FOUNTAIN PEN. A pen with a reservoir of ink which automatically feeds the nib when the instrument is in use. In its practical form, it dates back only to the eighteen-eighties.
The modern fountain pen is a simple contrivance. In the first example shown (fig. I), there are only five parts : the barrel to hold the ink, a feed bar to regulate the flow of ink (B), a nib (A), a small sec tion which screws into the bar rel and carries the feed bar and the nib, and a cap to cover the nib when the pen is not in use (E).
One of the most important parts of a fountain penis the feed. This is the device which controls the passage of ink from the barrel to the nib. The feed shown in the illustration is extremely sim ple. A channel about 6" wide is grooved along the top of the feed, and in this channel are the capillary fissures which convey the ink from the barrel to the point of the nib, the air being drawn into the reservoir along the channel. On each side of this channel are three pockets or recesses. These are designed to collect any surplus ink and hold it in readiness to meet the requirements of the writer. Thus is secured a regular flow of ink to the point of the nib, automatically controlled by the writer's own action : the release being exactly in accordance with the pressure.
The barrel of this type of pen is entirely devoted to the storage of ink. The filling is done by means of a glass tube with rubber bulb, the point section being easily detached and the ink conveyed straight into the barrel, which will hold enough to form several thousand words. This pen should, when carried, be upright.
In this case spiral grooves are cut inside the barrel, and a rod extending right across its internal diameter and working in these grooves carries the nib into position for writing and the reverse action draws the nib down into the barrel when not required. The rod is operated very easily, the best way being to place the cap firmly on the end of the pen and then turn it until the nib is in the writing position. It is necessary when closing the pen to hold it upright because directly the nib is even slightly withdrawn from the writing position there is nothing to prevent the ink flowing out until the cap is replaced. It is like a bottle with the cork out. This cap is fitted with a plug which completely seals the barrel and because of this plug it is necessary that the nib should be below the level of the top end of the barrel, otherwise it will be broken.
Though the modern high grade fountain pen has rightly been described as a simple contrivance, its manufacture is a most elaborate and costly process. Over 200 distinct and separate operations are required to make the pen which is illustrated in this article, and the materials used come from all parts of the world.
The barrel is made of vulcanised rubber but, in certain pens, of compounds variously known as radite, pyroxilin and permanite, in a great variety of colours. The nib is made of gold, and the point is tipped with an even more costly metal, iridium, which, being very much harder than gold gives the nib the necessary durability.