Thread: Who remembers this

Good luck! They're not the easiest pen for a beginner, if you've managed to assemble it you've done well. But they do get easier with practice.

So... pix??

Yea thanks Skew

We got fed up with the slimlines and what I didnt tell you is that one of the five kits we got is now spare parts.
Pics will come after Maria is finished as we only have the one lathe now since mine died. Get another Jet on thursday.

You'd be surprised what you can do with the slimline kits. Being the cheapest kit around, it tends to be the basis for most of my... "experiments." If you start making your own centre-bands, then you can get into some really creative shapes.

But yeah, the basic slimline is boring...

Originally Posted by KangaMan

We got fed up with the slimlines and what I didnt tell you is that one of the five kits we got is now spare parts.

If, by spare parts, you mean that the turning didn't work out as expected so you're short a tube or two, you do realise that you can simply turn the rest of the timber off (carefully) and use a scrap of s/paper to clean up the tube for re-use, don't you?

Just checking... 'cos I caught my apprentice actually throwing his screwed up tubes in the bin! :eek:

Yep, didn't enjoy my first Mont Blanc at all BUT it was my own stoopid fault. If I had read the instructions (at all) I would have known not to turn the top piece down to the centre bushing like I had been with all the slimlines.

Something that will help immensly with the tenon is a half decent set of calipers and a 3mm parting tool. The 5mm width of the tenon I just eyeball by doing one full width of the parting tool, then half again as best I can tell. I turn the tenon down to just a whisker below the bushing, if it is flush you will have the devil's own hassles trying to get the ring on. For the blank above the tenon I just keep turning down to roughly 13.5mm as best I can tell and then sand from there. All the Acrylics in this thread have been turned successfully this way.

Hang in there though, the Mont Blancs do turn out nice when you get used to them and they are more enjoyable than the slimlines in the long run.

Toasty gave you good advice. I remember my first. with no wood experience I was not even sure what the word tenon met. i had to come in and google it to try and read the page but I did get it to work but yep they are a nice pen. It will improve
Toni

Like Skew said, plain slim lines become a bit of a yawn. I always buy the spare Mont Blanc tubes to customise slim lines and save the spare slim line tube for my .308 cartridge pen tops.
Darren

Well here are the pictures
I did the Ebony and Maria did the Purple Heart even though it doesn't look anything like purple heart in the photo.
Maria is still rolling around the floor laughing at the boo boo she did with hers.
Oh well we all got to start somewhere.

Good stuff.

Hint: put the purpleheart on a window sill where it'll get some sun for a day or two, don't forget to roll it over.

Thanks Toasty for the advice as always much appreciated yes reading instructions make a big difference, unfortunately the only instructions we had were how to assemble the components, had to jump on the net and look for some.

Skew
Maria is the queen of recycling she has rescued many tubes from a few of our earlier tries.

Darren
Had never thought of mixing and matching, thanks.

Toni
I remember reading you thread on your Mont Blanc and I reckon you are all ready improving.

Barry

Originally Posted by KangaMan

Maria is still rolling around the floor laughing at the boo boo she did with hers.

Ahh now I see. That pen might be a little top heavy Still, pretty good first efforts I reckon, definitly better than mine!

Well done Toasty you win the lollipop, I really thought Skew would be all over that one like flies around a .....

Originally Posted by Book Worm

Well done Toasty you win the lollipop, I really thought Skew would be all over that one like flies around a .....

Nar, I saw it but I'm not one to poke the finger. You obviously knew it for a booboo, so why rub salt?

Actually, I reckon it looks better that way, but fitting the innards... well... not so simple.

It actually worked out more evenly balanced, it doesn't feel as top heavy (just looks it) as the one Kanga done. Didn't have any trouble fitting the innards...made them fit, I wont take no for an answer.

Ahhh yes, the old Mont Blancs ...

I remember my first ..

Not only didnt read the bleedin instructions (as Im happy to observe nobody else seems to do with these kits) .. but managed to get the lengths back to front and, like most just turned down to the bushes.

I must admit, I didnt think much of the kit after my first pen . . LOL . . ah, but then read the friggin destructions didnt I.

I have found though, that cutting that tennon is best done with a sharp narrow parting tool AFTER you have finished the rest of the pen. That way, you get a nice sharp tennon that you dont have to worry about rolling over the edge by sanding.

ok .. they be my 2 bits

Rich.