Help me get my fountain pen working again

March 11, 2023 8:58 PM

I pulled my fountain pen out of the drawer after letting it sit for too many years. It doesn't seem to be functioning properly after such a long period of not being used.

I purchased the pen in 1998 with the prize money that accompanied my first professional award, so the pen has sentimental value to me.

It's an Elysée. It came with the converter (to draw ink from a bottle), but I've never used that. I've only ever used the Elysée cartridges.

One of the reasons I put it away is that I was down to my last cartridge, and since the company is out of business, I couldn't buy more. I stopped by the local fountain pen shop and they offered me a free "private reserve DC supershow blue" cartridge to try as a substitute, but I never got around to doing that until today.

Every time I put my pen away for any length of time, I make sure the cartridge is out, and the pen as been cleaned (basically running warm water through it until the water runs clear). I try to make sure there is no ink stuck to the exterior of the nib.

Today, I inserted the new cartridge and nothing really happened. It didn't flow. Black ink seemed to quickly build up around the edge/rim of the nib. I pulled the cartridge out, ran some warm water through the pen, dried it thoroughly, and reinserted the cartridge. The ink that came out was a mixture of very fine and pale blue that transitioned to black before stopping entirely. I pulled out the cartridge and binned it, and, once again, subjected it to warm water.

Before I start to do anything more extreme to it, I thought I'd ask the experts here what my next steps should be.

Here's the pen in question. (I swear the photos make it looked marred and scratched up in a way that it really isn't).
https://imgur.com/eVo9YH6
https://imgur.com/hN4dGhb
https://imgur.com/xJJAOhM
https://imgur.com/6mWnuUs
https://imgur.com/XdR83cT
https://imgur.com/D1mkrfp

posted by sardonyx to Media & Arts (21 answers total)

You may have tossed the cart a bit premature, as according to Jetpens, it can take several minutes for the ink to re-saturate the pen down to the nib. They recommend cap your pen and let it sit nib down in a cup for at least 15 minutes (if not a couple hours).

That ink is a good ink, if a bit wet and takes about 40 seconds to dry according to one review.

What brand is that pen, BTW?
posted by kschang at 10:05 PM on March 11, 2023 [3 favorites]

Can you disassemble it? Remove the nib and feed to make sure there’s no dried ink. You might need to floss the tines. Head over to r/fountainpens on Reddit to read advice to others with similar problems.
posted by TWinbrook8 at 11:03 PM on March 11, 2023 [1 favorite]

Your nib looks like it’s in very good shape and the two sides are perfectly aligned.

I have disturbed that alignment on a couple of old Parkers and Pelikans and never gotten it quite right again, with the result that the pen was considerably scratchier. Which drove me crazy.

So I wouldn’t remove the nib — and if you ever have it worked on, I would say take an extreme close-up of the nib in case it comes back home scratchier.
posted by jamjam at 11:32 PM on March 11, 2023 [1 favorite]

The stationers around here which sells fountain pens has an ultrasonic cleaning machine and will put a pen in it for you when they're not busy. They don't charge for this.
Typically, though, I run the nib under s small stream of water till the water coming off is clear, and then put fresh ink in it. If that doesn't work I soak it in a glass of clean water overnight and then run water through it until it's clear coming out, and I put fresh ink in it.
If you live ina dry climate this is soemthing you'll have to do every so often.
posted by AugustusCrunch at 11:46 PM on March 11, 2023

Haven’t used a fountain pen for a while but it was my primary writing tool from primary school through high school. Whenever a new cartridge didn’t seem to work, I took it out, dipped the nib in it to soak up a bit of ink to start writing and put the cartridge back in. Repeatedly if needed until the ink didn’t run out when writing, i.e., the flow from the cartridge had come down far enough to reach the nib. It may have been that holding the pen down would have worked as well eventually, but in my mind what I did shortened the path the ink needed to flow down on as it only had to reach the drop I had put there and connect to it; plus I could write right away.
posted by meijusa at 12:53 AM on March 12, 2023 [1 favorite]

I pulled the cartridge out, ran some warm water through the pen, dried it thoroughly, and reinserted the cartridge.

