I was not able to get most of the pens clean that I purchased on Ebay. Some even had broken wires that were only discovered after they were somewhat cleaned out.   What a bummer. However, Ebay has a buyer protection program so I reported the seller for a false listing. I offered to pay a small amount for the pens that worked as well as the shipping. I wanted to be fair, after all. Customer support decided to give me back all of my money  so how cool is that? 

I belong to the Freecycle network so I posted a want add for Rapidograph or any other technical pens a few months ago. I guessed it didn’t hurt to ask. I got an email last week that someone had found an old set if I would come pick them up!!! That set was also very dirty, but hey it was free so if I could get only a few of the pens cleaned and working I would be good to go. I soaked them in ammonia for many days and the wires were shaking. So I was part way there. 

At the Salvation Army I found a sonic jewelry cleaner that Gary Simmons writes in The Technical Pen book  will also work in place of a $100 Koh-I-Noor sonic cleaner. I am happy to report that I now have a full set of pens in working order. I am excited that I can now use the metallic acrylic Speedball inks that have been  sitting on a shelf. I hope to be able to post a few sketches and things for you to see in the next few weeks.