggest you tinker with the nib which IMO should be a second step. If you are up to it, there are some manuals and videos on the net that can get you started. If you have never done this before maybe you should not experiment with an expensive pen.

Good luck!

[wrs7]

Does anyone else have the Montegrappa Nazionale and have problems with really bad skipping/hard starting? I recently got one and it is almost unusable for me in its current state. I likely send off to a nib meister, but was curious if there were widespread problems with these pens.

That's unfortunate. I have two of those, both with the EF Flex nib. They write very smoothly with nice wet lines. I have a few Montegrappas and none needed any tweaking out of the box. (Knock on wood.) Maybe yours just needs a good cleaning. Or perhaps try a different ink: The Montegrappa Blue that comes with the pen seems to work well. If that fails then you may have to get it to a nibmeister. These are lovely pens and definitely worth the effort to get it working properly. Good luck

[PhillipDine]

Does anyone else have the Montegrappa Nazionale and have problems with really bad skipping/hard starting? I recently got one and it is almost unusable for me in its current state. I likely send off to a nib meister, but was curious if there were widespread problems with these pens.

That's unfortunate. I have two of those, both with the EF Flex nib. They write very smoothly with nice wet lines. I have a few Montegrappas and none needed any tweaking out of the box. (Knock on wood.) Maybe yours just needs a good cleaning. Or perhaps try a different ink: The Montegrappa Blue that comes with the pen seems to work well. If that fails then you may have to get it to a nibmeister. These are lovely pens and definitely worth the effort to get it working properly. Good luck

I wonder if you can buy this ink separately?

[junglejim]

[/QUOTE]

I wonder if you can buy this ink separately?[/QUOTE]


Of course you can. If you're in the US, check Pen Boutique, Vanness, Pen Chalet, Goldspot, or Dromgooles.

[BarneyLondon]

I'm having exactly the same issue with my EF - pretty much the worst (and most erratic) skipping I've ever experienced. How did you get on with fixing yours? Mine was bought new so I may have to give flushing a try. But it feels more like a structural problem. Lots of railroading on downstrokes too. Lovely pen otherwise (!).