Take care with the ink cartridge if your pen has one. The ink cartridge is for one-time use and is punctured to release ink into the nib. Since the ink cartridge is punctured, it will leak ink if you turn it upside down. Keep it upright. You might want to use a pen cup or other holder to temporarily store the cartridge while you clean your pen. [1] X Research source If your pen has a converter, remove the converter from the pen assembly. A converter is a reusable reservoir for ink. It can be refilled with bottled fountain pen ink.
Run the water through the nib until the water runs clear. Use cool water only. Do not use hot or warm water or alcohol to clean a fountain pen. Doing so can damage the inner workings of the pen. Instead, make sure you have clean, cool water. Distilled water usually works best.
You can also use vinegar instead of ammonia. Use one teaspoon of vinegar with one cup of water. Do not use ammonia on Wahl Eversharp pens from the 1920s and 1930s. Likewise, don’t use ammonia to clean a pen with aluminum parts. These pens will be damaged by the ammonia. Do not use any cleaners or soaps on your pen. These will damage your pen. Do not soak nitrocellulose pens in ammonia, as the ammonia will discolor the pen’s covering
You can rest the nibs upright on top of a paper towel. The paper towel will help wick away moisture from the nib as it dries overnight.
If you run water through the converter with the faucet, be sure to run the water very lightly. Otherwise, water can get behind the piston seal in the converter and may create a moldy-looking blob of ink that is difficult to remove.
If your pen has etching on it, you can use some silver polish with a toothbrush. This will work the silver polish into the grooves of the etching.
If you leave the ink in the pen, the ink’s acids will mix with oxygen and start oxidizing the nib. [7] X Research source
