Thread: Some pen questions

Well, I'm no expert, but here's my suggestiosn.

1. Turning too much. I have gone lower than the bushes, but never enough to make the blank split? Do you mean you hit the tube underneath, and the wood split from there, or you got an actua;y split without hitting the tube? All I can say is, turn till you're either just proud of the bushes, then the sanding will take it down to the right size, if you're applying a thin finish, or turn to the bushes, sanding will go slightly lower, then finish will return to bush size.

2. I have a potato in my workshop I've heard of others using dental wax sheets (harder to come by), play dough, I thought about Bluetack or any other soft substance you can cut a plug out of. Of things normally in a workshop, I guess you could fill a tray a couple mm deep with something like PVA glue and use it when it's gelled, as long as you weren;t leaving it in the end too long. Seems a bit of a waste of glue though, and I have no idea if it'd really work.

3. Several suppliers offer quantity discounts. Addictivepenkits lists their discounts on the web site, most of the others I've seen in Australia you'll have to ask. You can get some pens sent from the US directly at quite good discounts, although with the Aussie $$ now around 70c US, you're looking at adding 25%+ to the US price, so not as much of a bargain as previously.

Russell.

Originally Posted by Tiger

I Should the final size after sanding be the same size as the spacers?yep 'spacers' (they're called bushings or bushes) are the same diameter as the kit thats why you need different sets of bushings for different sized kits.

Secondly, have heard that some turners use bits of potato to block up the barrels to stop glue seeping in there, what else do people use that one would find in say, a workshop?if you use a pen mill, blocking up the barrels isnt needed

Thirdly, if one was becoming addicted to pens and needed a say 30 to 50 pen kits, is there a supplier that could provide that at a reasonable cost? addictive pen kits, carrols woodcrafts supplies, gary pye woodturning, carbatec...theres plenty of suppliers around.

cheers

1: The bushes are basically the same size as the fittings that go onto those ends. So at the least the ends of the the blank should be turned down to match the bushes. It's not recommended to go thinner in the middle. although thicker is OK.

Actually, from what you're describing I'd say you need to glue the blanks to the tube better. Any air gaps between the tube and the blank and disaster soon follows...

2: Blu-tac. Small rubber plugs. Anything that fits snugly and can be easily removed.

Thanks to Russell, Stirlo and Skew. Armed with your information I'm ready to tackle more pens, once I get around to buying some more pen kits....

The suggestion to glue properly is very true, especially on harder woods and burls, that is why i now use 5 minute epoxy or araldite, but no matter what you use, it is worth the extra effort to glue the barrels properly. Amos

I have read somewhere that the potato trick is no longer a good idea because it also coats the outside of the brass tube with a lining that the glue wont stick to. As a result the ends of the blank chip out much more frequently.

I have found that with the barrel trimmer, you end up with the inside of the barrel being quite clean anyway.

Timberbits

Originally Posted by timberbits

I have read somewhere that the potato trick is no longer a good idea because it also coats the outside of the brass tube with a lining that the glue wont stick to. As a result the ends of the blank chip out much more frequently.

I have found that with the barrel trimmer, you end up with the inside of the barrel being quite clean anyway.

Timberbits

Well I always wipe off the tube after I've cut the potato plug, or otherwise yeah the starch could cause a problem.

As for the mill cleaning the tube, well mine is not that perfect a fit, and I still have to carefully ream out any stuff squashed against the sides, as I've noticed an obvious difference in final fit between "almost" clean and "squeaky" clean tubes.

Russell.

Originally Posted by BoomerangInfo

As for the mill cleaning the tube, well mine is not that perfect a fit, and I still have to carefully ream out any stuff squashed against the sides, as I've noticed an obvious difference in final fit between "almost" clean and "squeaky" clean tubes.

Good call!

That's something that caused me grief when I first started. It only takes that little bit the mill doesn't remove to make pens difficult/impossible to assemble. Or, what can be even worse, difficult to disassemble.

I now use an old, worn rat-tail file to clean out the tube - if necessary - after milling. I spin the file by hand in the tube to remove excess glue, so that it doesn't remove too much brass and cause other problems.

Originally Posted by timberbits

I have read somewhere that the potato trick is no longer a good idea because it also coats the outside of the brass tube with a lining that the glue wont stick to. As a result the ends of the blank chip out much more frequently.

I have found that with the barrel trimmer, you end up with the inside of the barrel being quite clean anyway.

Timberbits

I've been using playdough and was advised to wipe the outside of the tube with acetone before glue up. It's also mentioned on the instructions with the Berea pens like the sierra etc
even with the playdough I still find some glue sadly occasionally gets inside. I use a hobby knife to clean it up

a rat tail file how bloomin obvious thanks Skew

I also find that the mill reamers don't fit all the tubes so well,especially the bigger sizes, what I do is find a drill as close to size of the tube as possible , eg 7 mm tubes 1/4 drill ,I simply hold the drill in hand and slide the blank with tube along the drill backwoods and forwards with just enough pressure to rub inside the tube a, few quick up and down movements ,turning slightly acts as a broach ,will not take any thing off the inner tube dimension ,and comes out spotlessly clean every time whether CA glue or epoxy, sometimes have to do the same trick to get a tube to fit after drilling with correct drill,especially some of the more moist woods ,they seem to shrink somehow.