Ballpens have a tendency to stop working if left unattended for a lengthy period. Some gentle heating, such as that which is provided by the steam rising from a cup of coffee, usually solves the problem.

Special cups are now available with a suitably designed rim-lip to hold these pens in place while this action is being affected.

see link (quick illustration)
-- xenzag, Jul 10 2011

https://sodabred.tu...aked-idea-by-xenzag cuplip [xenzag, Jul 10 2011, last modified Jun 06 2018]

I never heard of this method for reviving a ballpoint before - will have to try it out next time the situation comes up.
-- zen_tom, Jul 11 2011


When I was writing on holiday my trusty biro soon became near-depleted. I kept having to open up the pen, take out the ink straw and blow down it, towards the nib. Then it would work for another 20 lines or so until I had to do it again.

How about a rubber pump that blows air into the ink straw every time you click the pen's emerge button? (How on Earth do you describe that clicky bit on a pen? I can't write a sentence today. Why am I so hungover?)
-- theleopard, Jul 11 2011


The police constable raised his service revolver and pressed the emerge button.
-- rcarty, Jul 11 2011


//the pen's emerge button// I misread that.
-- pocmloc, Jul 11 2011


The swarthy/handsome/manly pirate/prince/cowboy unbuttoned his breeches/unlaced his bodkin/unbuckled his chaps and pressed the 'emerge' button...
-- Alterother, Jul 11 2011


[leopard]: search your short-term memory. If it's missing bits, that's probably why you're hungover!
-- Alterother, Jul 11 2011


I'd like point out that the six-sided ballpoint pen illustrated doesn't need a dip to keep it from rolling off.
-- DrCurry, Jul 12 2011


Silly me... I was hoping for an engineered cup lip that when raised kissed as sweetly as my lover.
-- jurist, Jul 12 2011


Ha - the great DrCurry returns...... excellent. As for the hexagon profiled pen rolling off, that's true, but the form of the cup indicates its function and invites its use (if you see what I mean)
-- xenzag, Jul 12 2011


See transferred illustration link.
-- xenzag, Jun 06 2018


(+)
-- 2 fries shy of a happy meal, Jun 06 2018


The picture of this invention reminds me of something else that I've often wanted for some purpose that I can't now remember. [+]
-- pertinax, Jun 07 2018



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