I'm pretty new to fountain pens, but I've already bought 4 and given 2 away. Thanks B & B! Anyway, I've got a Lamy Nexx that seems always to have a smear of ink coming down he nib. That's not a big deal, since it has a black nib and looks pretty utilitarian. But, I also just bought a Laban Mento. I love it, and it has a "pretty" nib. It hadn't gotten any smears, until I somehow bumped the breather hole when I grabbed for it without looking. Every time I try to wipe it off, whatever I use just pulls up more ink from the nib and leaves a new smear. Short of flushing and giving it a "real" cleaning, what can I do?
Help! There's ink on my nib!
- Thread starter Jnyboer
- Start date
You can wipe but if your paper towel or tissue paper hits the breather hole, or the slit you will just pull up more ink due to capillary action
Just use the edge of a folded piece of paper towel, and wipe without hitting those areas
Just use the edge of a folded piece of paper towel, and wipe without hitting those areas
Depending on the ink it will just creep... Noodler's ink creeps on all my pens.
- Thread starter
- #4
Ive been trying that, and I'm starting to feel a little obsessive.
at this point, I think I'm going to give up. Nibs don't stain, do they?
Nibs should not stain... If it is left on for decades it might a little.Ive been trying that, and I'm starting to feel a little obsessive.
at this point, I think I'm going to give up. Nibs don't stain, do they?
Relax, Don't Worry, Write Nice.
Try another ink.
Your not the only one with this problem lol, Your ink is the likely cause of the issue, so every time you clean it will come back soon anyway but for now a toothbrush hopefully one you don't use any more will do. if you don't have an old one, just don't tell the wife and you should be okay.Ive been trying that, and I'm starting to feel a little obsessive.
Get a cat.
What I hear from syngent is they work wonderfully for nib cleaning.
What I hear from syngent is they work wonderfully for nib cleaning.
thats not true at all, they make things much much worse, and you will have a lot more then a nib to clean by the time you are done
Actually there is no pictures of the cat incident the one you saw I did all on my own well the cat didn't help matters but it was mostly me
But I gavr my cat a liberty Elysium blue mohawk once
But I gavr my cat a liberty Elysium blue mohawk once
I had a pen that was a nib creeper. First, I passed a piece of 20lb paper through the slit. That helped, but did fix it totally. I then folded the paper and passed it in the slit. It opened it up just enough to where it no longer creeps, but has not affected the ink flow. What ink are you using? As others have said, some are more prone to creep than others.
I have this same issue with some pens and noodlers inks. I usually just give the nib a quick wipe with a folded tissue and carry on.
What ink are you using, and does it come in a cartridge or a bottle?
This could be nib creep, I find that with the odd ink even if the nib's clean some ink will crawl up through the slit and sit on the nib, and it comes back if you clean it off. This is not harmful in any way, it just looks messy, and once it's crept it seems happy to sit there so all your ink won't escape.
The other thing it could be is just that something has brushed against the breather hole or the slit, which will pull some ink through. I notice this a lot as I use bottled ink exclusively, and when I wipe the nib off after filling it's extremely difficult to get it clean without pulling more ink through the slit. I've resigned myself to an inky nib. Damp tissue works quite well as the water in the tissue stops it trying to absorb as much ink, but you probably won't get it completely clean.
This could be nib creep, I find that with the odd ink even if the nib's clean some ink will crawl up through the slit and sit on the nib, and it comes back if you clean it off. This is not harmful in any way, it just looks messy, and once it's crept it seems happy to sit there so all your ink won't escape.
The other thing it could be is just that something has brushed against the breather hole or the slit, which will pull some ink through. I notice this a lot as I use bottled ink exclusively, and when I wipe the nib off after filling it's extremely difficult to get it clean without pulling more ink through the slit. I've resigned myself to an inky nib. Damp tissue works quite well as the water in the tissue stops it trying to absorb as much ink, but you probably won't get it completely clean.
- Thread starter
- #15
I used to be anal about nib creep. If it is only a little I don't worry anymore. To me it is kind of like getting grease on a wrench- if you use it, it is going to happen.
Not really the same -- it's not like you had some oil that climbed all over your wrench when you weren't looking. I've had two pens in my pocket all day, both nibs looking clean, zero creep.
True, but if it is only a little I don't worry about it. My No-Nonsenses do it occasionally. If it happen to my M200 I might be more upset about it.
On edit: now that I think about it, it is the one loaded with BSiAR. I think creep is par for the course with Noodler's.
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My Estie currently is loaded with BBB. Let's just say, it looks as though I have a blue nib. Granted, I think there is a problem with the nib (this is highly likely), as I've had BBB in my other two pens, and a Parallel, and none of them have exhibited any creep.
Now, if I could just find a NOS flexy re-new point...
There should be a VERY slight gap between the tines. I had a Chinese pen that creeped excessively, and a magnifying glass showed them touching down the slit. I ran a piece of copy paper between them and it got better. I then went with two and it stopped for good. Take a look and see if yours is touching. I know they make brass shims to do this with, but I am unsure of what thickness you would need. Maybe someone has that info.
