Fountain Pen Cleaning, Part II

First thanks to Kelly (Kilmer) and Stephanie Smith (Rhodia Drive) for linking to my post on cleaning fountain pens.

Second, I am nearly finished with the task.

A piston Senator and a cartridge Sailor fountain pen

It has taken me far longer than I anticipated, but then when you have as many fountain pens as I have collected in my lifetime, it is not so surprising.   Using a wee bit of Dawn liquid detergent in the water has proven very useful.

I wish Stephanie lived closer.  If she did,  I'd try to induce or bribe her to help me photograph the pens for sale.  She always does such a terrific job on her blog,  The Spiritual Evolution of the Bean.

Or if  I was closer to Kelly or one of her classes  I would ask her to test the pens out on her remarkable journal pages.  Kelly is one of very few artists I met on line who I actually met in person, taking a class with her in Westchester years ago, and also sharing membership at Belle Papier (now disbanded) for many years.

Without either of these women, I am on own with my small digital camera.  However, I will give each and every pen its due.

Cleaning fountain pens

Kate (Cathy) Johnson wrote up a piece on the Artists Journal Workshop forum about pens and cleaning, and several folks, including me, discouraged the use of vinegar, as it is rather corrosive.

The Writers Bloc blog has a good write up that could easily be followed, and which I prescribe to for the most part.

This discussion couldn't come at a more propitious time as I am in the midst of cleaning about 30-40 pens, many of which are of the fountain pen variety, others ball points and several mechanical pencils.

I am assigning myself tasks.  Each task must be performed for a minimum of 1/2 hour; no maximum.  It appears that some of the pens that I thought were cleaned, were not as clean as I imagined and they require much more rinsing, and ear syringe flushes, thus this task will far exceed my minimum.

When these pens are thoroughly clean and checked, I will photograph them and offer them for sale.