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  • poolhound
    Veteran Member
    • Mar 2006
    • 3195
    • Phoenix, AZ
    • BT3100

    More pens

    This weekend I turned the rest of the kits that came with the starter kit I bought from PSI. will be gifts for friends and family when I am on vacation in a week or so. Still learning a lot, mainly on how to destroy blanks with over zealous end trimming and finished turnings when trying to get rid of excess CA glue ;-(

    The photos are not great but here is what I ended up with. From left to right Cocobolo, laminated ply, cherry, Walnut, Leopard wood, Jack Daniels barrel. The horizontal one is Tulipwood and is my favorite. Its actually much pinker than the photo makes it look. Been trying various CA finish combinations and so far the BLO/thin CA seems to go on easiest and makes for the cleanest finish. Still not sure about how many coats. When I try to add some medium ca coats without BLO they seem to lose their sheen and it can be rougher and need to go back to 600 grit sandpaper. I am rubbing out with micromesh pads but seem to have had times when I have gone through parts of the finish.

    I have just ordered a bunch of pen kits from Craft Supplies USA. I would be interested in what are your favorite pen kits and suppliers.




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    Jon

    Phoenix AZ - It's a dry heat
    ________________________________

    We all make mistakes and I should know I've made enough of them
    techzibits.com
  • Bill in Buena Park
    Veteran Member
    • Nov 2007
    • 1865
    • Buena Park, CA
    • CM 21829

    #2
    Nice bunch of pens Jon, I see you're experimenting with shape on some of the slimlines. I like the Comfort and the Trimlines for their larger centerbands - leaves more wood on the tubes to work with, I just find the slimline centerbands annoyingly narrow. Keep up the good work!
    Bill in Buena Park

    Comment

    • poolhound
      Veteran Member
      • Mar 2006
      • 3195
      • Phoenix, AZ
      • BT3100

      #3
      I bought the 7mm sample kit from PSI and it had the slimlines, comfort, designer and Tec7s. I had 2 comforts and did one with the rubber which I dont like as it makes them look cheap, why bother having a nice wood pen with a rubber grip. If I want something like that I can buy a pack of 5 at staples for $5! Dont use the rubber as in the cherry one and they are basically a fatter slimline and see what you mean as they do feel more substantial. I do quite like the black/gold clip of the slimline though.

      As I mentioned I just put in an order with CS, USA and have a bunch of new kits to play with in a few weeks. Have you made many of the roller ball style and do you have some particular favorites? I know I have some Panache, Majestic and Aero on their way.
      Jon

      Phoenix AZ - It's a dry heat
      ________________________________

      We all make mistakes and I should know I've made enough of them
      techzibits.com

      Comment

      • Bill in Buena Park
        Veteran Member
        • Nov 2007
        • 1865
        • Buena Park, CA
        • CM 21829

        #4
        I toss the rubber grips as well. Besides looks, after using for a while, that rubber can get brittle and crack, or sticky/mushy.

        I've done a few different rollerballs, mostly the Woodcraft type like the Tycoon, the Classic, etc. For gifts, I tend to gravitate toward Parker-style ballpoints and Fountain pens though, because the ink is easier to find at common office supply stores; rollerball refills, not so much here by me.

        Make sure to post your creations, would like to see what materials you pair up to those new kits!
        Bill in Buena Park

        Comment

        • poolhound
          Veteran Member
          • Mar 2006
          • 3195
          • Phoenix, AZ
          • BT3100

          #5
          Originally posted by Bill in Buena Park
          I toss the rubber grips as well...

          Make sure to post your creations, would like to see what materials you pair up to those new kits!
          I think I will be doing the same if I end up using those kits in the future. I will be sure to post whatever I make as I am keen to get other tips as to how I can improve technique or make the process easier/quicker. Not sure yet about materials but as I have so much on hand I am not sure I will be buying any pen blanks any time soon. I dont know how I feel about acrylics. As I am basically a wood guy I tend to think I should stick to wood. I do have a few odd blanks in that stuff I bought with the lathe so I guess I will try those.

          Jon

          Phoenix AZ - It's a dry heat
          ________________________________

          We all make mistakes and I should know I've made enough of them
          techzibits.com

          Comment

          • Brian G
            Senior Member
            • Jun 2003
            • 993
            • Bloomington, Minnesota.
            • G0899

            #6
            I am not sure I will be buying any pen blanks any time soon.
            Hah. . . good one! Yes, you will. They also spontaneously replicate. Then you'll discover casting and how much fun that is. Then you'll discover yourself mumbling things like, "can I make a pen out of that?" (yes, you can) and you'll stuff things away like a pack rat.

            You are in big trouble, mister.

            I think shapes are a matter of preference. I'm more inclined to be subtle with a barrel shape and prefer a straighter line. The waspy look isn't for me. My favorite component set is cigar style for ball point, and I like Berea's Virage for a rollerball.

            There isn't a magic number of coats of CA. I only use thin. I shoot for a final sand before CA so that I'm somewhere around 0.004" to 0.008" less than the mating component diameter, build CA until I'm around +0.004" to 0.008" over the mating component diameter, and then micromesh my way to final mating component diameter. Then I buff lengthwise.

            Try the plastics. They all turn a little different. Watching ribbons of alumilite stream away will make you giggle.

            Keep up the great work.
            Last edited by Brian G; 07-15-2016, 08:09 PM.
            Brian

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