I'd do that again, only after running the warm water through the pen I'd leave it sitting overnight in a cup of warm water with a splash of methylated spirits or isopropyl alcohol and a drop or two of well dissolved dish detergent (the hand washing kind, not the dishwasher stuff!), then rinse with more running water.

My thinking there is that really the only thing that's ever going to stop an old fountain pen in otherwise good condition from working is some tiny bit of ink dried hard in some little nook or cranny where it would not usually get time to dry; and that the only way to lift that, short of an ultrasonic cleaner, is going to be a good long soak. The alcohol might help if some of the ink has actually polymerized a little, and the dish detergent would lower the surface tension enough to promote really good wetting. I wouldn't expect low concentrations of either of those substances to damage the pen in any way.

I also wouldn't dry it thoroughly after the second wash. Instead, I'd content myself with shaking it vigorously to dislodge most of the loose water before reinstalling the cartridge and starting to make test strokes on paper. I'd expect any water that remained in the pen's assorted tight little channels to be a help, not a hindrance, to initiating the capillary action that's ultimately responsible for feeding the ink to the tip of the nib.
posted by flabdablet at 5:17 AM on March 12, 2023 [3 favorites]

Not sure if it’s just because it’s out of focus, but the feed looks a bit funky. Also, don’t use warm water to clean out a fountain pen, as the feeds are often made of a fairly soft plastic (or ebonite, although that’s not the case here). Cool water.

Anyway, a few things:

Try lightly squeezing a damp paper around the nib and feed. This is often enough to get the capillary action started. If that doesn’t work run some cold water over the nib for a second and try the damp paper towel again.

If you think it might need more cleaning, get a water bulb so you can force water through the nib and feed. Try adding a tiny amount of dish soap to the rinse water, The ultimate solution is to run some Koh-I-Noor Rapido-Eze through the nib and feed. That stuff can get a surprising amount of ink out of pens you’d swear were squeaky clean. Rinse with water afterwards.

Once you know the nib and feed are completely clean, you need to make sure you have primed the feed. With a converter and bottled ink this is easy. Dipping the rib into the bottle to draw up ink primes the feed, and if it dries up you can always twist the converter knob to force ink down into the feed. This is not so easily done with a cartridge, but if it’s one of the flexible kinds you could try squeezing it lightly with the nib pointing down over the sink or a trash can until a drop of ink comes out.


Supersaturated inks like the Private Reserve inks are notorious for clogging up feeds if they dry up in there. That’s why they are so full of surfactants. After some bad experiences I won’t use them any more. If I were you, I’d get some Rapido-Eze.
posted by slkinsey at 6:48 AM on March 12, 2023 [1 favorite]

Do not run methylated spirits or isopropyl alcohol through your fountain pen!
posted by slkinsey at 6:55 AM on March 12, 2023 [3 favorites]

I'm still relatively new to fountain pens, and I'm a little confused about what ink has been in the pen at what points in time. But if you had blue in the pen the last time it was functioning correctly (but not at all recently), and the new cartridge you used was black, then this

The ink that came out was a mixture of very fine and pale blue that transitioned to black before stopping entirely.

suggests to me that there is still some old blue ink somewhere that's gumming up the works. If so, then more cleaning/soaking would seem to be in order.

By the way, if your pen only takes proprietary cartridges (which it seems are no longer available?): you can use a syringe to refill old cartridges with new ink.
posted by cellar door at 6:59 AM on March 12, 2023

FWIW, that "reserve" ink is brilliant blue.
posted by kschang at 7:54 AM on March 12, 2023

Cool PDF here on Elysée pens. Looks like yours is a Dynamic model (see p. 61).
posted by slkinsey at 9:16 AM on March 12, 2023

Do not run methylated spirits or isopropyl alcohol through your fountain pen!

