Today’s quickie lesson concerns the current-production Pilot Vanishing Point, as illustrated here in the vibrant Raden finish:
There has arisen on the Fountain Pen Network, where I hang out from time to time, a thread about ripping the clip off a Vanishing Point. This subject comes up periodically because not everyone is happy with the clip’s location; for some of us, the clip ends up right under a finger and renders writing with the pen a more or less uncomfortable experience. This time I had a VP handy whose clip I could remove to illustrate the process.
In case you’re concerned about this point, I’ll say at the outset that removing the clip does not expose the pen to dryout. The retracted nib hides behind that little spring-loaded door, and it’s all contained within an inner structure that isn’t violated by the operation described here.
To remove the clip, you must first remove the bright metal nose cone. It’s secured by glue, and with a little patience and a lot of wiggling and pulling, you can break the bond and work the nose cone free.
The clip is secured to the nose cone by a retaining clip that slips under the clip’s two folded-over ears, which protrude inward through slots in the nose cone. Slide out the retaining clip and remove the pen's clip.
If in removing the nose cone you scratched any of the paint off the pen’s inner housing, you can touch up the scratches with flat black modeler’s paint, available at most hobby shops. Reattach the nose cone with a good household glue (Duco Cement or its equivalent) or jeweler’s cement. Do not use white glue, which is for porous materials only.
The nose cone's holes look remarkably like the windows of an aircraft pilot's cockpit (Maybe on a Star Wars fighter of some sort), and the clipless pen looks sleek and jetlike in a futuristic kind of way. It's wicked cool, actually.
