First attempt at a Euro

[dhammis]

After making a few slimlines and starting to feel comfortable with my tools and the general process of making pens I decided to step out of my comfort zone and try a Euro.

I got two kits from Rockler, a gold and a chrome. I thought I'd try the gold first with a cheap blank I'd gotten from the budget box.

This was my first time turning a tenon and having different sizes for each end. All of the turning went very well and it was starting to look like a really nice pen.

Then the assembly started and it all went downhill from there. The ring fit on the tenon but was a hair loose so I attempted to glue it. The ring stayed on the tenon with a little CA and some accelerator. This ring had two other rings to go on it as well. Those slid on but also slid off, so again, I attempted to glue it. There must've been some accelerator on the ring though because when I slid the rings on after the glue they wouldn't go on and stuck almost immediately. I managed to get them off and sanded off most of the glue but apparently not enough. I put the first ring on and pressed it on and it stuck. The second ring wouldn't fit so I decided just to leave the one ring on it. I noticed it wasn't completely flat on the center ring though so I attempted to press it. That was another mistake. A little press and the ring pushed past the tenon and into the rest of the pen. Crap. I decided to put the rest of the pen together just for the experience and pressed the rest of it together. Minus the ring mishap it was going well until i pushed the transmission in too far. Trying to back it out caused the glue on the tube to break free and come sliding part way out.

I did eventually manage to get it all together to the point that if you look at it at a glance it looks very nice, but it's completely useless in reality. I chalk it up to experience and know that it won't be the last mishap. I wound up being out about $5 so I can't really complain and I got some more experience for next time. I really do like the Euros even if they are complex to assemble.

 

[toddlajoie]

I feel your pain, I've wrecked several pens on assembly. I'd suggest you skip the accelerator in these situations, as the CA really doesn't take that long to cure, and you see the issues with using accelerator. I don't have any experience with the kits that have the center band in pieces, that sounds like a PITA... but no matter if the tenon fit is tight or loose, you should put at least a bit of glue on it or it will eventually work loose, and by putting the glue on the ring instead of the wood, it will stay inside the joint better and not get on the outside of the pen. Euro transmissions get pushed in much farther than any other pen I've done yet, and it can be difficult to get it in far enough, but not too far. Without a pen press, I've had best luck using a wood clamp to move it small amounts at a time, and when you get one right measure it, cut a block of wood the same length, and use that in the clamp to give you a stop when you get to the right spot.

 

[workinforwood]

I've made hundreds of euro pens. They are my best selling kit pen. It is best not to use CA to glue on the band. Too many things can go wrong with CA, like you've experienced, or if the CA might get on the pen it's tough to get off the finish, and CA is brittle, so over time it can break loose. I turn my tennon so that it is a press fit, but once in awhile I might overturn it a hair..that happens. In that situation, I mix up a bit of 5 min epoxy. Using a tooth pic, spread a bit of epoxy inside the centerband, slide it on. If anything squeezes out, it can be wiped off no problem. Then clamp it and let it sit for 20 minutes.
I find that some cross refills and some trannies are slightly different lengths. Just like some centerbands are a different size than others..with centerbands you always have to use calipers to check the sizes. With the trannies, I push them in, then stick in the refill and test. pull out the refill, push in the tranny a bit more, check, check check, till it's just right.
I'd never spend $5 on a euro kit either. There is a multitude of sources for this kit. Keep checking the prices, because these kits are always on sale somewhere. I keep an eye out, especially on Arizona sillouette. When the Black TI goes on sale for 2.99 then I buy 30-40 of them. I only use the Black TI and the chrome. The chrome has a long lasting wear and in my opinion looks just as good as platinum or rhodium, but the price point is way way less.

 

[PenMan1]

I agree with Jeff on everything except the kit finishes. I DO buy the $5 (and sometimes $7) from CUSA. The TN Deco European pen with the spring clip is my very best seller. I sell it 5 to 1 over the regular europeans. ( Some say it is because of the very pretty center band, some say it is the spring clip). Which kit finishes you buy should depend on your taste or the taste of your customers.

I sometimes see these pens that I sold years ago and they still look like new.

Also, HD and Lowes in our area now carries the Loctite 5 minute epoxy in a sryinge. Even after carefully checking the tenon with a caliper, I sometimes still need to put a drop of glue on the CB. The Loctite syringe is the quickest and least messy way that I have found.

 

[dhammis]

All is not lost on this pen making experience. I learned an important lesson and that is not to rush any part of the pen making process. I was so eager to get a pen done that I did the entire process at once, using CA glue on the tubes instead of the Gorilla Glue that I had been using (with success), using CA and accelerator instead of epoxy or simply waiting for the CA to dry on it's own, etc, etc. I also should've given a bit more consideration to the multi-part centerband and assembled that before making the pen. I'm looking forward to making the chrome kit that I have and hopefully will have better results, taking what I learned from this first kit.

One question for those of you who turn Euros. Do you put your centerband on your lathe or do you just measure it with calipers and turn it to those measurements? I measured it and took it off the mandrel a couple of times to test fit while I was turning.

Thanks for everyone's input as well. As a completely green turner learning this on my own this forum and everyone here has been very helpful and insightful.

 

[jocat54]

I have made a lot of Euros and made my share of mistakes doing so. I also have a metal lathe and ended up making my own bushings (for TBC) but I always use a caliper to check the center band and the tenon. I also do as Jeff does on pressing the transmisson in. Guess you could make a little block of wood to use for the depth (to lazy I guess)

Good luck,

John

 

[workinforwood]

I use calipers only. I also finish the pen before I cut the tenon. I will wet sand the finish to 320, then cut the tenon, testing the tenon fit as I go, then go back to finish the wet sanding and polishing. You can not trust center band bushings because there is are dozens of different sizes of center bands. The more decorative ones can be larger, the simpler ones are generally smaller. I only use the simpler cheaper designs, but that's because the blanks I make look better when the kit is less. There's some pretty impressive euro kit designs out there, that's for sure. It's just a matter of what you are celebrating..the blank or the kit. The more complex the blank, the simpler the kit should be..in my opinion.

 

[PenMan1]

I too use calipers only and check it frequently. On wood pens I finish the pen before I cut the tenon also. On resin pens, I cut the tenon just before finishing. This is because one errant skew mark can be polished out and if you have to sand below "final" size it is difficult to "build up" the finish on resin like you can with CA on wood.

I also sell vintage Mont Blanc, Parker, Waterman and Cross (USA made ONLY) at my shows. I delibertly upgrade the refill, the kit finish, the box and sometimes even the CB on my euros. I put my upgraded euro priced at $55 dollars next to my $250 Mont Blancs. I encourage customers to write with both. Needless to say, I sell a LOT of euros. Since, I don't want my pens coming back at me at next years show, I only use CUSA 10K, or TN or platinum kits.

This is not to disagree with anyone, this is simply what sells pens for me.