my rapidoograph pens?

Question

While Im using them they just stop working, the ink stops and nothing comes out, the tip is bone dry. There is plenty of ink in the holder, i dont know what to do.

Answer 1

It does sound like the nibs need cleaning. Most art supply stores carry pen cleaning solutions. One brand, (I forgot the name) comes in a wide mouth jar with a screen and handle, in which to place the parts and retreive them from the fluid.



In any case, disassemble the pen point into all it's components. You can take it down, even to the tiny piece of wire that caries ink down through the point. Give all the pieces a good soak, including the plastic resevoir. The idea is do dissolve ALL pieces of dried ink, before they flake off and clog your pen. These parts, especially the wire, are extremely delicate, so take care in handling them.



If you use your pens often, do this, at least, once a week. The time spent on taking care of the tools is more than balanced out by the time lost and frustration levels caused by clogged nibs.

Answer 2

Probably your nib is clogged.



Rapidograph nibs are a hollow tube with a weighted needle running through the tube. Ink can dry around the needle keeping it from moving inside the tube and blocking the ink flow. If you shake the pen gently and don't hear the weight clicking, that's likely the problem.



Also, sometimes the needle becomes bent and jams inside the tube - that keeps it from moving as well.



Thirdly, ink can block the breathing hole located in the nib assembly (the nib assembly screws into the retaining ring, which attaches it to the handle. The ink reservoir attaches to the nib assembly). The nib could be fine but if the hole is blocked, ink won't flow.



Clean the nib, reservoir and retaining ring by removing them from the barrel. Remove the inner nib assembly.but do NOT remove the cover that contains the needle (that's how needles get bent... once bent they cannot be used - the nib must be replaced!) Immerse the parts in methyl hydrate or anhydrous alcohol (alcohol without any water in it... gas line antifreeze works great!) Place the pieces & alcohol in a small container (like a film cannister) and cover the nib completely with liquid. Give it an occasional gentle shake, then leave it overnight. Rinse it after with clear water and that should fix it.



Don't use India Ink in a Rapidograph - it contains shellac which clings to the internal metal nib parts & is almost impossible to remove. Hope that does the trick!



Edit: tapping the pen nib on paper can bend the needle or the nib, and is not recommended. Instead, shake the pen horizontally to get the needle moving, or draw on your finger or palm to get it going.

Answer 3

Yeah those suckers are a bugger to work with aren't they? But the lines are so fine!

I've stopped using them myself but when I was using them I had the same problem. What I did was encourage the ink flow by gently tapping the nib on a clean sheet of paper. I would not use force but simply lift the pen about 1/2 inch from the surface and let the pen fall with it's own weight. This I would do in rapid succession. Somewhat like I was doing stippling with the pen. Gently tapping it means letting the weight of the pen itself do the work with gravity.

Hope you get it working again.