New (to me) fountian pen!

[Jamestellban]

Alright, so I acquired this nice (possibly vintage?) Parker 45 fountain pen of my grand fathers. Its not to sexy, until you pull the cap off and look at it. All great, right?

Well, I have never used a fountain pen in my life. This one hasn't been used in.... 20+ years. AND I have no clue how to fill it with ink
I just thought I'd post. I'll add a couple pictures when I get a chance.

I'll be taking it down to a local book/stationary shop Monday prolly. Hopefully they have some ink for it, and know how to fill it! (Cartridge? Converter? what?)

 

[Tom Pike]

Hey James,

Good for you! Heirloom pens are the best!

It probably has a squeeze convertor inside. The barrel unthreads at the metal ring. I'd avoid soaking the front section in water for very long - the plastic can bubble. However, you'll need to flush out any old ink that's in there. Just try filling it with water, let it sit for a while and repeat. Many bookstores have ink, as do many office supply stores. Stick with Waterman, Parker or Sheaffer and avoid anything you might find at an Art Supply store.

If it's got a cartridge in it instead of a squeeze convertor, don't throw away the old cartridge. You can refill it from a bottle of ink with a syringe. If you can find modern Parker cartridges, they should fit.

Happy Writing!

 

[Jamestellban]

Here are some pictures. I believe you can squeeze it to pump ink. At least that is what my mother has told me. This was my grand fathers favorite pen, and I took his middle name. We have a lot in common really. I wish I could have known him better. Using his pen would really make my day!
So you think I should soak the bladder in water to get the ink out? I'm not sure if the rubber inside is even good anymore. I really should get a new bladder for it probably, but I don't have the foggiest on where to get one. There is no model number of course. It says "Parker 45" and "Made in U.S.A." (which is the best part IMHO), and has a emblem of an arrow (think archery) through a circle northward.

(edit:
Oh, and please excuse any blur... that's off my new Palm Pre, which doesn't focus quite as well as I'd like it to.)

 

[elalan]

The parker converter can last and last. I bet it will work. Take some warm water, say a quart and add a couple drops of dishwashing detergent and a couple drops of ammonia. You can just use warm water too. Stick that converter back on put the entire nib (like the tip and an inch up) and squeeze it a few times. If everything is tight, you should see bubbles and you will draw the solution up into the bladder. Where you might have an issue is with dried ink in the tines of the nib and in the feed. It would be okay to soak the pen's nib in the solution or water for a few hours to loosen them. Parker 45's are not known to have issues with submersion as far as I know. The Parker 75 will but the 45 is pretty indestructible. It is very much a workhorse pen.

 

[Jamestellban]

Well, it doesn't exactly squeeze so easy :/ 20 year old ink can do that
I'll give it a shot, thanks a bunch!

 

[Jamestellban]

I just wanted to say... Thanks to both of you who gave information. I dipped the nib into some warm water, and swirled it a bit, trying to squeeze the converter... and after the water turned blue, I decided to play around, and test the pen on some paper. I wrote my grandfather a nice little note, with 20+ year old blue ink! I then proceeded to write in my journal, and got a good paragraph before it dried up again. Tomorrow I will be cleaning out the old ink, and looking in all the dust covered drawes of storage, for some ink. I'd have never thought about soaking it in water... I thought it had to be replaced. My day is made, because I could write with my pappys old pen. Thanks a million!

 

[kryptik]

Just think, he may have written you a note at some point with that very same ink. Very cool indeed...

 

[chickpea]

For Cleaning/Care/Maintenance (and fomenting your new-found obsession with fountain pens) I recommend Richard Binder's website Richard's Pens

or Fountain Pen Network

Either of these resources will help you get acquainted with your new writing instrument. Congrats it's a beauty.

 

[Cmaster03]

For Cleaning/Care/Maintenance (and fomenting your new-found obsession with fountain pens) I recommend Richard Binder's website Richard's Pens

or Fountain Pen Network

Either of these resources will help you get acquainted with your new writing instrument. Congrats it's a beauty.

Excellent resources. You can lose yourself for hours on Richard's site alone reading about pen history and maintenance.

Reading this thread reminds me I need to clean up a Parker "51" Special that went from writing beautifully smooth to being balky. I suspect some old dried up ink came loose and began gumming up the feed system.

 

[tsmba]

In these days of disposable everything, I enjoy the "feel" of a finely-crafted item. Its true that one can write a letter just as easily with a pencil or Bic pen, but there's something to be said for using a fountain pen. Of course you can take it as far as your heart (and wallet) desires.
Is your paper fountain pen-friendly?

 

[Jamestellban]

Well. Update!
I went down to the local book/stationary and had some excellent customer service. I bough a set of cartridges that work in my pen, but they didn't have any converters. I bought a bottle of ink as well, hoping I could make my old squeeze converter work, but it was much to dried up. Ended up breaking the rubber, and ruinning the bladder. Now I have to find a new converter, or continue using cartridges.
As for paper, no I don't have any special paper. At the moment I'm supposed to be packing, because I'm driving 14 hours tomorrow (starting at 3am) to a new state for barber school. I haven't had much time at all, so I'll have to look for paper when I get there.

 

[superbleu]

James,
Got to this website and request a sample of the 1ml transfer pipet(there is a link in the middle of the page in blue)

You can use these to refill your cartridges with the bottled in you bought.