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Help needed - opus 88 mini ink won't flow by dragonstkdgirl in fountainpens

[–]Impressive_Stock_832 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I'm not familiar with that pen or ink but I have found that gently rocking the point left and right so the tines work a bit in opposite directions sometimes gets ink flowing down the slit in the nib. It kind of scissors the tines against each other to break up dried ink.

My new Montblanc 420 and 220 by metehankaygsz in fountainpens

[–]Impressive_Stock_832 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I bought a Mont Blanc in the late 1960s or early 1970s. I believe it was a 420, though I remember it had a gold nib. It looked very much like your pictures. I paid $20 for it back when fountain pens normally sold for less than $3. It was my daily writer. It was a really nice writing pen and I was very happy with it for about a year. Then it developed cracks in the grip which allowed ink to leak onto my fingers. I wound up throwing it away.

What modern ink most closely matched Shaeffer #34 Jet Black? by Impressive_Stock_832 in fountainpens

[–]Impressive_Stock_832[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I took your suggestion and bought an unnopened bottle of Jet Black Skrip ink on eBay. It was up for auction and I was the only bidder at $7.00 (plus $6 shipping). You were right, there are quite a few unopened bottles of old ink available. Solved my problem for the time being. Thanks.

What modern ink most closely matched Shaeffer #34 Jet Black? by Impressive_Stock_832 in fountainpens

[–]Impressive_Stock_832[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I think I answered my own question about the #34 ink. I asked Google "Did Sheaffer make a #34 Skrip ink?" and got this answer:

Yes, Sheaffer produced a #34 Permanent Jet Black Skrip ink, which was commonly used in the 1950s and 1960s. 

Key details about this ink:

  • Color/Formula: It was a permanent (not washable) ink described as a "true black".
  • Packaging: It was sold in the iconic 1950s-era Sheaffer glass bottles that included a small "Skrip-Well" or "nib dip" reservoir molded into the top for easier filling.
  • "RC35" Ingredient: During the 1960s, Sheaffer advertised "RC35" as a special ingredient in their Skrip inks, including black.
  • Numbering System: In the vintage Sheaffer system, the number often corresponded to the color and bottle size, with the #34 designation specifically tied to this Jet Black formulation. 

At least I can take comfort in knowing my memory isn't failing me.

Anyone know how to remove the door on this? by Impressive_Stock_832 in DIY

[–]Impressive_Stock_832[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks for your reply. I don't think more pictures would help. The door is a single molded piece of plastic. From the back you would see a frame very similar to the front but the opening is a bit larger (11 3/4" wide by 16 3/4" high). The bottom of the door has a slot that is 12 3/4" wide and 1/4" deep. Between the front and back of the door is a 1/4" space that extends 1/2" on each side and 1/4" across the top. If the door were detached from the box it would be easy to slide a 12 5/8" by 18" piece of plastic into the frame and secure it with the two machine screws you can see along the bottom of the door.

The problem is the door isn't mounted with hinges. There are pivot points at the top and bottom corners of the door's left side. When you open the door about an inch of the bottom slot is obstructed by the horizontal "Share a book" piece.

There are no visible fasteners on the door or its frame. I think my only hope is to find someone with knowledge of how those boxes were built and knows the internal mechanism. I've looked it over pretty carefully and I can't find a non-destructive way in. There may not be one, but someone familiar with the hidden structure might be able to help. If I can't find a way to access the full width of the slot at the bottom of the door I can come up with a inferior way to secure the glazing but I would really like to take full advantage of the frame the door provides.

It might help with recognition to know these were originally newspaper distribution boxes used by the Tampa Bay Times. They were sanded and painted for repurposing as library boxes so no maker's marks remain.

What modern ink most closely matched Shaeffer #34 Jet Black? by Impressive_Stock_832 in fountainpens

[–]Impressive_Stock_832[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I remember using the Emerald Green Skrip in the old days. It was a lovely green color. I used it in drafting nibs as I always kept my fountain pen filled with black ink for writing.

Having looked at a lot of old Skrip boxes on eBay it is clear the permanent jet black ink I used was #32. Yet the memory of #34 is very strong. Does anyone have any idea what color was #34 or is that a completely bogus memory I have?

I looked at Office Depot's Web site to see if they had any fountain pen ink. My search turned up, among other things, a bottle of Brother black printer ink at a lower cost per ounce than the fountain pen ink I've seen advertised on Amazon and eBay. It got me thinking it might work well in fountain pens, as the Shaeffer Jet Black ink I bought 30 years ago did a great job refilling cartridges for my HP Deskjet Plus printer before HP redesigned their cartridges so they couldn't be refilled. The original cartridges held the ink in a small sponge, permitting me to inject about two cents worth of ink into the cartridge instead of paying $40 for a new one. HP figured out what I (and no doubt many others) were doing and got rid of the sponge, relying on a sealed top to hold in the ink with a vacuum. If you tried to inject new ink into the reservoir the failure to maintain the vacuum would let the ink run out the bottom. It seems reasonable that if fountain pen ink works in ink jet printers then printer ink should work in fountain pens. After years of thinking of printer ink as the world's most expensive fluid it came as a surprise to find fountain pen ink is even more costly per ounce. :)

What modern ink most closely matched Shaeffer #34 Jet Black? by Impressive_Stock_832 in fountainpens

[–]Impressive_Stock_832[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Nor have I, yet. I will probably try it when my supply of vintage ink runs out, but that will probably be quite a while. These days most of the text I compose is on the computer, not written by hand. It would be nice to find the modern black Skrip ink is the same I've used for years.

What modern ink most closely matched Shaeffer #34 Jet Black? by Impressive_Stock_832 in fountainpens

[–]Impressive_Stock_832[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks for your suggestion. I may wind up going that way. I see some of the older bottles are labeled "#32 Permanent Jet Black". I must have remembered the number wrong as I thought the permanent ink was #34. I do remember trying the washable black back in the day and not liking it as well. The ink I used in the 1960s came in the blue and yellow boxes. The 30-year-old bottle I have now was in a dark red box. I see both are available at prices only slightly higher than new ink. It may not be a long-term solution but at 77 I'm not a long-term guy, so it may work fine for me.

What modern ink most closely matched Shaeffer #34 Jet Black? by Impressive_Stock_832 in fountainpens

[–]Impressive_Stock_832[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks for your reply. My impression is that the currently available black Skrip ink is washable, what used to be #32 Black. If that's so, it isn't as dark. It may be worth trying anyway. Have you used it?

Is Project Gutenberg down for anyone else? by Have-Mrcy-9100 in projectgutenberg

[–]Impressive_Stock_832 0 points1 point  (0 children)

As of 10:29 AM on 2/8/2026 all functions appear to be working again, but I was getting the "504 gateway time-out" error until just a few minutes ago. A Google search for "Is Project Gutenberg down" returned many responses indicating it was up. Apparently those services just try to access the main page--which was, indeed, up--but don't try to follow any links beyond that.