2006-05-31
13:49
Fountain Pen Converters
Converters?
Long ago, fountain pens had a hollow body to store ink, and you used an eyedropper to fill the tube up with ink from a bottle. Some still do. Many others started using various different mechanisms for filling, with levers, pistons, and even extendable tubes to dip into the bottle.
Most now take ink cartridges instead. The ink comes in a sealed plastic tube, that you just push into place in the pen, breaking the seal and allowing ink to flow. When the cartridge runs out, you pull it out, throw it in the bin, and push another one in.
Lots of people still like to use bottled ink, so along comes a device called a converter. It allows use of bottled inks in a cartridge pen. A converter is a similar shape and size to the cartridges it replaces, and fits into the pen in the same way – usually just pushing into place.
Why Use a Converter?
- Cheaper – if you use a lot of ink, you’ll save a fair bit of money by buying bottled ink, compared to cartridges. The converter will probably pay for itself before you get through the first bottle.
- More Choice – you can get a huge range of inks in bottles. Many more than you can get in cartridges, especially if your pen takes proprietary cartridges. My Lamy pen could only take Lamy ink before. Now, with a cheap converter, I have access to hundreds of different types of ink.
- Ink Snobbery – few people will admit it, but there’s something kind of nice about being a bit fussy about the ink you use. By time you’ve tested a few different ones and settled on a favourite, you’ve spent a whole lot of money, and the ‘cheaper’ argument no longer applies. Cheapness or snobbery. Pick one.
Fittings
The first consideration is that you need the right sort of converter to fit your pen. Most fountain pens take a type of cartridge developed by
My Lamy Safari needed the right one of three different converters made by Lamy. Fortunately, they’re cheap enough (mine cost less than £3, from The Writing Desk in the UK). Sam has a fountain pen from
Types
A Parker pen I had came with a converter where you squeezed a spring-loaded strip of metal, which deflated a rubber bag. Releasing it again sucked.
A different model of Parker we have came with the more common piston type. With this one, you actually pulled and pushed the end of the piston manually, at the top of the converter.
The two we’ve just bought (in the picture – we’ll be writing about the Noodler’s Ink soon), and most of the other models at The Writing Desk, have sections at the top that you turn, which screw the piston mechanism up and down. This does seem to work better, making for a less jerky movement, and a more gentle sucking. An improvement, I think.
Filling
There’s two different methods you can use for filling…
- Fill the cartridge, then put it in the pen: dip the cartridge in the ink, and do what you have to do to make it suck (usually sliding the piston up). Once it’s full, put it in the pen like a cartridge, but taking care not to drip ink as you do so. This way, you don’t dip the nib in the ink, leaving the pen cleaner.
- Fill the cartridge in the pen: put the cartridge in the pen empty, then dip the whole of the nib into the ink bottle (trying to avoid staining the pen itself). Operate the piston, so the ink is sucked up into the cartridge. Tap the pen on the edge of the bottle to shake off any drops, and clean the nib if needed.
I found out that if you try the first method after cleaning the pen through with water, the ink can come through almost unusably watered-down for a long time. I’d avoid this method at least the first time, and I think I’ll be sticking with the second from now on anyway.
Conclusion
Converters are an easy way to open up more use of a cartridge pen. If you write a lot, you can even save a bit of money. If you’re anything like me, though, you’ll just start wanting to try lots of different types of ink, and that can start to get expensive.
is the excellent Notebookism.
Hope this is the one you’re hunting for, honeybee!
hi all, i have been driving myself nuts looking for a link to this blog i found on this site that was about journal addicts and what notebooks/journals etc they love. i am trying to track down this amazing looking journal i have seen in a picture of derek jarman’s study in a book about his garden and i wanted to possibly post a request on that site. thanks. honeybee : )
hi all, Well I have been doing a little research and I found this list of water proof/water resistant inks on the FPN… http://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=14905&st=0 So I searched Pelikan cartridges and the cartridges use the black 4001 ink too!! Does anyone know just how “water resistant” this ink is? Thanks. Honeybee : )
[...] directly, or (more commonly in modern pens) using a converter, you can use any of a huge variety of different inks, all in the same pen. A bit [...]
Do these converters fit SHAEFFER PENS. I own 3 Shaeffer fountain pens and two of them came with the optional converts. I’s like to buy 2 more converters. thanks, Ava
Hi Ava,
As mentioned in the article, Sheaffer use their own type of cartridge, so you’ll need a Sheaffer-specific converter for them. There are also some older models of Sheaffer that use a slimline cartridge, which is a different design again, but I’m afraid I’ve no idea which ones use those. Unless it’s an unusually compact design of pen, though, I think it’ll be the standard Sheaffer cartridges.