Not neat, no. That would be pointless, because the inks whose dried remains you're trying to shift were always water based and water will be the best solvent for them.

I still think a little bit of alcohol included in the soak water, up to about the concentration you'd find in a beer, would help loosen long-dried ink stains. And at that low a concentration I can't see it damaging anything that wouldn't also be damaged by water.
posted by flabdablet at 10:08 AM on March 12, 2023

Koh-I-Noor used to make a pen-cleaning solution called Rapidoeze which has been practically miraculous with every pen I’ve used it on, although it was formulated for technical pens.

I think organic solvents have too much of an ability to melt and cloud plastics to use on fountain pens, and the essential oils in many dishwashing liquids are among the worst offenders.
posted by jamjam at 1:38 PM on March 12, 2023 [1 favorite]

Fountain Pen Hospital will fix anything, probably for about $70-100. Speaking from experience, they are reliable and very careful. If you have no luck with the tips here, try them.

ETA: they no longer repair everything. Check to see if your pen is eligible.
posted by blnkfrnk at 2:17 PM on March 12, 2023

jamjam has it. Methylated spirits and isopropyl alcohol contain components that can melt and cloud the plastics used in fountain pens and fountain pen feeds. Water, on the other hand, is really only dangerous to celluloid and casein pen body materials. Personally I would never soak an actual pen body in anything for an extended period of time. The nib/feed/collar, sure, but not the pen. There’s also no need to take that risk when Rapido-Eze is readily available and inexpensive.
posted by slkinsey at 2:48 PM on March 12, 2023 [1 favorite]

I run my fountain pens through the same ultrasonic cleaner that I use for my eyeglasses with just water and it's *stunning* how much ink flows out of a supposedly "clean" pen that is running clear from the sink. For really stubborn situations I use a dash of Goulet's pen flush.
posted by MagnificentVacuum at 5:49 PM on March 12, 2023

FWIW, cheap ultrasonic cleaners are available on Amazon for $30 or less. And you just need regular dish soap and water.
posted by kschang at 6:30 PM on March 12, 2023

Response by poster: I'll give the drop of dishwashing detergent a try first, but I suspect I may need something with a bit more oomph just to make sure it's completely flushed out.

It looks like my local pen store only has MONTEVERDE Fountain Pen Flush or J. HERBIN Fountain Pen Cleaning Fluid. Anybody have any experience with either of these brands?

I've never removed the nib, and I really don't want to start now, as I know I'd never get it reset properly again, or I'd damage it trying to remove it.
posted by sardonyx at 6:32 PM on March 12, 2023

Best answer: if these solutions don't work, there are nib workers/fountain pen repair folks that could likely fix it for you - message me if you want any contact info. I agree with the pen flush and/or the bulb syringe and water. You can also make your own pen flush.
posted by needlegrrl at 7:45 AM on March 13, 2023

Response by poster: I tried the make-your-own-pen-flush approach. It took a number of soakings and cleanings, not to mention a few days of just sitting there, letting the ink work its way through the pen, but finally, it's working. Or at least, it seems to be picking up the ink and carrying it through the nib, even though I suspect there is still some old, dried black ink somewhere in the system, as the ink on the page doesn't appear quite true to colour. But that's fine. At least it's writing. Now, I've just got to practice my penmanship (which is the reason I dug it back out in the first place.) My handwriting is terrible these days.

Thanks to everybody who chimed in. Reading all of the responses, and the back-and-forth discussions was a help.
posted by sardonyx at 5:30 PM on April 11, 2023

FWIW, I bought an ultrasonic cleaner on Temu for less than $10. I need to find my Platinum Preppy. I haven't used it for so long I'm sure it's dried up to a prune LOL. I'll report back how that went.
posted by kschang at 9:53 AM on April 13, 2023 [2 favorites]