Four Eyedropper Pens

[VertOlive]

OK, here they are fresh from Curacao! These came to me as a PIF from our own mhguda. Four eyedropper pens and a little writing sample. All of them are inked with the well behaved Sailor Jentle Blue and the writing was done on my Rhodia notebook:



Obviously, I have some things to learn about using these. The Reynolds leaks from the nib--is this because it was not totally full of ink? And the first Serwex burped some ink--again, is it how I filled them?

Will continue to experiment as I write letters. So far I like the Oliver best! [I had a dog named Oliver...]

[Cob]

I like the line "burped some ink" I recently bought an extremely old Swan 1500 eye-dropper. I thought it would be a good idea to clean it out, which I did. Now it is better called an eye-gusher! Funny though: after the initial flood, it writes beautifully. A bit of a grrrrr situation!

Do keep us informed if you find a solution to the er, dyspepsia!

Best wishes

Cob

[Lady Onogaro]

I bought a Serwex a while ago, and it burped like that, too. I haven't refilled it. I actually have two of them, but one doesn't work (the piston is completely frozen). Someone suggested that I remove the piston if I can and grease it. I will probably try that if I can remove the piston.

[mhguda]

Sorry to hear about your trouble. I greased the threads, so I doubt it's that, but maybe they are not tight enough? Then again, be sure not to overtighten. I've not had that problem with these pens, in fact all except the Oliver were used, the Serwexes quite regularly. If tightening the section a little does not help, try pushing the nib and feed in a little bit, gripping both together with your fingers - you may want to use a paper towel or ink rag. Gently push inward a little bit, and maybe turn the whole thing around. Remember, Curaçao is a tropical island, and if you have a climate-controlled writing room, the ambient temperature change may have some influence on how the pens behave.
The curved nib is an adaptation of my own, and I rather liked the result; it's almost like a stub, and gives a nice line thickness variation.
I hope you get them to work properly. Keep us informed!

[bc.hiker]

They're all very nice looking pens. As for the leaks....I do have a very old Waterman eyedropper that belonged to DH's grandfather. It was doing the same thing....ink gushing out when I first used it, then the more I wrote, it would begin to 'settle down' and all was well. I asked on the Inky Thoughts section about inks to use in eyedroppers. They said that dry inks might be the best, not to be confused with inks that dry more quickly. I got some Bernanke Blue (Noodlers) just for that eyedropper. It was a big improvement over the ink I had in it at first. They tell me that Bernanke Blue is more of a fast drying ink, but isn't really considered a 'dry' ink. They said one of the Diamine colors was more of a dry ink. Can't remember which color it was without referring to the thread. Next time I fill it I'll use Diamine Ancient Copper which is the only Diamine ink I have on hand to see if that will improve it even more. So it could also be an ink issue more than a pen issue. If you're using inks that are considered to be 'wet' the gushing might be exacerbated. I'm new to all of this too, but thought I'd tell you what people in the Inky Thoughts section had to say. There's always so much to learn!

[Cob]

They're all very nice looking pens. As for the leaks....I do have a very old Waterman eyedropper that belonged to DH's grandfather. It was doing the same thing....ink gushing out when I first used it, then the more I wrote, it would begin to 'settle down' and all was well. I asked on the Inky Thoughts section about inks to use in eyedroppers. They said that dry inks might be the best, not to be confused with inks that dry more quickly. I got some Bernanke Blue (Noodlers) just for that eyedropper. It was a big improvement over the ink I had in it at first. They tell me that Bernanke Blue is more of a fast drying ink, but isn't really considered a 'dry' ink. They said one of the Diamine colors was more of a dry ink. Can't remember which color it was without referring to the thread. Next time I fill it I'll use Diamine Ancient Copper which is the only Diamine ink I have on hand to see if that will improve it even more. So it could also be an ink issue more than a pen issue. If you're using inks that are considered to be 'wet' the gushing might be exacerbated. I'm new to all of this too, but thought I'd tell you what people in the Inky Thoughts section had to say. There's always so much to learn!

