Americana rollerball?

[Hillbilly]

This will be my first rollerball pen. I have only turned slimlines. In the directions for this pen it says on the longtube "cap end" to make a 1/4 inch parting cut to accept the center band.

My question is.....how crucial is this cut? Do you take the 1/4 off in one cut or 1/16 to 1/8 at a time. How hard is it going to be to get a square end?

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

 

[TellicoTurning]

Brian,
You may get others chiming in here, but the cut needs to be pretty accurate.. the CB slips on the brass tube and fits tight against the blank. If you do error, it may be safer to error on a narrower cut..
I use a narrow little wood chisel that I've sharpened and keep sharp (my little chisel is about 1/4 inch wide)... you want to cut carefully straight down so the end of the blank does stay square. I actually cut at a very very slight bevel so that the leading edge is ever so slightly longer than the edge adjacent to the tube.

If you have a very thin parting tool, that works as well.

 

[Hillbilly]

Is this where a sharpend screwdriver would come in?

 

[fernhills]

I use a parting tool, i have 3 of them one is 3/16 that just about does it on the safe side.

 

[TellicoTurning]

Is this where a sharpend screwdriver would come in?

that works.

 

[george]

I also use partial tool and at the end just a little touch with the skew, to get a clean cut (edge). When using CA for gluing the center band, be sure that you do not use too much of it. Few days ago I put like 3 or 4 bigger drops and it splashes out, when I put it together. Total mess.

 

[wb7whi]

Are you sure about that 1/4 inch?

 

[Hillbilly]

I also use partial tool and at the end just a little touch with the skew, to get a clean cut (edge). When using CA for gluing the center band, be sure that you do not use too much of it. Few days ago I put like 3 or 4 bigger drops and it splashes out, when I put it together. Total mess.

Thanks, the glue has been a disaster for me also.

Are you sure about that 1/4 inch?

The directions say make a 1/4 inch wide parting cut down to the brass tube to accommodate the center band. The diagram looks like you basicly cut off the last 1/4 inch of the wood and the band presses onto the end of the long tube.
I think I may go a little less. Not getting the band pressed on a full 1/4 inch would be better than a gap between the wood and the band.
Right:question:

 

[furini]

sorry if I'm telling you what you already know but it's best to put the finish on before you turn off the end for the cb - that way you don't round over the part of the barrel that meets with the band.

cheers

Stewart

 

[Hillbilly]

sorry if I'm telling you what you already know but it's best to put the finish on before you turn off the end for the cb - that way you don't round over the part of the barrel that meets with the band.

cheers

Stewart

I had no idea, its going to be an acrylic blank so will that make any difference?

 

[MorganGrafixx]

This will be my first rollerball pen. I have only turned slimlines. In the directions for this pen it says on the longtube "cap end" to make a 1/4 inch parting cut to accept the center band.

My question is.....how crucial is this cut? Do you take the 1/4 off in one cut or 1/16 to 1/8 at a time. How hard is it going to be to get a square end?

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

Forgive me if I'm wrong here, but I could have sworn the parted piece comes off the SHORT tube...not the long tube. The long tube is the lower barrel (part you hold to write). The short barrel is the barrel for the cap and needs the 1/4" parted off. I have done 4 of these so far, so by no means am I an expert...but I believe that is right.

I had no idea, its going to be an acrylic blank so will that make any difference?

Yes. It makes no difference whether wood or plastic. Turn the pen like normal...finish however you want (For acrylic I sand from 420 all the way through 12000 then do the 20/20 plastic polish two times)...then part off the width it tells you to.

 

[DurocShark]

I generally finish after parting it off, but then I re-do the parting off, leaving a layer of my finish over the wood. For acrylics, I do as MorganGrafixx said, but I do apply the plastic polish to the turned off portion.

 

[skywizzard]

Brian,
I just did my first Americana rollerball this weekend. I cut the tenon EXACTLY 1/4 inch using the micrometer for accuracy. It turned out this was about .020 inches too long. After assembly and maximum adjustment of the plastic sleeve used as the clip, there was a gap between the wood and the decorative ring. My advice is to cut a little short and try a pre-assembly if possible.

 

[Tn-Steve]

I like cutting it just a tiny bit short, I like having just a small bit of overhang with the centerband over the lower section. I use a parting tool, take it up a little at a time, and am not above taking it off the lathe to match it up against the physical centerband to make sure I'm OK. If the tendon is just a tiny bit too thick the centerband will still press in, too loose, use just 2 drops of glue, 180 degrees apart to help hold the cb in place. (don't need much, it's not really going to get too stressed)

just my .02

Steve

 

[Lenny]

Forgive me if I'm wrong here, but I could have sworn the parted piece comes off the SHORT tube...not the long tube. The long tube is the lower barrel (part you hold to write). The short barrel is the barrel for the cap and needs the 1/4" parted off. I have done 4 of these so far, so by no means am I an expert...but I believe that is right.



Yes. It makes no difference whether wood or plastic. Turn the pen like normal...finish however you want (For acrylic I sand from 420 all the way through 12000 then do the 20/20 plastic polish two times)...then part off the width it tells you to.

According to the instructions it is the long tube that is the cap end and gets the tenon for the center band.

 

[aggromere]

I gave up making the pens that require the tenon, but as i recall the cut has to be exact or the centerband doesn't fit right (if too small a tenon) and you end up with a gap if it's too big. I read somewhere that a suggestion was to glue the blank onto the tube with the gap already pre measured. I haven't tried that so dont know if it will work.

good luck.