Esterbrook nib unit disassembly

[Niner]

I'm restoring an Esterbrook dollar pen. I soaked its 2556 nib in water for a good while and then sent it through several rounds in my ultrasonic cleaner.

The nib's holder (I suppose that's the right nomenclature) is translucent. Even after all that cleaning, with the nib still in the ultrasonic cleaner I see clumps of dried ink floating about and some adhering to the translucent plastic.

That just won't do. I considered allowing the nib to dry, setting it in Rapido-Eze for a week, then sending it back to the ultrasonic cleaner. I have read of people placing nibs in small containers full of Rapido-Eze, then setting the containers into a water-filled ultrasonic cleaner (supposedly saving the amount of Rapido-Eze used while still getting the ultrasonic cleansing benefit). I could try that, but I doubt I'd ever get all of the Rapido-Eze out of the assembled nib holder and nib assembly.

I think I need to disassemble the nib from its holder, clean the inside of the holder, then reassemble. But I don't know how to do that without damaging the parts. Can you direct me to instructions?

[Jon Szanto]

You will very likely crack or completely break the collar (the portion that holds the feed and nib, and threads into the section). The plastic is very thin and has usually become brittle with age. Any ink residue that surrounds the inner part of the feed is irrelevant, as all you need is for the ink channel, cut into the top of the feed, to be clear of any ink. All those rounds of USC should probably have taken care of that.

General practice is always to gently warm pieces like this to make them pliable, but evidenced by reading many stories of these, chances are you'll crack something... and then you'll have to find another collar to insert them into and hope you don't break that one! If the liquid flows through the nib unit, it won't be seen, and there is no practical reason for attempting disassembly. OCD isn't a valid reason, either (ask me how I know).

[Chrissy]

Good common sense Jon.
I always want my pen nibs and feeds to be very clean but sometimes common sense simply has to prevail with the "if it ain't broke don't fix it" rule. Especially if you don't have any spares.