What If We Could Add Little Shimmering Smoke Bombs to Our Gas Tanks....

Think of the huge, fluffy, motivating and, colorful clouds that would collect above our favorite sports stadium.  

Or, the rogue smoke columns streaming from the 3rd shift exhaust pipes as they race from their employer's parking lot.  

My favorite smoke combination would be Shamrock Green, with a sprinkling of Lucky Gold Stars and, highlighted with Belfast Burnt Orange.

If my rusty mind could envision this, I guarantee this concept has been tossed by some young aspiring entrepreneur or a hungry corporate executive drooling at cashing the bonus checks that would surely follow the revenue spikes that would occur just before their nations patriotic holiday.

I wonder what killed this smokey display of individuality...  In a 
word, gunk.  

Think of the chemical properties required to make this a reality and what consequences these additives would introduce to our vehicle's fuel system.  

These caustic additions would immediately start to choke the fuel line and injection system that were precisely engineered to distribute the correct amount of fuel at the correct time to gain locomotion.  Not to mention the fuel tank's sedimentary build up of glittery little smoke bombs over time.

Now, think of your fountain pen. Most don't realize the huge technological obstacles that stood in the way of what we now perhaps take for granted.  

We can appreciate that journey if we look at the development of the

personal computer and the smart phone.

Now, let us look at the new glittering and shimmering inks that are now available.  I love the multiplying effects that these new products bring to the creativity scene of our community but, these inks like anything else, can cause some problems with our fountain pens.

In fact for your newly purchased pen, understand that most manufactures clearly state that if you stray from the list of recommended inks described in the instruction manual you will void the warranty of your pen.

And for that newly restored Waterman Inkvue?  Most professional restorers will also void the repair warranty that usually is attached to services rendered.

But, fear not!  There is an easy preventive maintenance step you can follow that will help stave off the few negative aspects of these inks contain.

If you know for sure you will not use your pen for a few days, simply expel the remaining ink either into the original bottle or, if concerned about cross contamination, us an old empty ink bottle or other air tight container.  

And then flush your pen with cool water until it runs basically clear.  Never use warm or hot water; that may weaken any adhesives that may have been used in the manufacturing or repair process.

But, if you did forget about that glittery Bordeaux Gold Flake that you left in your pen from last week, gently set the pen, nib down, into a glass and fill with cool water to where it covers the nib and gripping section and add a drop of normal dish washing liquid and allow to soak for an hour.  After this is done, follow the same steps mentioned above.

Allow me one more comparison.  Just like older engines do not respond well to the new fuels created in the last decade, I would say the same parallel can be drawn between vintage fountain pens and glittering, shimmering inks.  

The filling systems and feeds of vintage fountain pens are a stroke of engineering genius as were the fast drying, lesser viscosity inks that were specifically developed for these pens.  

These pens will not perform optimally with inks with thicker properties or glittering particles suspended within the ink that can clog intricate filling systems like the Sheaffer Snorkel or Parker Vacumatics.

Will this make vintage fountain pen use boring; not in the least. There is no comparison to writing with a vintage Parker 51 filled with Pilot's Murasaki-Shikibu or a Sheaffer Lifetime Crest with Triumph nib topped off with Private Reserve Sherwood Green.  

Interestingly enough, the same companies that offer the new bling of inks also carry a large variety of beautiful and stunning inks that work perfectly well in vintage fountain pens.

Ink responsibly and write freely,

Jeff

The opinions outlined above are mine alone based on personal experiences in this hobby and some of the issues I've come across repairing vintage fountain pens.  All pictures included in this article were either taken by me or obtained by Google images marked specifically for reuse,

A Righteous Man?

Righteousness (also called rectitude) is a theological concept in Christianity, Judaism, Islam and Hinduism. It is an attribute that implies that a person's actions are justified, and can have the connotation that the person has been "judged" or "reckoned" as leading a life that is pleasing to God.  Wikipedia 2015

About once a month I have lunch with someone I've known for many years; first meeting while we both worked for the same law enforcement agency.  Aside from being the pastor of one of the most well respected and socially in-tuned churches in our community, my lunch buddy also leads the chaplain corp of the same police department we worked for.

We both are fascinated with history, leadership, writing and fountain pens.  It's nothing to spend three hours at our local Cracker Barrel talking about our mutual interests, especially fountain pens.

