stuck nib-collar in a Pelikan 140

I posted the following message on Pentrace yesterday:

"I unscrewed the nib unit on my wife's Pelikan 140 to soak it & then
started to unscrew the nib on the other 140 I recently received from my
father. The 2nd nib came out readily enough, but it wasn't a threaded
unit. That is, the nib separated from the feed. When I was done rinsing
the pen & soaking the nib, I put the nib back on the feed in my best
approximation of its previous position & twisted them back into the
section. The pen fills just fine, but it stops dead & won't write a
word once the ink in the feed (from filling the pen) runs out. I had a
similar mishap & resulting flow problem from a modern Parker Duofold.
What am I doing wrong in resetting nibs to feeds? How can I restore
normal flow?"

Here's the response that seems to address the problem correctly:

"The collar on your pen is still in the pen but is no longer able to
'hold' the nib and feed. ( Reasons? Many. I just got an old 120 with
the same problem and the collar was cracked. The 120 has the same feed
as my 140 (120 has a steel nib) but had a clear plastic collar which
seemed out of place on a Pelikan).
Flow problem probably has to do with the twisting of the nib and
feed back into the pen. Get a good grip (with thumb and finger) on the
nib and feed down near the section and pull it (them) straight out if
you can, If not, walk it ('em) out -but don't twist it (it seems that
nib/feed are being 'unscrewed' but that's not the case)
Position the nib and feed together, lube the with water or spit,
and reset by pushing them straight into the section. (having a piece of
rubber helps give a better grip on nib & feed so one doesn't get ahead
of the other).
Not much effort required though once the collar is cooked (if
that's the case). Collar could be fine but just unable to unscrew due
to old dried up ink holding it in place. Get some water on it and let
it soak into that area. Ink should dissolve quickly. Collar can be
removed by sliding (carefully) a tapered piece of wood (old dip pen
'handle' works) down into barrel to get a grip on inside of collar and
unscrewing it. Some recommend not removing the collar."

Does anyone have any other suggestions to remedy the collar problem or
the reseating/flow problem?

TIA,

Nick Dobson

wrote in message
oups.com...
I posted the following message on Pentrace yesterday:

"I unscrewed the nib unit on my wife's Pelikan 140 to soak it & then
started to unscrew the nib on the other 140 I recently received from my
father. The 2nd nib came out readily enough, but it wasn't a threaded
unit. That is, the nib separated from the feed. When I was done rinsing
the pen & soaking the nib, I put the nib back on the feed in my best
approximation of its previous position & twisted them back into the
section. The pen fills just fine, but it stops dead & won't write a
word once the ink in the feed (from filling the pen) runs out. I had a
similar mishap & resulting flow problem from a modern Parker Duofold.
What am I doing wrong in resetting nibs to feeds? How can I restore
normal flow?"

Here's the response that seems to address the problem correctly:

"The collar on your pen is still in the pen but is no longer able to
'hold' the nib and feed. ( Reasons? Many. I just got an old 120 with
the same problem and the collar was cracked. The 120 has the same feed
as my 140 (120 has a steel nib) but had a clear plastic collar which
seemed out of place on a Pelikan).
Flow problem probably has to do with the twisting of the nib and
feed back into the pen. Get a good grip (with thumb and finger) on the
nib and feed down near the section and pull it (them) straight out if
you can, If not, walk it ('em) out -but don't twist it (it seems that
nib/feed are being 'unscrewed' but that's not the case)
Position the nib and feed together, lube the with water or spit,
and reset by pushing them straight into the section. (having a piece of
rubber helps give a better grip on nib & feed so one doesn't get ahead
of the other).
Not much effort required though once the collar is cooked (if
that's the case). Collar could be fine but just unable to unscrew due
to old dried up ink holding it in place. Get some water on it and let
it soak into that area. Ink should dissolve quickly. Collar can be
removed by sliding (carefully) a tapered piece of wood (old dip pen
'handle' works) down into barrel to get a grip on inside of collar and
unscrewing it. Some recommend not removing the collar."

Does anyone have any other suggestions to remedy the collar problem or
the reseating/flow problem?

TIA,

Nick Dobson

Nick,

I have no experience with a 140, but if they are like 120s here are my
suggestions:
I think the threaded collar that holds the feed and nib together is still in
the body of the pen. It needs to be removed so that on reassembly proper
positioning can be made. Try soaking the body/ barrel of the pen without
the nib feed in it. Try and unscrew the collar using the previous
suggestion of a tapered dip pen holder or tapered dowel. Hopefully the
collar is intact without crack. Mine are black and not clear so they are
the same color as the barrel



I have several Pelikan 120 nibs. Some I've never used. That means they are
intact for good nib and feed location comparison. I use a medium nib
regularly in this pen but right now I have the fine nib in the body. In
cleaning these nibs there is a channel that runs along the upper feed. It
contacts the nib itself after assembly. it may be possible that deposits
have accumulated in that channel not allowing the ink to flow through.
Try cleaning the channel with a tooth brush. Water and a little liquid dish
soap should do the job. Also clean the fins that run 90 degrees to the
length of the feed.



I have assembled these pen nibs using the unused nibs as a guide to
positioning and haven't had a problem. I've had this set circa 1980 and for
a cheap set am impressed. I would suggest the assembling the nib to the
feed so that 3/32" to 1/8" of the nib shows beyond the feed after the collar
is pushed over all while viewing from the underside or while the feed is
toward you. Then screw the whole collar, nib, feed assembly back into the
barrel with thumb and fore finger trying to maintain the positioning and not
getting the central alignment of nib to fib off kilter.



I hope this helps,

Terry