I always do, but not everyone agrees. Some people don’t like getting ink that’s been in a pen mixed back in with the ink in the bottle. There are a couple of reasons…
I tend to be fairly careless about these things – the risk of sediment is pretty small, and you can avoid problems with changing colours by flushing the pen a bit more carefully. It probably depends a lot on the value of pens you’re dealing with, too – no point in spending too much extra time and effort to save a small risk to a £14 Lamy Safari, but if you were dealing with a £250 Pelikan, you might want to take more care.
Hi Claudine,
It’s pretty much inpossible to say – depends how much you write, how much the converter holds, and how much ink the pen gives out. I’ve got two Safaris and an AL-star now, and they vary a lot. Most people seem to reckon to get at least a day or two of writing out of a converter, though, unless they do a lot of writing. I usually fill mine way before it’s empty, but with the amount of writing I do, I could probably go for a week or more.
With the Safari, you can see the ink level through the windows in the barrel, so there’s less risk than with most others – or at least, you know it’s coming up so you can top up when you need to.
I’ve actually filled a very small bottle that came filled with lavender oil, with ink, and keep that in my bag. Gives me a few spare fills available all the time. Might be a good compromise if you find that running out is a real risk. The bottle needs to be very clean first, though, to make sure you don’t end up with mould growing in the ink – preferably boiled – and you need to really trust the cap to seal and stay sealed. I actually boiled my bottle with a bit of detergent in water, in a pan on the hob. There’s a risk of cracking the glass bottle when you boil it, but if it makes it through the process, it’ll be safe for ink. Then, you just need an eyedropper to transfer the ink.
I didn’t have an eyedropper, but I used my Sheaffer Snorkel instead
I am getting very close to buying my first fountain pen in about ten years. (I suspect it will be a Lamy Safari.)
I like the idea of using bottled ink, but I do not like the idea of carrying a bottle of ink around in my bag. Can you estimate how frequently you need to fill the pen? What happens if I run out of ink in the middle of the day and the ink is at home? (Use a spare ballpoint pen? Ick.)
Thanks! Now I think of it, refilling before it gets empty makes sense — just like recharging my phone.
I have been using my waterford converter for a couple months now and I refill it several times in one sitting (a sitting totalling probably 5-10 pages) I would guess I probably refill the cartridge twice – that seems really high to me. Is something wrong with my pen or converter? (Suspicions anyone). I am new to converters so any help would be appreciated. I like the idea of taking a glass vial with extra ink with you. I was hoping that someone would make custom ink cartridges to order but I haven’t had any luck (my living conditions don’t lend themselves to fountain pens, If anyone has any suggesstions please let me know.
L
That does sound like a lot of refilling. Can you see the converter in your pen, to tell if it’s getting reasonably full?
I need a replacement converter (squeezes a spring-loaded strip of metal, which deflates a rubber bag. Releasing it again sucks ink into rubber bag), for a Sheaffer Targa pen with a 14k Gold Medium Italic nib. Does anyone know where and how I can obtain a replacement converter … the rubber bag in mine has a leak! Much thanks. Jeris Miller jerism@msn.com
It depends what country you’re in, Jeris – as mentioned above, there’s only a couple of different types of converter around for Sheaffer pens, so most decent fountain pen suppliers should be able to get you the right one. Here in the UK, either Cult Pens or The Writing Desk would probably be able to help.
pigpogm,
I’m glad I found this page! I ran across a pen website and am considering the purchase of a Lamy pen, and I was a bit confused about the converted, until now–most pen sites sell it, but no one explains what it is (I guess they assume if you’re buying it, you’ll know what it is.)
I’m not trying to get you too far off topic, but I had a question about the Lamy pen that I might buy, and seeing as you have the same one, maybe you can help. I don’t know if I should get fine, medium, extra fine, etc. I know it’s ultimately personal preference, but I have no way of personally comparing the options without buying one of each, and I’d rather not do that. Have you had experience with each of the choices? Is there any way you can explain the width of the line or show me a picture with some sort of scale reference (e.g. use the pen on lined notebook paper or something)?
Also, are the Lamy Safari and Al-Star models pretty much the same as far as functionality? Or would you suggest a different brand of pen altogether in this price range? I want something affordable, but I don’t want something that will be a bad experience and discourage me from buying better pens in the future.