Early on in our most recent lunch my buddy wanted me to install a cartridge converter into one of his fountain pens.  Ha, I said, no problem and quickly wrapped the pen in a protective sleeve, placing it straight  away into my briefcase without another thought about this pen, and we continued with our geek-filled conversation.

Late that same night I was finishing up my scheduled pen repairs for the day.  I was scrubbing the mental checklist in my head to set the stage for the next workday when I remembered my buddy's pen.   It was still in my brief case, which was now lying on the reading chair in my workshop. It was close to midnight.  Usually I have either a variety of music or a pod cast playing; but for some reason there was a peaceful silence in the air.  I shrugged my shoulders and said "OK, that's cool too", grabbed my briefcase and sat down at my desk. Choosing 
not to disturb the uncommon quiet; I pulled out the pen...

My routine, as with most professional restorers, is to make a cursory look over the pen to get an idea of its condition and note any symptoms or damage that need attention.  I recognized the green and black marbled brass pen to be a Waterman's Laureat...

I leave the nib (the writing point) purposely for the last part of my inspection.  The nib is considered to be the heart of the pen, so I take my time by using my loupe (a small magnifying glass used by jewelers and watchmakers) and give the it a thorough investigation before logging the pen into the repair queue and assigning it a storage bunk.  After that I was ready to call it a day.... Or so I thought...

Just two seconds of inspection caused me to lean way back in my office chair quietly sighing "wow, this pen has written many miles".  The nib of this pen is a very nice standard 14 CT gold plated with a fine to medium point. However, the gold plating has worn in such a way that it now has an amazing reverent glow about it that cued up some reflection...

During the first decade of the 21st Century the police department mentioned above, along with the citizens it serves experienced several critical situations that forever changed this community. One such situation involved an entire class of algebra students, along with their teacher, being taken hostage by a gunman and held for more than 10 hours.   Another terrifying example was later termed "The Night of the Tornado's".  On this night in early April 2006 there were a series of destructive tornadoes that left 15 people dead, 82 injured and over a billion dollars in damage...

Focusing back on the nib again, my eyes started drifting up the length of the pen, going from the nib to the gripping section, up the barrel and to finally, the image of the man behind this pen... 

How many life changing events had this man penned with this  instrument...The many happy thank you notes and cards, the countless marriage certificates and baptismal certificates, important church documents and the far too many sad letters of condolences...

I began to think back on our many discussions over the years, especially the lunches that my friend and I shared. He had always greeted me with the same large smile that puts anyone at a comfortable ease and that always facilitated the deep discussion about what was prevalent in the now, the past, but most importantly on into the future...

Sitting across the table, I know my friend can see the many facets of grey that reside within me.  However, he has never once judged me or made me feel less worthy or insignificant; nor has he even hinted that I was not living my life right.  On the contrary, I always left our lunches with a much greater sense of self and worthiness and much more importantly, inspired.

A look at his Facebook page and immediately I see a warm and loving husband and father who is genuinely adored by his wife and three children.

When one looks at my friend's professional web site, they will see such terms as: Family + Values + Living + Leadership + Ministry + Resources..The one word that stands out to me, however, as the sum to that equation is HOPE.

I've seen this man console and comfort many people; the families of the hostages that were taken at the college and yes, the family of the hostage taker.  My buddy never missed a beat and naturally treated all families involved with the same warmth, respect, love, and compassion.  He was also present at the hospital emergency room on that devastating night of tornadoes, that next morning, and through to the next night with little or no break at all.

This man has comforted and counseled many of the police officers in our agency.  I was probably his best customer for a time.  But I've often wondered; who is this man's leaning post?  How can he get comfort and consolation when all of the grizzly scenes cut to the credits; and the parties and participants fade to black?  What audience stands up and applauds this man?  I know almost all will give the obvious answer; but that, I'm fairly certain, can often be a one sided conversation, yes?

If the acts, attitudes and deeds described above do not mirror the definition posed before this writing; I would suggest taking a closer look into the mirror...

I know my friend will be somewhat embarrassed by all of this attention; which only verifies further the kind of man he is.  So I say to you; Doug, get over it...But more importantly, I am honored to say that the man behind this pen is a very good friend indeed.