Move up to a more advanced kit

[SCR0LL3R]

I've done a handful of each Sierra, Carbara, Slimline and various keychains, I've just gotten my order of cigar pens to try next. After a few of those, in the near future, I would like to try something a little more advanced.

I would really like to try the Churchill kits since I love the way they look. I could also try a Baron... They're few bucks cheaper but I like Churchill a little more. Are either of these a decent choice for my first pen with a cap? Do you guys have any tips for me when doing my first pen like this?

 

[ctubbs]

The Triton from Exotic Blanks is a beautiful kit. I made one for my Bride and myself another. It is my daily carry.

There are a number of wonderful kits out there and you will hear of everyone';s personnel favorite. Have fun and make a bunch of shavings. Oh yes, post pics.
Charles

 

[ldb2000]

There's really nothing more advanced as far as difficulty in doing cap pens , if you can turn a slimline you can turn almost any kit pen . Barron's and Churchills are good next step , Barons are a little better IMO since the churchill's have a Plastic cap coupler where the Barons are metal with a delrin sleeve . There is also the Jr Gent 1 from Smitty here in the group and Exotic blanks (Ed and Dawn) have some good higher end kits as well .
Don't be in a big rush to stop making slimlines and cigars either . these kits are highly modifiable and can make some stunning pens if done right .

 

[azamiryou]

Cap pens are no more advanced than a slimline, except that you're out more money if you ruin one.

A Euro that needs a tenon introduces a skill not needed for slimlines.
Some kits are also more sensitive to barrel length than slimlines, so that could be considered more advanced.

Pretty much, though, kit pens use the same skills - so you can choose based on what you like rather than "skill level".

 

[Dan_F]

Churchill and El Grandes are the most comfortable kit fountain pens and roller balls to write with - they are nice and fat, well balanced if you don't post them, and reasonably light in weight, compared to the other full sized pens loaded down with metal at the ends.

For some reason they don't get much respect around here because of the plastic, but nearly all of the famous production fountain pens from the glory days such as Parker, Waterman, Wahl, Mabie Todd, etc, had very little metal, and can still be found in use among vintage pen aficionados.

My holy grail pen would be the Wahl - Eversharp Doric from the 1930's as seen here. http://www.richardspens.com/?page=ref/profiles/doric.htm

These sell today for between $300 and $700, depending on size and condition. Don't see any metal sections or finials on these beauties.

Dan

 

[thewishman]

Churchills are nice pens. They show off a lot of material and have some nice plating choices.

 

[ghostrider]

I've only been doing this since February, but started with mainly Cigar pens. When I started turning Slimlines, I didn't think they were any easier than the Cigar. I actually think the Cigar is easier, but maybe that's just me.

 

[jttheclockman]

Cap pens are no more advanced than a slimline, except that you're out more money if you ruin one.

A Euro that needs a tenon introduces a skill not needed for slimlines.
Some kits are also more sensitive to barrel length than slimlines, so that could be considered more advanced.

Pretty much, though, kit pens use the same skills - so you can choose based on what you like rather than "skill level".

You are never out more money ion any kit. It only takes a few pennies to get another tube or two and start over. Just about all kits are able to be disassembled if done properly. Now if you ruin an expensive blank because of your turning skill then you can do that with any kit. If you do not understand the instructions stop and ask questions.

Pick a kit that you like looking at and just go for it. Not everyone has the same skill level so question like this are hard to answer. If you have problems you know where to come to for help and good luck.

 

[ed4copies]

If you choose the Churchill, measure the tube (especially the cap) and find the best fit for a drill bit. The material on this kit can get VERY thin and the instructions are not always accurate.

I would recommend the Triton, because it is more forgiving (has more beef left).

I sell both, so that is not an influencing factor.

Good luck, whatever you choose.

 

[randyrls]

If you choose the Churchill, measure the tube (especially the cap) and find the best fit for a drill bit. The material on this kit can get VERY thin and the instructions are not always accurate.

Ed; This is good advice always! Drill the blank slightly under size and then sneak up on the final dimension. Leave the blank clamped in place until you fit the tube into the hole, then you are done. Write the drill size on the instructions and put them in a loose leaf binder.

About half the time the drill bit I use IS NOT the size recommended on the printed instructions. A set of Fraction, Number, Letter, and Metric bits is a good investment.

 

[clapiana]

Yes both are nice and either will be fun to make Great advice above....
- I too love smithy's jr gent1 and have heard great things about the triton
- regardless get a disessembly punch set
- get a few extra tubes and a square cutting chisel to save brass when things go wrong because they will

the same advice above would be true for slimlines too

regarding complexity i think both versions of the elgrande are the most difficult to create in particular the double brass tapered cap version

Blessings!
Craig

 

[Dan_F]

My advice for Churchill / El Grande re: drill bits for cap -

For wood or opaque I use a 33/64", which gives a tight fit.

For acrylic or PR where painting the inside of the blank is required, use 13.3mm, as the fit of the former may be so tight that there is no room for paint. The main drawback to these kits is that they really don't allow for much material on the blank.

I don't understand Craig's comment just above this, about the difficulty of these kits. The only thing I see is that you really must paint the inside side of the blank if the material is translucent, as you will see glue bubbles or drill marks otherwise.

Dan

 

[Dan_F]

If you choose the Churchill, measure the tube (especially the cap) and find the best fit for a drill bit. The material on this kit can get VERY thin and the instructions are not always accurate.

I would recommend the Triton, because it is more forgiving (has more beef left).

I sell both, so that is not an influencing factor.

Good luck, whatever you choose.

I agree that the Churchill leaves very little material on the tube, but the Triton is a very different pen than the Churchill - long, skinny metal section, and all of the extra metal in the finial and cap weights down the pen.

I really wish that someone would come up with a new design for a more traditional looking pen with some girth like the Sr Gent or Churchill, that left more blank material on the tube than the Chrchill, but didn't use so much metal as the Gent so the pen wouldn't weigh a ton. I suppose then everyone would complain about the "cheap plastic" look, and nobody would buy them except me. :frown: But they would sure make Dawns blanks look nice!

I have made a few such pens kitless, but kit would be nice to the convenience of kits as well.

Oh well, rant over.

Dan

 

[SCR0LL3R]

Thanks for all the advice everyone. I was looking up drill bit set prices and holy crap! I've already spent well over $3000 on this stuff in the last 2 months... I think I'll get the drill bits 1 at a time as I need them.

I hope I can eventually recoup these costs... I still gotta try turning larger projects but the pens are so much fun!

I made a couple cigar pens today and I am extremely happy with how they turned out. The cigar pen style is very nice and I actually think I did a really good job on them!:biggrin: