Parker Euro woes--- need help!

[redfishsc]

I've been looking for a smaller pen for ladies that uses the Parker refill and was hoping that the black-top Euro parker from Berea/Bear Tooth would do the trick. I also liked the idea of not forming a tenon, but rather parting down to the tube for the center band.


Anyhooo, here is what I've found:

1) It's almost the size of a cigar pen. Sorry ladies! It is a very elegant kit though, I like the look and feel.

2) If you don't part off the amount of wood needed DEAD NUTS the kit won't work right. If you read the instructions, they tell you exactly what to make the tenon and do it with almost an apocalyptic tone, as if there will be weeping, wailing, and gnashing of teeth if you are off by even a nanometer. AND THEY ARE RIGHT. I used my digital calipers to get the right measurement and the kit still didn't fit together right.

3) This kit uses the IDIOT DESIGNED transmission type that the flat-top Americans use. Ie, double twist------ and if you twist it one of the directions, it starts unscrewing from the tranny holder rather than extending the writing tip. Very, very, very cheap feeling--- it is this exact reason I do not try to market the flat-top Americans, I don't want people unscrewing their pens by accident when trying to extend the refill to write with. Yet, you CAN'T glue the tranny to the tranny holder b/c that's the ONLY way you can put a refill back in it.


Why oh why could they not have used a transmission like the one in the cigar pen? It's a double action but you can glue the tranny to the holder b/c you can unscrew the nib and stick a refill up in there.

 

[redfishsc]

DOH!

In my frustration I forgot to actually ask, are there any tricks to make sure the pen will fit together properly? I was certain when I squared them on the end mill NOT TO REMOVE BRASS, and I parted off exactly what the instructions told me, yet the center band bottomed out and left a gap between it and the wood.

Should I just part off a tad *less* than what the instructions say? I'm asking here before I ruin another kit, blank, and hour of work.

 

[ctEaglesc]

IIRC Berea tells you how much to remove meauring down from the finial end.
Don't be concerned with removing the brass when you part to the tube.
If teh band is loose put a taper punch in the tube and give it a tap or two.This will splay the tube and make the fit tight.
My suspicion is there may be some glue residue preventing the CB from meeting the wooden part of the top.
Another siggestion:
Tuesday Call Jim at Berea and voice your compaints.
Boy!I'd <b>LOVE</b> to listen in on that conversation![^]

 

[TAld]

Tuesday Call Jim at Berea and voice your compaints.
Boy!I'd LOVE to listen in on that conversation!

Make sure you have used the bathroom and have some snacks and drinks in front of you! Chat shouldn't last for more than an hour or so [][].
Really though Jim is a great guy and will go out of his way to help you []

 

[gerryr]

The easiest way to solve this problem is to order some PKMONTPAR transmissions from Woodturningz. Now, throw the Berea transmissions are far as possible. Length of the upper barrel is no longer as critical if you use these transmissions. And, if you want a smaller pen, try the Olympia. It doesn't use a Parker refill, but I sell a lot of these to women.

 

[redfishsc]

Many thanks for the suggestions all.

Eagle, the problem with the cb not meeting the wood is that the brass tenon was too long, I can look up in the butt and see the brass tube completely bottomed out inside the cb. Ie, even though I followed the directions to a T, the brass was too long.

You are right about the glue though, I have had that problem on some American flat-tops, which I equally hate.

 

[RPM]

I think there is something missing here. I've made alot of these and while it requires some precise measuring, I've never encountered your problem. There are two keys to making this pen fit right. First, as Eagle mentioned, the instructions give you the exact length to leave the wood, the brass length is unimportant. I use a digital caliper and part to about .005" shorter than the 1 15/16ths called for. If you don't have a digital caliper, with this hobby, you need one and HF has them dirt cheap(edit, just noticed you did say you used a digital caliper, left in for others). Second is to make sure that you completely press the finial into the top of transmission until the shoulder seats. If you do these two things the pen has to fit properly by default.

On another note, there is another problem that can occur with this pen that leads you to beleive that it doesn't work due to a measurement issue. When pressing the CB on the tenon, the brass tube can compress ever so slightly causing the transmission to sieze in the CB. To avoid this, I always check the fit by inserting the transmission into the CB from the other direction to insure it spins freely (from the center towards the finial). If it doesn't a tube insertion tool can be used to flare the inside of the tube back out and in some cases a little 320 or 400 grit on the outside of the transmission will do the trick.

Once you get the hang of this kit, it is easy to make and sells well. The double twist action unscrewing the pen has not been a problem for me. A little extra twist when tightening seems to take care of that.

HTH,
Richard

 

[redfishsc]

Richard,

Thanks for the help.

As far as the tranny unscrewing, I tried doing the "extra tightening" to lock it down on a couple of Americans I made (same/similar trans) and the tranny broke.

Lol, I really have doubts about this kit given the number of other, more well made kits. Just, not may small Parker styles.

 

[alamocdc]

Fish, I've turned quite a few of these and haven't experienced the length problem you have. I made a stiff cardboard template to make sure I get the length right and I transfer this measurement to the blank when I'm ready to part it off.

EDIT: BTW, I don't like the double twist tranny either, but if you get it tight enough it isn't usually a problem. That said, I may be trying the PKMON-PAR trannies soon.

 

[stevers]

I turn quite a few Cigars and don't have too much trouble keeping the trans in place. I personaly love the CSUSA Americana Rollerball, with the removable cap. Nice size, for a lady too. Easy to turn. the tendon turns down to the tube and length is not that critical with the adjustable nature of the cap and nest systom. JMHO.

 

[redfishsc]

Stevers, I just made (for Christmas, at least) one of those Americana Rollerballs. I have a pic of it somewhere but can't find it at the moment, I got the Rhodium and it looks great. You are right, that is a nice pen, once you figure out how to get the plastic cap thingie installed right.

 

[DocStram]

Originally posted by ctEaglesc
<br />IIRC Berea tells you how much to remove meauring down from the finial end.
Don't be concerned with removing the brass when you part to the tube.
If teh band is loose put a taper punch in the tube and give it a tap or two.This will splay the tube and make the fit tight.
My suspicion is there may be some glue residue preventing the CB from meeting the wooden part of the top.
Another siggestion:
Tuesday Call Jim at Berea and voice your compaints.
Boy!I'd <b>LOVE</b> to listen in on that conversation![^]

Hey Eagle ... good to see you!

 

[stevers]

Hey Red, Just saw your post. Glad to see I'm not the only one who likes the Americana. I made my own plastic thingy installer. It works just fine and it was free. E-mail me that pick if you want. I have about half a dozen Americana's on display at the moment. Most are on my web site.