Why is my fountain pen so scratchy?

LeStallion

Someone who prefers to use a fountain pen often does so for more than one reason. For many, nothing beats the sensual experience of writing with a pen on paper. In contrast, it's not very enjoyable to write with a scratchy nib. This other sensation is common among frequent users of fountain pens. I am often asked whether there is anything that can be done at home to cure a scratchy nib, despite the fact that we provide our own maintenance services and free nib tuning on each pen or nib unit acquired from us. The answer might be yes, but it worries me because treatments often cause more issues than they resolve. The following is based on my own experience fixing a scratchy writing instrument.

It's likely that some form of damage was done to a nib that was before producing nice, smooth writing and has now become scratchy. Misalignment is by far the most prevalent cause of this problem. Tine alignment may shift if dropped or bumped. The first step is to check this. One of the tips will be ahead of the other on the paper due to the misalignment, revealing the sharp inner edge of the tipping. A steady stream of ink may also be disrupted by this. Those of us with mere mortal sight need a ten-power loupe to make out the misaligned tilting. The next steps are only for the courageous, who understand that passing the pen to someone else is necessary to fix the situation.
It might also refer to a "trainer pen," as opposed to a "writer," in this case.

Keep the loupe near your eye and the pen's point aimed towards the loupe.

Everything takes place within touching distance of your face. Look for the "iridium" forms to be closely spaced and in a symmetrical arrangement with the points at the same level. (A flexible nib will contact the paper, whereas a hard one will leave a little space.) If you notice that one side is more than five percent higher than the other, you may check the tips by lifting the lower side with your fingernail. If it rises by the same amount on the opposite side, plus an additional 5% above the first side, then you know it can be moved. A nib is said to be well-balanced if this happens and the tines are of the hard kind.

You have likely identified the source of scratchiness if one side is consistently and noticeably higher than the other.

This nib is just right.

In such instance, check to make sure the nib is in the middle of the feed. If put aside, the solution may be straightforward. Carefully realign the nib with the feed. To avoid damaging the tine, it is best to push from its center, where the curvature meets the shoulder, rather than from its shoulder or its tip. If you find that you have gone too far, flip the pen over and press lightly from the opposite side, being careful to move the nib just a little distance. You'll need to do this again and again until the slit is directly in the middle of the feed. (Some nibs and feeds work better when they aren't perfectly aligned, but that's a topic for another day.)
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