Anatomy of the Fountain Pen

Writing For Engineering

Nabeel Butt

CCNY

 

Outline of Contents

The Cap:

Cap: the part of a pen that covers the nib and attaches to the pen body.
Clip: the metal attached to the cap that holds your pen in your shirt pocket and also keeps it from rolling off your desk and landing nib first on the ground
Finial: the top of the cap, sometimes decorated with the maker’s logo.

Insert: the plastic liner on the inside of some pen caps that help seal the nib and keep it wet when capped.
Center band: the metal decorative ring that is usually placed near the bottom of the pen cap for decorative purposes, or perhaps to provide reinforcement to the cap threads.
Lip: the open end of the cap, where the threads of the body fit to close the pen.

The Barrel:

Barrel: the long part of the main body of the pen which houses the ink reservoir.
Threads: thin grooves cut into a pen to hold parts together, especially pen caps to the pen body.
Step: the part of the barrel where the threads ‘step up’ to the body, which can matter when holding the pen.
Body: the length of a pen barrel that typically houses the ink reservoir. Trim Ring: ornamental accents that serve an aesthetic purpose.

The Nib:

Nib: the metal tip of a fountain pen that actually touches the paper.
Tipping Material: a small bit of hard-wearing metal that is welded to the end of a nib and ground to a specific intended size.
Slit: the very thin cut running from the breather hole to the tip of the nib that carries the ink from the feed to the tip.

Tines: the two front parts of the nib that taper to the tip.
Shoulder: the widest part of a nib, where it starts to taper towards the tip.
Breather Hole: a hole in the nib, at the end of the nib slit, that allows air to assist in the ink flow, also called a vent hole.
Imprint: the engraving or impression left on the face of the nib that shows the brand, model, or nib size.
Body: the part of the nib that is typically imprinted.
Base: the bottom end, or reverse end of the tip, where the nib fits into the section of a pen.

The Feed:

Feed: the piece of plastic or ebonite (usually black) that hugs the back of the nib and acts as a vehicle for ink delivery from the reservoir to the nib.
Wings: the widest part of the feed that matches up to the nib shoulder. Sometimes nibs will slide on and grab onto the feed wings.
Fins: the small, thin pieces on the feed that allow ink to saturate into the air channels. These act as an ink regulator for consistent flow when writing speed varies.
Ink Channel: a very thin slit in the feed that hugs against the back of the nib and provides a route for the ink to travel through the feed. This is what helps to provide the necessary capillary action required for ink flow.

 

The Section:

Section: the part of the pen where the nib fits in and attaches to the pen barrel.
Grip: the front of the section where you hold where the nib fits in, sometimes called just a ‘section’.
Trim Ring: ornamental accents that serve an aesthetic purpose.
Threads: thin grooves cut into a pen to hold parts together.

The Converter:

Converter: a small filling mechanism (usually a screw-piston type) that fits onto a pen that also accepts a cartridge. This allows you to use any brand’s bottled ink instead of relying on limited proprietary ink cartridges.
Mouth: the opening that fits onto the feed post to hold the converter in place.
Ink Reservoir: a cavity inside a pen that holds ink.
Seal: the ‘working’ part of the converter piston that creates a vacuum in order to draw ink into the reservoir.

Rod: the threaded portion of the piston mechanism that causes the seal to move up and down when the knob is turned.
Shroud: the metal covering that holds the piston mechanism onto the back of the ink reservoir.
Knob: the part of the converter that you turn to move the piston seal up and down

History:

The pen is one of the most under appreciated innovations of all times. Could you imagine a world where no pens existed? We would still have to rely on writing with quills, which is quite a tedious process. The invention of the pen made it easier to write due to the convenience of the item. However, after the invention of the pen there was still the issue of constantly dipping the pen into ink because there was no ink storage system inside of the pen. This all changed with the introduction of the fountain pen. The earliest mention of a fountain pen with an ink storage system comes from the year 973. Ma’ād al-Mu’izz, the caliph of the Maghreb, region of Northwest Africa, asked for a pen that would keep his hand clean while he uses it and would not leave as much mess as standard pens and quills. His request was met and he was presented with a pen that held ink inside and could be held upside-down without spilling. However, there is no record on this pen’s functionality or how it looked. Furthermore, on May 25, 1827, Romanian inventor Petrache Poenaru received a patent from the French government for a fountain pen which had a barrel made from a large swan quill. Afterwards, in America in 1848, Azel Storrs Lyman got a patent for a fountain pen which included a method of supplying ink to pens from a reservoir in the handle. Only 20 years after Azel’s patent, Duncan MacKinnon and Alonzo T. Cross invented in a variant of fountain pen called stylographic pen which used a wire in a tube as a valve for ink. Finally, the first self-filling fountain pens were invented in the early 20th century. All of these inventors had one target goal in mind and built upon each other’s inventions. They would innovate the innovation that was created in their past. Nowadays nobody gives much thought to the history of the pen because of its simplicity. However, it truly is interesting to learn the background of an item that most people take for granted.

The specific fountain pen I will be discussing is known as the Platinum # 3776. This fountain pen is rather modern but is different from other fountain pens due to its superior craft and functionality. The design on this specific model is exquisite and no other fountain pen comes close in artistic appeal. The Platinum # 3776 is comprised of five large parts. These parts are known as the cap, barrel, nib, feed, section and converter.

