The Madness begins...

[XSSkeet]

I picked up a "Pen Makers Mandrel" at the local Woodcraft store tonight, and the fun begins.

On the shaft were 3 silver bushings, all the same size and shape. There is no reference to what these are. Inside a small package were 3 other bushings with a tiny tag "Mont Blonc Style Pen Bushings". These are black and one has a step, one is the same size as the smaller step on #1, and the 3rd is smaller on OD even yet... Oh boy....

Can someone measure the OD of slim line bushing, and I will check the 3 silver ones.

I have no idea what the "Mont Blonc" is for... No listing on the Woodcrafters web site

Thanks
Bill

 

[mrcook4570]

The 3 silver ones are slim line bushings. The Mont Blanc bushings are for the 7mm round top euro.

 

[leatherjunkie]

I got the same bushings with my mandrell from woodcraft.
the salesman is also a penturner suggested that i use those bushings as spacers on the mandrell. then suggested that i purchase the ones designed for each kit i intend to make.

 

[Rifleman1776]

Originally posted by XSSkeet
<br />I picked up a "Pen Makers Mandrel" at the local Woodcraft store tonight, and the fun begins.

On the shaft were 3 silver bushings, all the same size and shape. There is no reference to what these are. Inside a small package were 3 other bushings with a tiny tag "Mont Blonc Style Pen Bushings". These are black and one has a step, one is the same size as the smaller step on #1, and the 3rd is smaller on OD even yet... Oh boy....

Can someone measure the OD of slim line bushing, and I will check the 3 silver ones.

I have no idea what the "Mont Blonc" is for... No listing on the Woodcrafters web site

Thanks
Bill

Did you ask the store where you bought them?

 

[XSSkeet]

Did you ask the store where you bought them?

Yep, sure did... They had no clue what the additional bushings were.

They stated the silver bushings were for the slim line.

Woodcrafters Tech Support stated "Throw the Silver Ones away!" They do not fit anything we sell. They went on to say the Mont Blanc were for the European Pen Set. Wrong.... According to their own web site, the European set uses a 4 bushing set...

Gotta love sales people... []

 

[its_virgil]

The Mont Blonc bushing set (in the pkg) is for the Euro. I use that set for slimlines where I want the top larger than the bottom. The three on the shaft are regular slimline bushings. There are pictures in my album here slimlines where I used the larger step bushing from the "Mont Blonc" set at the center bushing of the pen.

But the middle bushing gives the correct diameter of the euro but not the tennon size. The 4-bushing sets (from WC)have a ring(the fourth part) on the center bushing for the tennon sizing.

Originally posted by XSSkeet
<br />

Did you ask the store where you bought them?

Yep, sure did... They had no clue what the additional bushings were.

They stated the silver bushings were for the slim line.

Woodcrafters Tech Support stated "Throw the Silver Ones away!" They do not fit anything we sell. They went on to say the Mont Blanc were for the European Pen Set. Wrong.... According to their own web site, the European set uses a 4 bushing set...

Gotta love sales people... []

 

[ed4copies]

See, ya' just gotta find someone old enough to remember the original names of the kits!

Of course, Don is correct!

 

[XSSkeet]

The reply from Woodcrafter's Tech Support

The silver bushings are for 7mm “slim style pens†but they are 0.005†bigger in diameter than they should be which leaves the wood slightly larger than the gold pieces that press into the tube leaving a slight ridge of wood unless you sand extra.

They are also too short compared to our bushings and the three bushings and two tubes come up about ½†short of the tightening nut so you have to use the enclosed brass spacer or make a spacer from wood.

The mont blanc bushings are all the exact correct diameter but short by about ¼â€, spacer time again. The fourth bushing piece that our bushing kit includes but is missing from the set with the mandrel is a steel copy of the gold center ring in the pen kit. You have to turn a tennon on the bottom of the cap just small enough for the center ring to fit over snugly. To do that, you slip the center ring on the small end of the two step bushing, turn down your tennon using the center ring as a gauge. It is very easy to hit the center ring with a tool as it bounces around some, so we included a steel version in our bushing set that can be reused over and over and save the center rings.