Greg Minuskin

Often folks email me about “replicating” the look of my retips for their nibs, mostly for collectors who are restoring a pen to its best, original condition. I am happy to accommodate their needs, and this sometimes presents unique challenges. Many Wahl Eversharp nibs, and Waterman’s nibs, have rather pronounced and steep side bevels to the tipping which extends out past the tipping and into the gold of the tines. This side bevel eventually “feathers out” and disappears to a normal edge.

Below is a recent retip I did for a client; an Wahl Eversharp Gold Seal Signature Nib. As you can see in the close up photo of the tipping (don’t forget to click on the photo for closer look!) the beveling is even, a sharp angle, just like the original.
.

Well, this order just about wiped me out on my inventory of Namiki Falcon pens. I received a request from a new client in South Korea to purchase three Namiki Falcon pens and to be reground into extra fine, needlepoint tips, plus additional flexing!

Sample picture below of one of the regrinds; talk about needlepoint and real small, whew! The skill and patience to do this regrind requires that I rest between each side of the nib for one can develop natural shakes in your fingers after being in the same position for a long time; sort of like getting restless legs on a long airplane trip. Needless to say the client from South Korea is so excited to get these three pens, plus the Pilot 742 pen her sent me to give the same regrind treatment too. By the way, my new client saw my handiwork on my site, under “Nibs” which is a category on the tool bar to the right of this post, top of the page.
.

.

Well, not quite, but it sure looks like that, doesn’t it? The owner of this Montblanc 149 pen is very upset (wouldn’t you be?) So, this pen is now in my shop for repair. As the feed is quite damaged, this pen will have to go to the factory for a replacement, but the nib will be repair first! Stay tuned for an update once the nib is all fixed up and ready to go!

So, you just watched your favorite Montblanc 149 pen roll right off your desk and point first it hits the floor! Such is the case with many fountain pen nibs. Not to worry, I can straighten them back for you, or if the damage is really severe, I can retip the nib for you just like new!
[caption id="attachment_1445" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="After \"Surgery\" this nib is back in business!"][/caption]

One of my long time customers sends me now and then a nib that he wants retipped to a 1.1mm stub. As he is on my VIP list, I turn around the retip in about a day or so, which he appreciates very much. All his nibs are requested to be retipped to 1.1mm stubs, and I am happy to accommodate.

Already a response from “Gerry” on the Triumph nib that I retipped for him (early post today, scroll down) with a left handed right stub oblique. Not only is Gerry excited, but he knows that the nib will be a completely different writing experience and is quite versed in setting his own nibs on his pens:

Dear Greg:
I am amazed! It looks magnificent. I can’t wait to reassemble it and try it out. I know the feel will be different. I often switch back and forth between semi-flex or soft Pelikans and nail-like Sheaffer Triumphs, so I know what to expect. The key will be to figure out how much I will need to modify the feed for increased flow. I have found in the past that Triumph feeds can adapt without any modification to increased space between the tines that turn a fine line into a wet medium, so I don’t think I’m going to need to much to it. In fact, I think I will start with no alteration at all and go on from there.
Your picture of the pen poised over my writing is exactly how it appears to me when I use a pen. Wowie!. And I can’t believe your turn around time.
How much do I owe you?
Cheers,
Gerry

Another first for me! I received the Sheaffer’s Triumph nib pictured below for a retip to a “right” foot oblique stub for a left handed writer that is neither an over writer, nor an underwriter, but rotates the paper 45 degrees!

As you can see, the challenge here is to not only perform the retip, but to also preserve the white plating on the nib, a trademark of the Sheaffer’s triumph nib. Much preparations was needed to do this retip properly, but the results speak for themselves. I am sure once the nib is installed in the pen, that the nib will provide the owner with a writing experience that he will enjoy for years to come.
[caption id="attachment_1430" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="About a 15º slant"][/caption]

Its so nice to receive detailed words of praise for my work. Such is the paragraph below from Kelson, thank you! His pen, a vintage Soennecken black piston filler, needed a regrind as the nib was too broad for him. Pictures below show the pen, and a few writing samples of his with brown ink, which I matched to his writing samples using blue ink. “Please as Punch” is just what l like to hear!

[caption id="attachment_1424" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="These are upstrokes!"][/caption]

Mr. Minuskin,
The pen arrived at school today. I was impatient to put it to use (luckily I keep a jar of ink at school). When I wrote the first word I must admit I cursed a little. Could that nib be any sweeter? I think not. I am just as pleased as Punch. I think that Soennecken is as close to the perfect pen for me as one can get. I simply could not be happier. Your communication is great and the detailed photos….nobody does that. Thanks for breathing new life into that ol’ pen. The check went out yesterday and should arrive presently.

Again, my thanks,

Kelson

Its all about ink flow; and the challenge is the right combination of pressure on the the tines together, the ink, and the paper. Often enough the ink used is not that free flowing, and rather thick, such as Noodler’s, which I do not recommend to use in any modern, and most vintage fountain pens. Also, the paper absorbing properties determine how the ink will “lay down” a line. The below picture shows, even with a different colored ink (mine is the blue ink, the clients is the brown ink,) how I have closely matched the writing sample, in this case, a flexible nib.

This pen came in recently to be reground from a broad to a nice fine tip as the nib is quite flexible, and would produce some really great line variations depending on the pressure one would apply. As you can see, matching the writing sample to the owner’s writing samples (brown ink) to my samples (blue ink) shows how close I was able to regrind the nib to match his samples.