EST01 - Crack Repair on an Esterbrook Cap

My first Esterbrook developed a small crack in the cap lip after i bought it.  I assume that it came from posting the cap onto the pen and forcing what must have been a small crack apart.  After a lot of research and reading on the FPN I decided to attempt to solvent weld the crack back together.  Apparently the celluloid that the Esterbrooks are made from solvent weld with either MEK or acetates.  A thread on the FPN suggested that Testors model cement 3502 should work, and would come in a small bottle.

I picked up a bottle of 3502 from my local hobby shop for around $3, and it claimed to contain both MEK and Acetates. Score!!  Then I gathered my materials for the crack repair.

• The broken pen
• Testors 3502
• Micromesh finishing stick
• Q-tips
• Cup of Water
• Loupe

The steps I followed to complete the repair are:

1. I thouroughly cleaning the inside of the cap with the water and q-tips so that my solvent weld joint would not be ink stained.
2. Apply a small amount of Testors to the break from the inside of the cap.
3. Squeeze the cap slightly to facilitate the glue wicking into the break.
4. Wait a Minute.
5. Apply more solvent to the break on the inside.
6. Wait a Minute.
7. Apply a very small amount of glue to the outside of the cap on the break.
8. Wait a few hours.
9. Polish out the repair with the micromesh.

I am quite pleased with the result.  It is still slightly visible because of it's different color.  This could be just me imagining that I can see it, because my wife can not, or it could be a bit of ink that seeped into the weld.  Either way, I can not feel the crack any more, and it seems stout.  I will be very careful about posting the cap on this pen in the future.  All in all, a very successful first restoration project. Just 2 more to go on this pen!

RR02 - Rotring 600 Rollerball in Black

After receiving my Rotring 600 .5mm Mechanical pencil in silver, i was hooked.  Writing by hand was a whole new experience.  I love the simple, industrial look of the Rotring 600 with it's hexagonal brass barrel, and knurled grip. Somehow the pencil even seemed to write better than my trusty papermate. I used it for a semester at college for note and test taking, but more on that later...

I egarly ordered up this Rotring 600 Newton from a ebay seller.  I was settling for this because it was a reasonable price, but did not have the knurled grip, and it was not the silver color I really wanted.  It was about $40 less expensive than the Old style 600 that I wanted. I love the way this pen looks, and feels in my hand.

However, I do not like the way it feels when I write with it. It is simply to heavy for me to use comfortably for any length of time.  The brass barrel that I like so much is simply to heavy.  The ballance is about write with the cap unposted, but as soon as I post the cap it becomes unwieldy.  I have enjoyed having this in my collection for the last few months, but it is time to move it on.  I'll be posting it back up on ebay very soon.

EST01 - My first find

Yesterday I was browsing an antique store near my college campus and found this red Esterbrook Fountain pen. I loved the red swirls in the celluloid. It captivated me, and I brought it home. It looked like it was in great shape for being at least 40 years old. I am hoping to discover more about this pen, it's vintage, and it's classification in the weeks ahead as I attempt to fix a few small issues. After spending some time browsing the web I found a great article on Esterbrook pens on Richard Binders website that is available through the reference pages.

My Capped pen is about 5 Inches long, and the Cap Jewel is noticeably larger than the barrel end jewel. From this, I believe that the pen is a model J. It also looks like this pen was made sometime after 1948 based on it's cap design.

The pen has a very nice 9556 nib that writes nicely. When I dipped the pen it wrote unhesitatingly, but was slightly scratchy every once and a while.  After having dipped the pen, i am quite happy with how it writes, but I do not know how to know if the sac is intact or not.  The pen came in such good shape that I am assuming that it has been restored by someone before they brought it into the antique shop, but I want to know for sure before I fill it up and put it in my pocket.  The lever lifts smoothly, and springs back down smoothly with no noises, which seems to indicate an intact sac.  A bit of forum research should turn this information up.

The nib also has a few small surface rust blotches on it. I need to research how to clean the surface rust off of the nib. From what I have read, it sounds like the Esterbrook nibs are stainless steel, so that may be easier that it sounds at first.

I also need to figure out how to repair a hairline crack in the cap of the pen.  It runs from the edge up to the banding.  You can just see it in the picture to the right.

Finally, I need to modify the clip on the cap.  It is slightly spring away from the cap and I feel that the pen could fall out of my shirt pocket if I am not careful.  Luckily there is a forum post on the fountain pen network dealing with this exact issue.

My repair list for this pen is:

• Clean the rust from the nib
• Repair the crack in the cap (done)
• Tighten the pocket clip
• Ensure the filling system works

This should be a fun little project!