I realise that I am slightly off-topic having introduced the subject of ancient eye-droppers in Vertolive's review thread, but I suppose I am on-topic for burps!
I have just this moment tried the Swan 1500; it made a little puddle, followed by a smaller one and then wrote beautifully. I have a bottle of Quink blue-black which I don't actually use for writing, because it generally dries to a sort of sea-green colour - though funnily not with this pen - I use it - to use it up - for testing etc. I have several different Diamine colours; I'll give one of them a try and report the outcome.

Interesting stuff,

Best wishes

Cob

[Deb]

Pelikan 4001 Black is reported to be a good ink for eyedropper fillers.

[Sailor Kenshin]

The Reynolds is CUTE.

[VertOlive]

All the pens are stabilizing with use. We've had some wild barometric fluctuations with the weather hereabouts, a possible factor?

[mhguda]

Could very well be. It's interesting that your pen could tell you something about the weather...

[Woody]

I would say its a good premise. I live in an area where the pressure is quite stable. Also the only eye droppers I use are Edison's with the screw in nib unit. Have never had a problem with burping. Not yet at any rate.

[Cob]

Continuing off-topic (blush) I have a second Swan 1500 eye-dropper with a Swan 3 nib, obviously retro-fitted; this one is entirely continent, indeed yesterday it dried up and I found it still had a decent amount of ink inside - hot weather perhaps!

I tested the other one also last night: One large burp, one small one and then lovely smooth writing. Most strange.

Perhaps this ought to be in another section of the forum; apologies to Vertolive for hi-jacking this thread.

Best wishes

Cob

[Sailor Kenshin]

All the pens are stabilizing with use. We've had some wild barometric fluctuations with the weather hereabouts, a possible factor?

Also the heat of the user's hand.

Another factor is the complexity of the pen's feed. Which is why I ended up using my Serwex as a dipper, and am looking for a sac for my Airmail.

[mhguda]

I think temperature-wise, if there is a large difference between ambient temperature and that of the user's hand, that may contribute. However I have used three of these four pens pretty regularly, and never had a problem. But my ambient temperature would be around 28 29C year-round, seeing as I am in a tropical island, and do not use AC. Olive has not said what the ambient temperature is when she uses the pens or when they are stored. But if there are large air pressure swings that would contribute to burping; speaking from experience (air travel) here.
And yes, the feeds of all of these pens are simple and they do not have a very high storage capacity. I think they were all optimized for use in a tropical, humid climate - that is where they were manufactured and sold.

[DanDeM]

Eye droppers burp.

When and how much depends upon the design of the feed and the flow
regulator that may or may not extend from the back of the feed. The
better designs will only burp when the ink level is low. Paul Wirt patented
and made five different feeds before he go to that point. Has to do with
air pressure building up in the barrel.

The insistence of the problem is the whole reason why pen makers started
to use sacs. As a sac empties it collapses; reduces air pressure.

[VertOlive]

Another factor, then. Besides this section of the house having no A/C, and it being tornado season, I did not fill each pen entirely, but perhaps 1/3 full.

[Cob]

Well I have posted some stuff about my Swan 1500 in the repairs section: today's events have not helped in any way my understanding of these things. I have a baby eye-dropper a Japanese "Little 75" - ancient - which works perfectly, but this one has a conventional feed...

Rgds

Cob

[mhguda]

Another factor, then. Besides this section of the house having no A/C, and it being tornado season, I did not fill each pen entirely, but perhaps 1/3 full.

Well, here is another thing to try: put more ink in at least one of them, so that it is at least 2/3 full, and see if it burps then...

[tiffanyhenschel]

Temperature and air pressure are issues, but the quality of the feed is a big factor. I have never, ever had one of my Edison pens burp ink in three years of extensive use, no matter the ink level.

[Tracy Lee]

Temperature and air pressure are issues, but the quality of the feed is a big factor. I have never, ever had one of my Edison pens burp ink in three years of extensive use, no matter the ink level.

My Edison has never ever burped either. Doesn't even leak when I fly.