If you’re looking for some luxury pen how-to tips, you’re in the right place! Today, we will walk you through how to clean your cartridge converter fountain pen.

Helpful Pen Care Supplies to Keep on Hand:

Build yourself a handy set of luxury pen care maintenance tools and products. These are the “must haves” that we keep around:

• Spare ink vials (to store ink we don’t want to put back in the full-size bottle)
• Brass shims
• Pen Chalet pen flush
• Pen Chalet silicone grease
• Nib grips
• 30x pen loupe
• Dee Charles Designs pen wipe wallet

Luxury Pen How To: Why Do I Need to Clean My Cartridge Converter Fountain Pen?

1. The vast majority of fountain pen inks are water-based, and over time the ink evaporates. So if you don’t use your pen in a while, you need to clean it to get out remnants of the old ink.
2. If you use all the ink and want to put in a different ink, most people like to clean the pen first so the colors don’t mix.
3. If you just want to put a different color of ink in your pen (even if you’re not finished using the ink that’s already in it currently).
4. If you haven’t cleaned your pen in a while, you should consider giving it a good cleaning.
5. If you’re putting your pen away and you won’t be using it for a while or you’ll be storing it, you should clean it well first to avoid any unwanted clogs or problems resulting from lingering ink or debris settling into the feed or nib while it’s not in use.
6. If you purchase a brand new pen, and go to use it and it doesn’t work! Many are surprised by this suggestion, but when you consider that luxury fountain pens are made by hand and many of the processes used involve dust and tiny particles of material…it’s not shocking to think that cleaning the pen before using it is a good idea.

How to Clean Your Cartridge Converter Fountain Pen: Luxury Pen How To

1. Take your pen apart by removing the barrel from the section.
2. Remove the ink from the pen. If you are using an ink cartridge, remove it from the nib section, and discard it. If you are using a converter remove it and set is aside in a safe place where it won’t roll away and get damaged or lost. Make sure when removing an ink cartridge or converter that you do so with the end inserted into the nib section pointed up, so you don’t make a mess with lingering ink drops that could be released while you’re removing it from the pen.
3. Soak your pen parts in pen flush (if necessary). If your pen has been sitting inked for a while, you may need to soak your nib in pen flush to loosen up dried ink from the feed, etc. If you previously used a shimmering or glistening ink, we also recommend soaking both the nib and converter in pen flush in pen flush solution to loosen up any particles left behind from the ink. How long you soak the parts will depend on the state of the pen and the dried ink.
4. Flush your nib and converter with water. We suggest using a bulb syringe to flush the nib and converter – continuing until the water runs through clear. If you are struggling to get the nib or converter clean, the water continues to show traces of the previously used ink, etc. you can flush the nib and/or converter with the pen flush to give it a jump start, but most of the time water will do the trick.
5. Let the parts completely dry before you reassemble the pen. Dry the pen parts carefully with a microfiber cloth, and lay them out to dry completely before you reassemble the pen and store it or refill it with ink.

More Tips: How to Clean Your Cartridge Converter Fountain Pen

• When flushing your pen parts with water – use warm water. Do not use detergents, liquid soap, or random cleaners. It’s too difficult to determine what will or will not hurt the surfaces or functioning parts of your pen.
• Regular cleaning of your luxury fountain pens will extend their life, and ensure they operate at peak performance!
• Check back here on the Pen Chalet Fountain Pen Blog for more luxury pen how-to, fountain pen and ink reveals, tutorials, and more!

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Follow @penchalet on your favorite social media platform for more tips on luxury pen how to, fountain pen maintenance instructions, and all sorts of fountain pen community fun! Learn more about luxury pens, and shop your favorite pen and ink brands at PenChalet.com.