New/Old Generation, mis-aligned tines

[Sailor Kenshin]

I bought an old Generation at the LIPS. It's fairly well-used, with scratches on the barrel, but that just makes me more likely to grab it and write with it. Because I am somewhat mental about new, pristine-looking pens that cost more than $30.

It is also fairly intact, and wrote with just a water-dip (old dried cart in there), yet the tines are visibly mis-aligned. I flushed it yesterday and re-filled with Diamine Beau Blue, and though it still writes, it skips a bit.

I've aligned tines before, but this is a gold nib, and a MB, and that makes me chicken.

Any advice? I don't want to send it to MB because, as I said, crazy as it sounds, the scratches just make me more likely to use it.

[tiffanyhenschel]

Since you have already practiced on other nibs, why don't you give it a try? Be gentle, go slow, and you won't "ruin" the nib even if you don't fix it to your satisfaction. Then if you still need to send it to someone, you will have at least gained experience.

[mhosea]

I've been there. Gold nibs vary a lot. I've had trouble with beefy old Sheaffers because they were so hard to change at all, and I've had trouble with a little semi-flex Waterman 2A because although the tines would bend, obviously, they really, really just wanted to go back to exactly the way they were. But on the whole I'd say it has been easier, IME, to balance the tines on gold nibs than steel, especially the softer 18K nibs. I would suggest just giving it a try. If you fail, it will most likely be because you failed to change it appreciably, and that's also what happens if you don't try.

[Jeph]

I agree. There is not much to lose if you go slowly. It is the really soft nibs that give me the most fits. Stiff nibs can also be a pain, but "normal" gold nibs usually come into alignment quickly.