FOUNTAIN PEN FAQsUpdated 4 months ago

BASTION FOUNTAIN PEN ANATOMY

INK AVAILABILITY

We do not sell the fountain ink cartridges. 

FOUNTAIN PEN CARE

Keep your Fountain Pen Capped 

Always ensure that you cap your fountain pen when you are not using it. These pens use gravity as a mechanism for the ink to reach the nib. If you do not cap the pen, or the cap is loose, the ink will likely leak. 

Keep your Fountain Pen Upright 

An inverted fountain pen will leak ink as ink flows down, filling the fountain’s pen cap, making the ink explode once you remove the cap. To prevent this, keep your fountain pen upright when not in use. 

Keep Your Fountain Pen Protected 

Never carry a fountain pen in a pocket as it does not lend itself to remaining upright and avoids body heat. As a precaution measure, always use a pocket protector when carrying the pen. 

Keep Your Fountain Pen Cool 

Room temperature and body heat causes air to expand facilitating the flow of ink from your fountain pen. Store fountain pen in cool place with nib always facing up when not in use. 

Keep Your Fountain Pen Converter Completely Full or Empty 

Changes in air pressure can cause changes in the ink flow of your fountain pen. If the converter is not functioning properly, make sure there is no air pressure issues and that the converter is filled with ink without air bubbles in the chamber. Keep the nib upright to allow air to escape naturally without forcing it out through ink flow to nib. 

Keep Your Fountain Pen Maintained 

Regular maintenance is needed. Always keep your pen clean and make sure that all the pen parts are in place and in proper condition. If a leak occurs, isolate the source of the leak. If the nib is damaged, try to fix it or have it replaced. 

Use Appropriate Ink and Paper 

A “scratchy” feel comes from the nib catching on pores and irregularities in the paper, course paper types in general, nib irregularities, writing size, and writing speed. (See Nib Irregularities). If you have smooth paper, no nib irregularities, and good ink flow the feel of the flow should be pleasing. However, to someone with larger handwriting and faster speed, it will always feel scratchy. Most modern papers are not fountain pen friendly and show a high tendency for bleed through and feathering. Recycled paper and regular copy paper are the worst culprits for scratchy feel. The best results tend to come from 90 or 100 GSM papers. Ink drying times will be longer on these less-absorbent papers, but the reward for your patience is beautiful, clean, crisp lines! 

Nib Irregularities and Simple DIY Troubleshooting 

Note! Before you focus on troubleshooting the nib, test a different ink and paper first. Some pen, ink and paper combos just don't go well together even when there is nothing wrong with the pen itself. 

The following are not nib defects, but rather simple, fixable irregularities that are very normal. 

Misaligned Feed - the feed may be sitting too far back or forward underneath the nib.  This tends to cause irregular ink flow (blotchy ink patterns) on the paper.  

Misaligned tine – when viewed horizontally one tine is higher or lower than the other when looking sideways at tines. Fix by placing your index finger on top of the nib roughly in the center, not directly on the nib. It’s best to do this with the nib inserted as normal into the pen. Press the tip of the nib down gently but firmly against a hard, even, smooth surface. Do not press down on any material with fibers or abrasives, as that may clog or scratch the nib. While pressing the tip to the hard surface, slowly rock the nib back and forth for five to ten seconds. Check to see if the tines are realigned. If not, repeat a couple of more times until aligned. 

Clogged Breather Hole - check to ensure that the breather hole (on top of nib) is not clogged with ink (wet or dry).    

Bent nib body – when the tines are pulled up or down close to or away from the feed. If sitting up from the feed, gently press the nib (still in the pen as normal) body down toward the feeder four or five times against a hard surface. Check to see if the nib is no longer bent. If bent the other way, perform the opposite fix. 

Defective Nib 

The following are defects that require a new nib. 

• Asymmetrical Tines – when viewed vertically (nib top to bottom), one side is longer or shorter that the other.
• Damaged nib (bent, broken)

MASTERING FOUNTAIN PEN WRITING

Ultimately fountain pen writing is an artistic undertaking that requires practice, fine-tuning, and a bit of finesse.  The following eight key variables are crucial to mastering fountain pen writing.  

GRIP - Hold the fountain pen between your thumb and your index finger. Rest the pen on your middle finger's knuckle. This is known as the tripod grip.  The remaining fingers rest on the writing surface, supporting the grip.  This position allows for smooth ink flow. 

WRITING ANGLE (Finding the Sweet Spot) - Finding the writing 'sweet spot' means discovering the angle that the pen nib requires for ideal ink flow.   The nib is not in its sweet spot when it feels/sounds scratchy when attempting to write. The ink will not flow well or at all.  The sweet spot is typically found when holding the pen at a 45 to 50-degree angle to the paper’s surface.  Write using lower arm muscles rather than hand muscles.  This prevents rolling the pen with the fingers … and rolling out of the sweet spot. 

WRITING PRESSURE - Fountain pens are less forgiving than ballpoint pens when it comes to writing pressure.  The ink (oil-based) of a ballpoint pen is thicker, requiring more force to displace the ink onto paper.  Fountain pen ink is water-based to allow ideal ink flow.  Minimal pressure on the nib of the fountain pen is all that is needed to get ink flowing.  Allow your arm to guide your pen across the paper.  Pressing down too hard on your fountain pen while writing will damage the nib, pierce through paper, or leave unattractive ink blotches on the writing surface.  

WRITING SPEED – Pen weight and grip dictates how well the pen glides along the paper surface.  

WRITING STYLE - Western alphabets, like that of the English language, tend to have simple shapes. Take the letter 'i' and 'a', for instance. These simple shapes allow writers' hands to slide over the paper continuously while writing.  Tight-knit, small strokes, works best with a fine nib tip.  Open, bolt strokes work best with a broad nib tip. Especially with the cursive style, there is less lifting of the pen from the page as you use a fountain pen. A broad nibbed fountain pen is best suited for this cursive writing style. It enhances the legibility of the connected letters and words in sentences.  Writing like that of Chinese and Japanese have characters that contain many fine details and much lifting of the pen from the page. Fine nibs are The other way is to use the cap of your fountain pen.

PAPER AND INK - , not all paper is made equal when writing with a fountain pen.  The thinner the paper, the more trouble you will have with bleeding and feathering (when the ink spreads across the paper instead of sinking in).  Try using some paper of different weights and sizes to find what you prefer.  Try different types of ink.  You can find fountain pen ink in any color, fast or slow drying, some even change colors as you write or have special shimmers and sheens to them.