Berea, Woodcraft and B mandrels

[cdcarter]

I've been trying or a while to figure out this little puzzle. Woodcraft sells Berea under its own names, but apparently not all of the product line. Berea gravitates to the larger B mandrels. But so far as I can tell, Woodcraft doesn't sell anything that doesn't use the 7 mm stick.

I have to assume I've been missing something, and honestly, I haven't analyzed every kit at the local store. But when I went down there to buy a B mandrel, they didn't even know what it was, and I don't see one on their web site.

Does anybody know if maybe they've just made a decision to stay out of the bigger rod biz, if they're carrying a mix of kits or what?

Their rebranding, bad display and spotty product line have caused me to spend most of my money at AZ Silhouette and Bear Tooth, which is a shame, because I like these guys and want to help them when I can, even it if means an extra buck or two now and then. There's a value to having them in business locally -- seminars, advice, gathering spot, etc.

Carl

 

[George7]

I think that Woodcraft is just trying to keep the mandrel selection simple. You can make a pen that Berea uses the "B" mandrel for with a "A" mandrel with a different bushing. The Woodcraft Cushion Grip pen is identical to the Berea Cushion Grip pen. The Woodcraft bushings must have a step to fit the larger tube to the smaller mandrel.

Ideally, I think that the larger mandrel would be better for any pen that takes a large enough tube to allow it. The larger mandrel should be stiffer and thus less prone to deflection from pressure from tools, tailstocks, and overtightened nuts on the mandrel. In reality, most pens can be turned successfully on a 7mm mandrel.

 

[cdcarter]

In doing so, they're limiting themselves to the entry level market, which may well be appropriate. I don't know a thing about retail, and have no clue how they view their target market. But it seems to me that in the long run, you need to sell consumables like pen kits and blanks to high-volume users. You can sell a guy a lathe for a couple hundred bucks, which is fine, but if you can sell him $100 a month worth of blanks, glue, abrasives and kits (very conservative for folks around here!), you've got a $1200 revenue stream you can budget around.

Originally posted by George7
<br />I think that Woodcraft is just trying to keep the mandrel selection simple.

 

[BigguyZ]

Originally posted by George7
<br />

Ideally, I think that the larger mandrel would be better for any pen that takes a large enough tube to allow it. The larger mandrel should be stiffer and thus less prone to deflection from pressure from tools, tailstocks, and overtightened nuts on the mandrel. In reality, most pens can be turned successfully on a 7mm mandrel.

Overtightened nuts on the mandrel can cause deflection?? I didn't know that. I think that's what's bee causing the runout on my mandrel! Holy cow! I couldn't figure it out- the lathe is aligned, and the mandrel rod of straight when I tested it out of the lathe, but when I was turning I get a slight wobble that's been affecting my turning...

On the original subject, I too found this confusing at first, and have stayed with the Woodcraft route for buying my mandrels and kits just so I don't have to keep track of multiple mandrels and multiple bushing sizes for the same kit. But it makes sens that a larger rod is more stable...

 

[cdcarter]

If you're like me, you'll soon find yourself wanting to see what else is out there. For example, staying with the 7 mm world and Wood Craft doesn't give you access to some really great kits like the Perfect Fit, which Berea makes but to my knowledge is only turned on a B mandrel.

There seem to be 3 major manufacturers of pen kits -- Berea (which Woodcraft carries at least in part), Craft Supply, and PSI. I avoid PSI, because I don't think their quality is as good. But Craft Supply has some nice kits like the Gentlemen, which I think is a better kit for the money than anything I've seen at Wood Craft.