Hello, So far I have made a few hundred pens , so I'm not exactly a beginner. HOWEVER, I am trying to finish a Majestic Set for a gift. I am putting together a Majestic Rhodium and 22kt roller ball I got from Penn State Pens. I did the letter opener, no trouble, did the fountain pen , no trouble. Did the Roller ball, and put the center on, then while putting the End Cap on it cracked the Tru-Stone. Thing is I know I was pressing it straight. I ordered a new barrel, Tru Stone blank , center. THe end cap never went in far enough to be permanent. I was able to remove it from the barrel by hand and saw no damage. Today, I finished all the new stuff and CRACK! Again, I know the end cap was going in straight. I even put a small amount of lube using a Q tip on the inside of the barrel to help it slide in. THis time there is no saving the end cap , so now I have to order everything again and hope I get it in time. ANy ideas what happened???
HELP! Trouble with Majestic Roller Ball
- Thread starter rodtod11
- Start date
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Hopefully ....solved! Talk to a Tech at Penn State today. Apperantly you drill the hole for the brass and then come back with a drill bit the next size up and drill just enough to allow for the expansion of the tube when inserting the cap. When gluing , use epoxy only on the center. The epoxy that gets into the space between the Tru Stone and Brass, dig out with a paper clip or anything that will fit. That allows the expansion of the tube. Because Tru Stone does not flex!
ed4copies
Local Chapter Manager
Thanks!!! Never heard that one before!!
Whaler
Member
You said installing the end cap caused the crack. By end cap do you mean the finial that holds the clip on? If so it seems like all went well with the FP so the RB would have been no different. Did you clean out the tube so there was no CA, epoxy or whatever glue inside?
Yes, I did clean them out and there was no glue inside. I always clean the inside of my tunes with alcohol and a q tip then inspect under the magnifying glass for any contaminates. This was not the clip end but the other end. The part is called "End Cap" in the kit directions. Why the Fountain Pen was no problem while two of the Roller Balls were I dont know. I used the same end cap both times, so I am wondering if there is a difference in the diameter of the end cap. I cant check that now, because the Fountain Pen End Cap is already installed.
edstreet
Member
So let me get this straight. You are using a brass tube that has a press fit part on it and using a non-flexible glue to bond a brittle material to the brass tube. Is there any wonder why it cracks when you move the blank?
Some interesting issues to note here.
Pre-expansion of the tube before glue is applied to the blank.
Reaming the inside brass tube to fit better
Ever so slightly over drilled hole used with a very flexible gap filling glue/epoxy.
(both of these above would demand glue/epoxy on the press fit part)
Stair steps on the end of the blank might work in some cases but glue voids could surely cause stress fractures to form as there is no backing material and low support.
Some type of flexible glue/epoxy would seem more logical to use as it's rubber based and flexes as needed.
Deburr the brass tube before press fitting. In fact chamfer the inside lip of the tube for best results.
Since the metal press fit part is plated you should check those areas very good to see if there are high spots, ridges and so forth that causes excessive ripples when pressing. More often than not there will be some and depends on the quality of the kit.
Also worthy of interest is the wobble factor on the drill hole.
Some interesting issues to note here.
Pre-expansion of the tube before glue is applied to the blank.
Reaming the inside brass tube to fit better
Ever so slightly over drilled hole used with a very flexible gap filling glue/epoxy.
(both of these above would demand glue/epoxy on the press fit part)
Stair steps on the end of the blank might work in some cases but glue voids could surely cause stress fractures to form as there is no backing material and low support.
Some type of flexible glue/epoxy would seem more logical to use as it's rubber based and flexes as needed.
Deburr the brass tube before press fitting. In fact chamfer the inside lip of the tube for best results.
Since the metal press fit part is plated you should check those areas very good to see if there are high spots, ridges and so forth that causes excessive ripples when pressing. More often than not there will be some and depends on the quality of the kit.
Also worthy of interest is the wobble factor on the drill hole.
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Chatham PenWorks
Member
If you do this, you are just asking for trouble. It will like save you from cracking the blank as you insert the cap, but it's all but certain to crack, and even dent after the fact. TrueStone turned thin enough for a majestic cap needs to be fully supported by the glue/epoxy.
If I'm mistaken, and you're talking about the body section, I'd expect the same thing to happen, just after a longer period of time.
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johncrane
Member
Pre-Fit the cap into the brass tube before gluing blank onto tube, using your steel bushing in one end of the brass tube to press on so you don't bend brass tube, deburr brass cover cap and clip with tape so you don't scratch parts, then press cap end into brass tube then remove the cap from brass tube using a center punch, after doing this glue the brass to blank use epoxy as ED said.then turn the blank between centers.
Chatham PenWorks
Member
I just had to add that it saddens me that a customer service rep would such bad advice. That's been bugging me ever since I read the OP.
edstreet
Member
I think that many here are grossly misunderstanding the fact that some blank materials are highly fragile and any movement can crack them. Especially in thin sections that we put on pen blanks. It's not so much 'bad design' but more of a technique/process problem.
PenMan1
Member
This was a problem for me, too. Majestic and TruStone caused many cracking problems. I THINK the problem exists because the clip and cap assembly is SO heavy it doesn't always press straight, even though it looks straight.
Now, a use a bullet reamer to flair the tube ends a tiny bit. This solved my problems.
Now, a use a bullet reamer to flair the tube ends a tiny bit. This solved my problems.
Dale Allen
Member
I'm thinking that you cannot be sure there is no glue inside the tube by using a q-tip and alcohol. I scrape the inside with a small pocket knife to be sure. That also deburrs and chamfers the end. I don't know if the OP is using TBC bushings but that is also a good quick check for glue.
One thing I learned, dont assume the kit is perfect, check everything. Also, the I.D. of the tube is .432 while the O.D. of the end cap is .436 Doesnt sound like much but apperantly it is. Lots of good advice. I'm going to have to read through it all again, and come up with a plan based on your ideas here guys. Thank Appreciate it.
kovalcik
Member
I would follow JohnCrane's advice. Pre-stress the tube by assembling the end cap prior to gluing the tube in. Just make sure it will still fit the hole you drilled. You may need to drill the end cap end a little bigger.