Nibs on pens made for sale

[ProSingulisArts]

I have read quite a bit about finessing nibs before pens are sold. Those of you who do that, what are you doing? Do you ink, try, and adjust every pen and then clean them out before sale? I'm trying to get a feel for what the experienced makers are doing. Thanks.

 

[McKenzie Penworks]

There's a number of videos on the Goulet Pen website about nib tuning... It's generally considered acceptable to dip a nib in ink to do a little testing. Some folks are picky about a "never inked" pen but MOST people will be thankful that they got a pen known to write well and not a dud nib.

 

[TDahl]

Thanks for asking this question Frank. I have a similar question along these lines.

While I have not sold any pens at pen shows, I heard many makers selling fountain pens do tuning to the nib when a pen is sold at a show. I am assuming each maker is checking the ink flow and tine alignment first and then polishing last. I have found these three steps can take a considerable amount of time depending on the condition of the nib. I am guessing an experienced pen maker can go through these three steps in 20 minutes (or less if the alignment and ink flow are good) which is a lot of time required if you sell a lot of pens.

My question is how much of this work is done prior to the show. I would assume you want to make sure the ink flow and tine alignment are sufficient prior to the show, and focus on fine tuning the nib (smoothing) at the show, but that could also be a lot of prep work since most makers offer up to six different size nibs for their pens.

As far as inking the pen prior to selling it, I would think dipping would be a better option during the tuning stage.

I am very interested to hear with the others have to say.

Thanks again for the question.

 

[Paul-H]

I don't do shows but almost every pen I have made needed some sort of tweaking to write how I like my pens to write.

Most out of the packet are either too dry or a little scratchy. Only takes a couple of minutes finessing to get them to write how I like, that is very wet and buttery smooth. I do tend to prefer medium or broad nibs though, so it's easier to attain the writing style I prefer. Fine nibs buy their design do tend to be a little dryer and you have to be careful not to turn them into a medium through over adjustment.