BEX6E Bexley Replacement Feed and Housing, Black Ebonite

Description

The BEX6E replacement feed and housing is designed to improve the performance of your Bexley nib by increasing available ink flow and providing better regulation of the ink.

Please note that the ebonite and acrylic feeds I make are NOT compatible with a standard Bexley thermoplastic housing, as my feeds do not have the keyed flat on the bottom, and thus won’t fit into the Bexley housing.

This design, unlike the stock Bexley nib assembly, is not keyed, so the nib can be positioned into the most pleasing position in your fountain pen.

Installation Instructions

You will need to remove the stock Bexley nib assembly from your pen. For most pens that use cartridges or a cartridge converter, unscrew the pen body to reveal the cartridge or converter. Remove the cartridge or converter (if your pen has ink in it, follow your usual routine to remove the ink from the pen first), then unscrew the section from the pen body. Next, unscrew the nib assembly from the pen. To do this, using two fingers on only the body of the nib (do not touch the tip of the nib, or the tines), gently unscrew the nib in a counterclockwise direction. Once you have the nib assembly free of the pen, you can now remove the nib and feed from the JoWo nib assembly. To do this, grasp the nib and feed at the base of the nib (again, do not touch the tip of the nib or the tines) with two fingers of one hand, and the housing with two fingers of the right hand, then pull the feed and nib out of the housing.  If it is difficult to remove, try soaking the nib assembly in a water, or in a dilute ammonia solution, and try again.

Now that you have the nib, here is how to reassemble the Bexley nib with the ebonite  replacement feed and housing.

• Place the nib on the feed such that the ink slit in the nib is centered on the ink slot of the feed.
• Position the nib such that the tip of the feed is in contact with the bottom of the nib (about 4mm from the tip of the nib to the tip of the feed).
• Slide the nib and feed into the housing, making sure to keep your fingers away from the tines of the nib; never apply pressure to the tines of the nib, only to the base.
• Verify the feed is fully inserted into the housing so that the end of the feed and the end of the housing are aligned.
• Verify that the nib is centered on top of the feed. If not, pull it out, realign it so the slit of the nib is centered on the ink slot, and re-insert.

Take the nib assembly, screw it back into the section of the pen, re-insert the cartridge converter, and fill the pen with ink.  If you are using a cartridge instead of a converter, then you will need to puncture the cartridge with the JoWo housing, our housing’s converter nipple doesn’t have a sharp tip. Screw the body of the pen back on, and you are now ready to write.

The BEX6E may also be used with standard JoWo #6 steel and gold nibs in addition to Bexley nibs.

A note on interference (friction) fit. The Bexley nib assembly is held together with an interference fit. This means the diameter of the inside of the housing is smaller than the combined diameter of the nib sitting on the feed. This method of fit is required so the nib and feed don’t move in the housing while you write. The initial fit may be very tight, so tight that you may have difficulty getting the nib and feed fully inserted into the housing.  If the fit is too tight for your finger strength, here are two ways to assist you getting the nib and feed fully inserted into the housing.

1. Soak the feed and housing in warm, soapy water (dish soap works well) for a few minutes, and try again. Chances are the additional lubrication will allow you to fully seat the nib and feed into the housing.
2. After you get the nib assembled into the housing, use your cartridge converter to flush the soapy water out of the nib assembly with clean water until all the soap is gone.

If the assembly is still too tight, then use this method (for black and red ebonite only):

1. Soak the housing ONLY in hot water from your tap. You can use water up any temperature that your bare skin can allow, but don’t exceed 60C (140F). Allow the ebonite to soak for a few minutes. It will enlarge and soften slightly due to the hot water and make it easier to slide the nib and feed into the housing.
2. Be careful and make sure not to burn yourself in the hot water. Insert the nib and feed into the housing and adjust as needed to align the feed and nib. Allow the assembly to cool to room temperature and it is now ready for writing.