Pen repair

[strop]

Over the last few years I've replaced the sac on some Esterbrooks, but not much else. I promised myself that in retirement I would learn toat least work my way up to a vacumatic and hopefully a plunger fill. Well, I'm not fully retired, but do have more time on my hands, so I thought I'd take the plunge with a couple of Touchdowns. When I received my supplies from Pendomonium, they included a reprint from Frank Dubeil's book on pen repair. He advises attaching the section and barrel with a bit of rubber cement. Sounds like that might be easier to reverse if needed than shellac. Think I'll give it a try. Anyone else ever use this to secure the section onto the barrel?

 

[nemo]

...Frank Dubeil's book on pen repair. He advises attaching the section and barrel with a bit of rubber cement. Sounds like that might be easier to reverse if needed than shellac. Think I'll give it a try. Anyone else ever use this to secure the section onto the barrel?

May work just fine, Mark. All you're looking for is an airtight seal for when you pump the pressure to squeeze the sac.

I have used the Sheaffer-formula section sealant that Ron Zorn developed and sells, I use it as an all-purpose sealer for many jobs -- Vacumatics included. Works for anything you want sealed for ink or air yet still comes apart easily (like the rubber cement).
Link:

Main Street Pens - Quality Pen Repair

Have fun with the repairs. I've repaired, restored, and enjoyed just about every type of pen but I don't do Vac-fil Sheaffers -- one was enough!

 

[strop]

Well, my bottle must be old, since it was pretty solid and didn't do much to hold the barrel on, though seems to seal it well. The repair works, which is the main thing. I already had some sealant on order from David Nishimura, so I'll give that a try as well.

 

[nemo]

.... I already had some sealant on order from David Nishimura, so I'll give that a try as well.

Likely the same or very similar rosin-based product.