| Harding Pens and Woodturnings |
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| One-of-a-Kind Fine Writing Instruments and Turned Treasures |
| Pen Care |
Exposing the beauty that God weaves into wood ...
| Caring for your wood pen: Your pen is made from real wood and it needs the same care as any fine wood product. Follow these instructions to ensure years of beauty and enjoyment. Keep your pen from extremes of heat and humidity, do not leave it in the car glove box, do not immerse in water. Your pen is sealed and finished with several hard and durable coating layers and then a protective coating of museum grade wax. I recommend that you reapply suitable wood wax as the finish wears from normal use. Use a soft cloth to buff up the wax as needed. Don't use any cleaning agents not intended for use on wood. Never use any kind of abrasive pad to clean your wood or the gold plating. Never use any cleaning or finishing product that contains abrasives or cleaning agents in the formula. Car waxes and many household cleaners have fine abrasives or harsh cleaning solvents in the formula and these should not be used. Floor care and furniture care products are appropriate for use on your wooden pen. Paste wax is easy to apply and buffs to a high gloss shine. The gold plating may be cleaned with a damp soft cloth. The paste wax can and should be applied over the gold plating too. Do not use any abrasives on the gold plating as the gold plating is thin and will be removed by the abrasive. Beware of some spray on furniture cleaner-waxes, some of these contain abrasives. Check the labels. Keep your pen from extremes of heat and humidity, wood can split under extreme conditions. Do not immerse your pen in liquids. Do not leave your pen in your car on very hot or cold days. Do not leave the pen in direct sunlight since this can fade the color of many woods. Enjoy your pen! Brad Harding, Harding Pens. Aurora, Ontario, Canada. www.hardingpens.com |
| Care of your Fountain Pen Fountain pens are a much older style of pen, dating back to the late 1800’s. Today’s fountain pens use water based ink. Fountain pens made by Harding Pens, use ink cartridges that can be obtained through a good business supply store. One cartridge is supplied with a new pen. It is possible to use bottled ink, a refillable cartridge and a converter pump. This is a much more complex and potentially messy system than replaceable cartridges. First Use: On first use the pen must be primed with ink. First open the pen and press the cartridge into the cartridge housing exerting enough pressure to allow the cartridge case to be punctured. To prime the tip, flick the pen downward with a snap type action forcing ink out of the cartridge – be sure to do this over a surface you do not mind getting ink on. An open thick layer of newspaper is a good idea. Having some tissue handy is also another good idea. If you get ink on you, wipe the ink away with the tissue quickly. Stains on clothes can be removed by soaking the cloth in whole white milk as soon as possible. Cleaning Maintenance: Most Fountain Pens need to be cleaned about once a month. The cleaning can be simply flushing some tap water over the tip and thru the cartridge housing. Try to keep the water off the wood areas of the pen. If the pen is badly clogged, a mixture of one part cleaning ammonia to two parts water will help. Flush with tap water before use. It is especially important to clean the pen if you change ink colours or ink brands. Some inks can react with each other and create a sludge which will plug the pen. A sign that a pen needs cleaning can be that the pen stops writing after a few lines. The ink feed channel is partially blocked and no air can get into the cartridge creating a vacuum and stopping the ink flow. If you plan to put your fountain pen away for an extended time, it is recommended to remove the cartridge and clean the tip. A coat of furniture wax on the wood and gold would ensure the pen stores well. The wood parts of the pen should be waxed on occasion. See the section on caring for a wood pen for details of how to do this. Enjoy your Fountain Pen. Brad Harding, Harding Pens, www.HardingPens.com |
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