Projects
Fountain Pen Restoration
I have been collecting (link) and restoring vintage fountain pens since 2016. Over the years, I have received more than 1000 pens for repair, from all over the world, thanks to my free restoration offer that has been viewed on the Fountain Pen Network more than 60,000 times till date! I posted that Pay it Forward (PiF) thread in 2018, but I continue to restore pens today – for a fee that goes 100% to charity (link).
If you are new to fountain pen restoration, then I recommend The Pendragons for parts and supplies, and the following for learning resources: (1) Richard Binder's website or books, (2) Marshall and Oldfield's book, (3) FPN's Repair Q&A forum, and (4) YouTube, of course. If you can’t find what you’re looking for there, I hope the documentation below will be helpful...
How to Prepare Cork Seals
If you are new to making cork seals for your piston or safety fillers, then check this video out...
Aurora 88D
This Aurora 88D's turning knob was not working as intended...
A. A. Waterman Twist Filler
A 100 year old twist filler needed a new sac. Here are my video notes on the restoration...
Dunn Pen
These old Dunn pens are quite tricky to repair! Check out the video documentation of my repair...
Onoto Plunger Filler
Here are my video notes for an Onoto No. 4601 Plunger Filler...
Vintage Acrylic Cracks
In this video, I demonstrate how I restored cracks on a Waterman Hundred Years pen...
Omas Extra Piston Seal
A pretty straightforward piston seal cork replacement repair...
Omas Extra - Two Seal System
An interesting variation of the Omas piston filler, with two seals...
Vintage Celluloid Cracks - I (Hairlines)
In this video, I restore multiple cracks on a beautiful celluloid green striated Montblanc 642...
Vintage Celluloid Cracks - II (Broken Barrel)
Watch how I repair this Montblanc 142 that is cracked through and through!
Sheaffer Vac-Fill
This was a rather tricky restoration of the Type-II vac-fill triumph nib pen with the inner ink chamber...
Montblanc 14x Helix Rod
It is surprising how many modern 14x pens with broken piston rods come to me for repair...
Montblanc 146 "Precious Resin" Crack
Here's a video of my experiment – an attempt to weld a cracked "precious resin" section...
Waterman Lever Box
The tabs on these old Waterman lever boxes often break during restoration. Here is how I fix them...
Pelikan 400N and 500N Piston
These Pelikan pistons can be a bit tricky to disassemble and restore...
Japanese Eyedroppers
I have restored a bunch of Japanese eyedroppers. Check out my notes...
Montblanc Boheme
This Boheme had been put aside by the owner and was not writing. Here is how I fixed it...
Cap Lip Crack
Cap lip cracks are not uncommon on celluloid pens. Here is how I fix them...
Waterman Ink-Vue
Over the years, I have done only two or three Ink-Vue repairs. I documented one restoration here...
Haro Piston Head
Here is how I added a removable piston head retaining nut on this glass nib Haro...
Montblanc 24x Piston
I took a chance buying this beautiful but non-functional 244. Here is how I restored its piston...
Montblanc Heritage 1912
If you need to disassemble your Heritage 1912, check out these notes first...
Trick for Rods
Here is how I remove stubborn piston rods on vac-fils and other pens...
Montblanc Ink Pencil / Tintenschreiber
These old Montblanc "ink pencils" are beautiful, but difficult to repair. Here are my restoration notes...
Waterman Glass Cartridge JiF
I fixed this glass cartridge Waterman JiF...
Sheaffer PFM
Notes from a PFM I restored years ago...
De-oxidising Hard Rubber
Here are three techniques I use to de-oxidise hard rubber pens...
Montblanc 22 Disassembly
If you are about to disassemble your Montblanc 2x, then check out these notes first...
Conway Stewart 28
I received a CS 28 for repair. The lever was missing its 'C' ring, and so I had to make one...
Rusted / Stuck Snorkel Barrel Spring
This is how I remove a fused / stuck, rusted, barrel spring in snorkels...
Replacing a Pens Sac
A pretty basic restoration task with ample resources available online, but here is how I do it...
Triumph Nib Removal
How to remove triumph nibs - a rather tricky operation - with the help of a special tool...
Monte Rosa / Montblanc 34x Piston
Disassembling the piston on these 34x Montblanc / Monte Rosa pens from the 1950s...
Stephen's Pen - Stud Filler
Check out this video to see how I restore Stud Fillers like this Stephen's Pen.
Wahl Eversharp Doric
Watch how I restored this vintage Wahl Eversharp Doric fountain pen...