======================================================================== Nib Noise * Volume 16 Number 4 * July 2017 ======================================================================== Welcome to Nib Noise. We hope you'll enjoy reading this month's issue. PLEASE DO NOT REPLY TO THIS NEWSLETTER! For comments or questions, send email to: richard@richardspens.com To subscribe or unsubscribe, please DO NOT use the links in the footer of this email. Instead, visit the Free Email Newsletter page on our site: http://www.richardspens.com/?info=nibnoise ------------------------------------------------------------------------ *** The Washington DC Fountain Pen SuperShow *** ------------------------------------------------------------------------ The biggest show of the year is not too far off, and it's at a new location this year. The show's new home is the Marriott Fairview Place in Church Falls, Virginia. Make your plans now before it is too late. With the pre-show crankin' up on Thursday, August 3, and running through Friday, the Big Show will be open to the public on Saturday and Sunday, August 5 and 6. If you want to attend on Friday (or think you might want to attend on more than one day), you must buy a weekend pass, which admits you to all of the pre-show events, including the Friday wine and beer party. It also gains you early admission on the public days. You can purchase a weekend pass at the show's registration desk. This show is so-o-o big, and so-o-o good, that you may face a legitimate worry about having a panic attack when you walk in. On the other hand, because the show really is that big and that good, you should seriously consider buying that weekend pass I just mentioned. If you plan to come and haven't ever been to a show before, you might want to read my article on Your First Pen Show: http://www.richardspens.com/?shows=firstshow Also, please read our "Table Talk" FAQ to learn how we operate at shows: http://www.richardspens.com/?info=shows+faq For more information about the show and the Marriott Fairview Place hotel, please visit the show's Web site: http://www.pencentral.com/ Once you get there, you'll definitely want to visit the world's biggest and best ink testing table! In the past, this great feature has been open 24 hours a day while the show is on, and I see no reason to expect that this arrangement will change. Please note: the ink bottles on the table become acquainted with pens that may or may not be practitioners of good hygiene. Among other concerns, this can cross-contaminate the inks. I recommend that you not dip your good pens into the tester bottles. There will be dip pens provided, and you can also bring along a couple of dip-less desk pens (Morriset, Esterbrook, Sengbusch, et al.), or even a handful of cotton swabs. Barbara and I will be there for the whole show, from the Overture on Thursday afternoon to the final curtain on Sunday. As always, I'll be regrinding and tweaking nibs while their owners wait. Bring a pen, and share some of the sparkling repartee at our table while I jazz up your writing experience. We can accept your MasterCard, VISA, American Express, or Discover card -- but many of the vintage dealers are hobbyists who can handle only cash, so be sure to note the location of the ATM in the hotel lobby. But bear in mind the advice I've laid out in my article on Your First Pen Show (linked above). We look forward to seeing old friends and meeting new ones. We hope to see you there. Make your hotel reservations sooner rather than later! ------------------------------------------------------------------------ *** Getting to the SuperShow *** ------------------------------------------------------------------------ The Marriott Fairview Park is just off the Beltway (I-495 for those of you who don't adopt the local patois). From the Beltway, take exit 50A-50B for U.S. 50 East toward Arlington. Follow the signs for Fairview Park South, and merge onto Fairview Park Drive. The hotel will be on your left about 1/5 mile (0.32 km) after you merge onto Fairview Park Drive. For tripping around the Washington area, the Metro's Dunn Loring station is about 3 miles away. The hotel runs a complimentary shuttle service to and from the station. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ *** Nib Workshop at the DC Show *** ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Ably assisted by my protégés Linda Kennedy and Brian Gray, I will be giving my hands-on nib smoothing seminar at the DC show. It happens Sunday morning, beginning promptly at 8:30. You must pre-register to participate, and there is a $20 materials fee. Attendance is limited to 16 participants, but you will be welcome to audit the workshop without registering. Registration will open automagically on my site, NOT THE SHOW SITE, at 9:00 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time, Friday, July 21: http://www.richardspens.com/?page=workshop If you decide after the workshop that you'd like to try working with your own pens, IndyPenDance will have all of the workshop materials for sale at their table. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ *** Don't Forget Barbara's Attic *** ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Although the June 2017 "Pen Show Tray" was our last monthly tray, we will continue to offer assorted miscellany in Barbara's Attic, including new trays of restorable pens and the nibs in the RichardsPens Nib Shop. The price blowout on our nibs continues; join in the fun and you can save hundreds of dollars. The Sawbuck Special continues. With its price dropping by $10 per day, this gorgeous Onoto sterling silver Royal Ballet Aspirations pen (MSRP $1595) is currently priced at only $750. How much longer will it be up there? http://www.richardspens.com/?acc=attic ------------------------------------------------------------------------ *** And Speaking of Monthly Trays *** ------------------------------------------------------------------------ It's true that the June 2017 "Pen Show Tray" was our last monthly tray, but it's not the end of show trays. Mike and Linda Kennedy have taken up the tradition, and they've set out a superior selection for their first monthly tray. It will open at approximately 10 p.m. Eastern time tonight. The pens come from the same sources I used for my tray, and Mike and Linda are superb restorers, so you know you're getting only good stuff. Don't wait until tomorrow. http://www.indypendance.com/monthly-show-tray.html ------------------------------------------------------------------------ *** Broad Strokes *** ------------------------------------------------------------------------ When does a modern pen become a classic? There's no hard and fast answer to that question, but one of the great classics from the latter 20th century is 1985's Sheaffer Connaisseur. Read my new Connaisseur profile: http://www.richardspens.com/?prof=connaisseur Next month's issue will feature a new article on restoring a wringer- style twist filler. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ *** The Pen Doctor *** ------------------------------------------------------------------------ The Pen Doctor is a regular visitor to the Nashua Pen Spa, and every so often he puts a few prescriptions up in our site's reference section. Beginning with this issue of Nib Noise, I'll be reprinting one of his prescriptions here each month. -------- Q: The piston in my Pelikan is tight, and I’m afraid I’ll break something if I keep using it. Can I lubricate it? How? Rx: If the pen has a plastic piston seal (not a cork), you can lubricate it. You must first find some 100% silicone grease. In the U.S.A., this grease is sold for use by divers (to lubricate SCUBA gear) and by restaurateurs (to lubricate food processing equipment). Some online pen dealers also carry it. Do not use any silicone grease that contains even the tiniest amount of petroleum distillates! To lubricate the piston, empty the pen completely and flush it with water until the ejecta are clear. Draw the piston back up, as if filling the pen, and remove the nib unit. Twist the corner of a paper towel into a point (often called a “twizzle”), insert it into the open end of the pen barrel, and use it to absorb any remaining droplets of water from the inside of the barrel. Put a tiny amount of grease on the end of a wooden toothpick or match. Insert the toothpick or match into the open end of the barrel, and apply the grease around the inside of the barrel as close to the piston as you can get it. Now run the piston down and back up a few times. It should move very easily after the first stroke. Reinstall the nib, fill the pen, and write! ------------------------------------------------------------------------ *** Follow Us on the Internet with Facebook *** ------------------------------------------------------------------------ We'd like to be liked on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/NashuaPenSpa ======================================================================== If you received this newsletter from Richard Binder, you are a Nib Noise subscriber. If it came from someone else, I invite you to subscribe. To subscribe or unsubscribe, please DO NOT use the links in the footer of this email. Instead, visit the Free Email Newsletter page on our site: http://www.richardspens.com/?info=nibnoise Note: We will never sell your name or email address. Your privacy is as important to us as it is to you.