Thanks for your help!
–Stephen
Hi Stephen,
Glad to help on the converter issue.
As for the Safari, I’ve only actually used the medium nib, so I’m probably not in a good position to advise on that. Generally, though, the thinner the nib, the ‘scratchier’ it will tend to feel, but will make a much thinner line. I also tend to find my writing looks much more messy with a fine than a medium, but I think that’s just me. Compared with gel pens and such like, the medium probably writes closest to a .7mm pen – if you usually try to get the finer points for gel pens, I’d probably try for a fine Safari. They can also vary a little – I’ve got a red Safari that puts down a wider and wetter line than my black one, even though it’s supposed to be the same nib. If it’s any help, most of the people who I’ve read about trying different widths seem to end up using the fine. Doesn’t mean it’s the best for you, but other people seem to like it. If I was ordering now from somewhere that gave a choice, I’d probably go for a fine myself.
The Al-Star is just the same pen in aluminium casing. There’s also the Vista, which is the same pen again in clear plastic. The metal casing is actually easier to scratch and dent than the plastic, but some people don’t like the plastic look.
The only reasons I’ve heard for people not liking the Safari are either they hate the looks (presumably you don’t, or you wouldn’t be getting this far), or they really like a heavier pen. The Safari is very light weight, and some people don’t like that. It’s probably something you’re not going to know until you try it.
Other things to look at in the same price range as a Safari – could be worth looking at what Parker offers. They still do a few different pens in the same price range as the Safari, and none of them are bad. If you want a bit more weight and nice looks, most are available in the stainless steel ‘Flighter’ finish, which are often nice pens. The Frontier is a fairly broad writer, but very nice and smooth. Lots of people like the Vector, but I’ve not tried the standard fountain pen version, just the calligraphy version. Even the bottom of the range Jotter works well enough.
Hello again,
I just wanted to give you an update. I ended up ordering the Lamy Safari pen with a fine nib. I also ordered the converter, and after reading your entry about ink, I definitely ordered a bottle of Noodler’s waterproof eternal black ink. (I actually found one US store online that had all three items in stock!)
They arrived today, and I am very happy with the purchase! The pen feels very comfortable, especially when I leave the surprising large cap off the end. I normally prefer heavier metal pens, but for writing with this fountain pen, I think the light weight will be a nice change and may help me learn to not press so hard, which I have a bad habit of doing. Also, the nib is MUCH smoother than I expected (I played with my mother’s fountain pen when I was younger and I recall the nib was very scratchy). I think the fine nib was an excellent choice too, but I still want to experience other nibs in the future, including calligraphy.
I tried to fill the converter with your second method (dipping the nib in the ink and drawing the ink through), but this did not work. I’m fairly sure I had the nib submerged correctly, but perhaps because this was the first ink the pen had ever seen, it preferred to have it go through the inside first. So then I tried your first method and filled the converter directly and that worked perfectly. I’ll try the nib-in-bottle method again for my next refill. (if you think I did something wrong, please let me know)
As far as the ink goes, I’m glad I found your entry about Noodler’s. I’m a medical student and I think it’s important to have the security of permanent waterproof ink when writing patient records, prescriptions, and financial documents. My original idea was to use this pen (and future ones) for personal enjoyment, but then I decided that I’ll probably enjoy it so much that I will want to use it in every-day situations.
Thank you again for the very helpful information!
–Stephen
Thanks for the update, Stephen. Glad you’re happy with the stuff.
The only thing you might have done wrong in filling is that the whole nib needs to be dipped, so you really need to dip part of the section in the ink too (the part where your fingers grip). Otherwise, it will draw in more air than anything else. Fortunately, with the Safari, you can see most of the converter to be able to check if it’s filling properly or not. Many fountain pens have the converter fitted so deeply into the section that you can’t see at all (my Parker 45 for example – an otherwise nice pen, but you can’t check the ink level at all easily).
Noodler’s – we’re still loving it. The Eternal black is great stuff. The only thing to watch for is that it’s not good ink to leave in a pen that’s not being used regularly. If you end up with more than one pen (oh, come on, you know you will) it’s a good idea to empty and flush with water any you’re not going to be using for a while.
Most inks can stand to have quite a bit of water evaporate from them before they become ‘dangerous’ and risk throwing a sediment inside the pen’s feed. Noodler’s is a very saturated ink, so it doesn’t have as much water to loose before it becomes risky. It’s very safe if the pen is used reasonably often, though, and I think you’d probably have to be leaving a pen for months, not days, for it to be a risk. I’ve not had any problems, and it seems to be very popular stuff with people on The Fountain Pen Network.
