Berea, PSI or CSUSA Pens ?

[mrmartyking]

There are so many similar pens out there from the different vendors that I do not know which to get.
What about PSI Comfort vs Berea Comfort?
And the Sierra style pens from PSI vs Berea?
And there are many nice ones from CSUSA, too.
Any recommendations would be appreciated.

 

[Fatdawg]

In short the best advise would be for you to the different names or types for yourself. While I like brand X for this reason and do not like brand Y for that reason, some will agree and others will disagree. In the end what counts is what you and your customers like for whatever reason.

 

[David M]

stay with the 1st line of pens , some vendors offer a less expensive line - some have had problems / transmissions not working right . Keep with the better platings , TI Gold and chrome last very well. try to stay away fron 10 and 24 k platings .... but all of the pens you listed are good , good vendors

 

[Ruby pen turning]

Just remember that you get what you pay for (most of the time)

 

[mrmartyking]

It sounds like I should just stay away from some of the cheaper versions of these pens but that all of them are decent vendors with decent quality.
Thanks

 

[Jim Burr]

There are some good and bad kits around...like there is anything else. Unfortunately, these flaws are seen weeks or months down the line when parts or plating fail. Opinions vary and so do pocket books. Have a try at a few different ones. There are places I won't go near again and places that I've bought from for years.

 

[nativewooder]

Yes:biggrin:

 

[IPD_Mr]

All three have good kits and all three have sub-par kits. I would not stick to one company.

 

[76winger]

Agreeing with prior advice. I stuck with one vendor for the first year or so and then started branching out and trying others. That's a bit extreme, but is the way that worked for me.

Also, as you try various suppliers you'll experience various levels of shipping speeds, Customer Service and more, which also will affect who you buy from regularly (or not).

 

[BassBlaster]

They are all fine. I personally have never purchased a PSI kit but not because I think there is something wrong with them but because they dont offer anything that I like that I cant get from Berea which happens to be a hour down the road from me so shipping is really quick!!

Just go to exotic's site and you can sample kits from various differnt venders and usually for less $ than buying direct!!

 

[arioux]

Many of PSI and CSUSA are Dayacom kit, wich are great kit. Berea has his hown manugacturing and make great kit too. With PSI and CSUSA stay away from the lower value line (apprentice and funline)

 

[Smitty37]

Many of PSI and CSUSA are Dayacom kit, wich are great kit. Berea has his hown manugacturing and make great kit too. With PSI and CSUSA stay away from the lower value line (apprentice and funline)

PSI might not be dealing with Dayacom anymore - Maybe a year or year and a half ago, Dayacom told me they were not supplying PSI anymore. MainMold (also in Taiwan) told me to go to PSI when I asked them for a US Source for their kits.

Re the OP question....as you have gathered there are different opinions regarding the best shource of kits. To be perfectly frank it pretty much depends on the kit. Some sources seem to me to be marginally better on some kits. There are low cost versions of a few of the more popular styles, some will say stay away from them but for a beginner who has not turned before and wants to get a lot of practice without mortgaging the farm they are the way to go - if you want to sell in a high priced venue they're not. The lowly slimline is, in my opinion, the most versitile kit available --- you can try about anything turning them.

Regarding price, don't dismiss because of low price except for the big houses - many vendors here sell with a lot lower costs and much smaller margins than the big guys and you often get what you pay for and then some.

 

[gbpens]

Read up on the durabilty of the plating. Check CSUSA and Berea for their explanations on plating. Price is not always the best guide. Cheap plating wears off quickly and turns out to be a waste of money and time as well as losing the customer.

 

[Smitty37]

Plating ----

Plating is a different issue that has been discussed often. Few of us have enough metal plating knowledge/experience to shed much light.

There are a couple of axioms though - Gold Titanium Nitride is about the best wearing and it is a ceramic not metal. Black TN also wears well as does Rhodium - all are among the high priced finishes. On the other hand none of the above are a great deal better than chrome which is about the lowest priced finish - black chrome is also pretty good and fairly low cost.

As near as I can tell you have to dig pretty deep to find what, if any, difference there is between Rhodium on a very high priced component set and Rhodium on a much lower priced set....if someone tells you it'll be a thicker coat, they are probably talking through their hat. Rhodium is applied very thinly because of the nature of the plating.

 

[JCochrun]

My best seller right now is the bolt action bullet pen from PSI. I have about 12 that have been ordered that I still need to make. Honestly, I can't make them fast enough. I do work with a military unit so that might be a reason why it is such a good seller.

Jim