Figure 1

 

 

 

 

 

The first major component is known as the cap which is an exterior covering of the pen. Although, the cap may seem simple it consists of five parts known as the finial, clip, insert, center band and lip. The clip is the metal band that allows the pen to be placed in a shirt pocket and prevents the pen from rolling if it falls on the ground. The finial is the top rounded off part of the cap. Next, there is the insert which helps keep the pen wet when it is closed up. Fourthly, there is the center band which is used for decorative purposes. Finally, there is the lip which is the open end of the cap that will ultimately cover the pen up.

Figure 2

The second major component is known as the barrel which is the long part of the body of the pen which houses the ink reservoir. The first part of the barrel is known as the threads which are thin ridges cut into a pen to hold parts together. For this specific pen, the threads will hold the pen cap closed when covering the pen body. The next part is known as the step which is the part of the barrel where the threads can be distinguished from the body. Next, there is the body which is the length of a pen barrel that typically houses the ink reservoir. Finally, there is the trim ring which is another component used for creating a unique design of the pen.

Figure 3

 

 

The third major component is known as the nib which is the part of the pen that touches the paper. The nib the metal tip of the pen. Next there is the tipping material which is a little bit of metal welded to the end of a nib. Thirdly, there is the slit which is the very thin cut running from the breather hole to the tip of the nib that carries the ink throughout the pen body. Furthermore, there are the tines which are the two front parts of the nib that attach to the tip. Moving along there is the shoulder which is the widest part of a nib. Then there is the breather hole which is a hole in the nib, at the end of the nib slit, that allows air to assist in the ink flow. After there is the imprint which is the engraving left on the face of the nib that shows the brand, model, or nib size. Finally, there is the base which is the bottom of the tip, where the nib fits into the section of a pen.

Figure 4

The fourth component of the pen is known as the feed which is the piece of plastic that is touching the back of the nib and acts as a vehicle for ink delivery from the ink reservoir to the nib. Next there are the wings which are the widest part of the feed. Then there are the fins which are the small, thin pieces on the feed that allow ink to travel into the air channels. These act as an ink regulator for consistent flow when writing speed varies. Furthermore, there is the ink channel which is a very thin slit in the feed that hugs against the back of the nib and provides a route for the ink to travel through the feed. Finally, there is the post which is the back end of a feed that goes into the ink reservoir and feeds ink into the channel.

 

Figure 5

The fifth component of the pen is known as the section which is the part of the pen where the nib fits in and attaches to the pen barrel. Next there is the grip which is the front of the section that you hold where the nib fits in. The section also contains threads and trim rings.

Figure 6

 

The final component of the fountain pen is known as the converter which is a small filling mechanism that fits onto a pen. The converter allows you to use any brand’s bottled ink. The first part of the converter is known as the mouth which is an opening that holds the converter in place. Next there is the ink reservoir which is an opening inside a pen that holds ink. Furthermore, there is the seal which is the part of the converter piston that creates a vacuum in order to draw ink into the reservoir. Moving on there is the rod which is the threaded portion of the piston mechanism that causes the seal to move up and down when the knob is turned. Also, there is the shroud which is the metal covering that holds the piston mechanism onto the back of the ink reservoir. Finally, there is the knob which is the part of the converter that you turn to move the piston seal up and down.

 

Figure 7

 

 

The fountain pen is more than just your average pen. The complexity of the fountain pen highlights the careful consideration and thought when constructing this item. In comparison with a normal pen the fountain pen is superior in design, storage capabilities and overall durability. If you are someone who writes frequently wouldn’t it be more enjoyable to write in style?

As you can see, the fountain pen is a complex technological innovation. Even though the item itself is very small, there are many parts of the item which contribute to its overall success. The fountain pen is no ordinary pen and it shouldn’t be seen as due to its superb design. Clearly, the fountain pen is a unique technological innovation.

 

 

References

• Anatomy of a Fountain Pen. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.gouletpens.com/pages/anatomy-of-a-fountain-pen

 

• Fountain Pen – History of Fountain Pens. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.historyofpencils.com/writing-instruments-history/fountain-pen-history/

 

Self Reflection of Technical Description

     This piece was very fun to tackle. I have never written a piece which follows such a structured format as this one did. The assignment itself was basically an analysis of technological item of our choice. However, the assignment was difficult due to the fact that the items were very complex and contained a lot of main parts and sub parts.

     The genre of this essay was a persuasive and informative essay. This is easy to see because the assignment asks to identify all parts of the item while also making it appealing to a buyer. Even though the assignment’s description doesn’t state it, by understanding what the assignment is asking, it is easy to identify the genre.

     The motivation which drove me to write this piece would have to be passion for engineering. At first, the assignment seemed to be a complex piece which would take many hours to complete. However, after doing research on my item which was a fountain pen I found it interesting that such a small item was so complex. I found myself very interested in analyzing each part. The audience for the essay is the general public as the goal of this assignment was to make it easy to understand the parts of my item. If the assignment wasn’t done properly, then the reader would have no idea what the purpose of the innovation was and would be confused throughout the paper.

     From this piece, I feel as if I completed a new course learning outcome. Specifically, I feel as if I mastered the course learning outcome of negotiating your own writing goals and audience expectations regarding conventions of genre, medium, and rhetorical situation. I say this because I found myself making a lot of compromise through the paper. I could’ve either directly been informative to the audience which would have made it boring to read. Or I could have focused on being very persuasive which I feel would have underplayed the importance of the innovation itself. Instead I had to find a healthy balance which I attempted to portray in my writing. All in all, this assignment was challenging to take on but very enjoyable to complete as well.