With regard to filling ink converters, I’d prefer filling the ink cartridge directly from the ink bottle. Then, to avoid the watery writing with a newly rinsed pen, you can blot the nib with some tissue to soak out the water before you put the filled converter into the pen. Though, mind you don’t clog your nib up with tissue material — the stronger types of tissue would be best (maybe if you have paper napkins or similar).
Cheers
Thanks, John, that’s a useful tip. I’ve got at least one pen that really doesn’t like drawing ink up into the converter (Rotring Skynn, the converter I’ve got doesn’t fit it too well), and it’s always nice to have to option of not getting the nib all inky. I guess you could also force some ink through the feed by pushing the converter down (partly emptying it) whilst it’s in the pen, but it would be more wasteful of ink than your trick.
In an attempt to avoid watery writing from a pen newly-rinsed at work, I generally put the nib unit under one of those hot-air hand-driers to dry it out… now beginning to wonder if this is excessively brutal, though.
Hmm. It all depends on how waterproof you need. Quite a few inks will survive a bit of splashing, so a spilled drink won’t make everything disappear. If you need it to take much more than that, though, you probably need either Noodler’s ink or an iron gall ink. Both of these have their risks to the pen, though.
Noodler’s is probably the safest option, but isn’t available in cartridges. Diamine make their Registrar’s Ink in cartridges (we sell it at Cult Pens here), but it’s not good for your pen. It has particles that risk clogging, and it’s acidic, so it will eat away at almost any metal parts that aren’t gold – a Lamy nib, for example. Oh, and it’s only in International cartridges, which Lamy pens don’t take – Lamy pens only take Lamy cartridges.
There is one other option – refilling cartridges. I’ve never done it myself, but there are people on Fountain Pen Network who swear by it – just use a syringe to fill a used cartridge with ink from a bottle, then stick it straight into your pen again. It sounds like a messy plan to me, but maybe that’s half the fun
Hi all, I have just finished reading this interesting thread.I have a Lamy Safari with a medium nib and I am just a learner.I didn’t realize how waterproof my pen ink is but now that i am using the Lamy cartrigdes with black ink i am discovering how drops of water fall on the notes on my desk and make the ink run and this has made me want to buy a converter pronto and get some noodlers ink.I am interested to know if the cartridges actually last longer then a completely filled converter.Once every day or two sounds like heaps to me. Thanks. Honeybee : )
Thanks for that pigpogm.So that makes me wonder if any other brands take cartridges that have waterproof ink already in them.I write a lot and filling mid writing session doesn’t appeal to me. Honeybee : )
Hi Honeybee,
Yes, a cartridge will usually contain more ink than a converter, because the converter needs some space for the filling mechanism. Some people like the ‘squeeze sac’ type of converters (which aren’t often available these days), because they hold more ink than the piston ones. I generally like the piston ones, because you can usually see how much ink you have left, so you don’t run out unexpectedly. The Safari only takes the Lamy piston converter, and it has nice little windows in the barrel to let you see how much ink is left in the converter.
I’ve found the best way to avoid watery ink after a cleaning is to use the second method of refilling. I dip the entire nib under the surface of the ink (just up to the section) and then slowly run the ink from the bottle in and out of the pen a few times. This flushes the water out of the section and nib and into the ink bottle. The effect of such a minuscule amount of water being pushed back into the ink bottle is completely inconsequential, and the pen is then ready to write immediately.
Noodlers’ says that their inks can be safely reconstituted with ordinary tap water, so I feel safe in doing this. Bear in mind however, I do not use any chemicals or soaps to clean my nibs. I just flush them out with hot (but never boiling) water.
Well, that is a bummer.Maybe I won’t find filling a converter as mucky as i think it will be.I am not a big fan of getting ink on things.I want it to be as clean and easy as possible but I do want my writing to not run.It sounds like i have to use Noodlers and see if I can deal with being a converter user.I am happy to buy another pen if the cartridge options are better,I will be buying many more pens anyway : ) , but I guess everyone uses the safest possible inks in their cartridges.I have really taken for granted how tough my Uniball Jetstream ink is.I really love how it feels to write with the Lamy fountain pen.It feels like magic.I am going to have to make peace with a converter and with the staining abilities of ink. Thanks pigpogm. Honeybee : )