Seasoned Newbie Questions

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Sappheiros

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Sep 26, 2015
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900
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Chicago, Illinois
I was turning a slimline today and got my blanks ready to go. I had a nice dark wood blank and a purple acrylic blank for this pen. I put together the top portion with no problem. Once I got to the transmission, I had a whoopsie mistake. The transmission wasn't perfectly straight and I was using a clamp to insert it and it cracked off a piece of the acrylic. I quickly glued it back on and it isn't too quickly noticeable, but it bothers me. I had a similar issue with the last slimline I turned.

1) How do you ensure that your transmission is going in straight?

Also, something that's been bothering me is the bulging blank dilemma. After turning tonight's pen, my aunt asked if I could turn a blank perfectly straight without much curve to it. I've seen one video where a guy attached sandpaper to a wooden board to ensure he has a straight blank turned. I know part of it is confidence. When I first started I had to gain the confidence to turn down deeper the blanks I was working with.

2) How do I turn a blank completely (for the most part) level? Is it experience? A good eye?
 
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jttheclockman

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Feb 22, 2005
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NJ, USA.
Avi

There comes a time in everyone's pen making career where we have to let experience take over and you have to trust yourself. As far as the blank goes you can turn the cracked piece off and replace with an oops band. Learn to use your skew or parting tool to do this. very very easy to do.

As far as the tranny goes, the eye is your best level and straight edge. Make sure whatever you are pressing your parts in with is solid and secure. Make sure the travel of the tool doing the pressing travels in a straight line. Make sure you blank is not cocked or twisted when pressing parts on and finally make sure they are aligned as you press. If starts to go off center stop and correct. It will not correct itself. If you need to punch the part out then do so. Do not hope for miracles.

You have done enough pens and we have seen them here that these things should be second nature by now.


Now for the blank being turned bushing to bushing as it is called, comes down to your eye and experience but a little trick which I have mentioned here numerous times is the use of a straight edge. If you think you are close to BTB, take a straight edge such as a metal rule and place it on edge across the bushings. This will give you an idea if there is a hump or a dip too far or the ends turned down too much or not enough. When the rule can lay straight across from bushing to bushing it is perfectly straight. Now some will say, hey wait a minute. My bushings have been turned down some. Maybe one more than another. Does not matter because when you lay the rule on the bushings it lays across the entire busing and the ends nearest the outer edge will never be turned down. This is how I do all my pens except the Sierra line because the shape requires a bit of curve. Not much. Sometimes the cigar kits also but the eye will adjust for that.

How do you get to the Penmakers Guild, the same way you get to Carnige Hall?? PRACTICE< PRACTICE< PRACTICE and then ask for a ride:biggrin:
 

thewishman

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Joined
Mar 9, 2006
Messages
8,181
Location
Reynoldsburg, Ohio, USA.
Pushing in transmissions in straight is difficult with a hand clamp. I don't have a great solution.

I don't think perfectly straight is worth the extra measuring it would take. I make pretty straight barrels and go mainly by look and feel. You can turn the ends down to match the bushings and then flatten out the barrels without worrying if you will turn too far.

Use calipers, or even a crescent wrench, to see if you are too bulgy. Your fingers should give you a pretty good sense of how straight barrel is. Some people love the extra curves, some can't stand them - pick what you want to make.:)
 

qquake

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Joined
Feb 8, 2004
Messages
5,007
Location
Northern California
I have a v-block I made years ago for pressing transmissions into slimline and other 7mm pens. It helps keep things aligned, and also helps press the transmission in to the correct depth. I've always used my drill press to press parts together, I've never tried a clamp. As for straight barrels, I turn them to the bushings, then use my Mark IV eyeballs to remove any bulge. I've never tried a straight edge, I didn't think it was necessary.
 

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mecompco

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Apr 24, 2015
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1,607
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Fairfield, Maine
7mm transmissions seem to be the worst to press in. One thing I have started doing, after chamfering the ends of the tube is to wrap a punch in 320 grit, chuck it in my hand drill and sand the inside of the tube. This gets any last bit of adhesive, etc. out and loosens up the fit just a bit. I then run a a brass gun cleaning brush through to remove sanding dust.

Components press in without much "drama". I do use a drop of blue Loc-Tite just to make sure parts stay where they are supposed to.

As suggested above, I take the blank down to the bushings on either end once I get close to final dimensions, then remove the center to the extend I want.

Regards,
Michael
 

keithncsu

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Joined
May 28, 2016
Messages
372
Location
Catawba, SC 29704
Weird that this thread came up today. The last two woodcraft slimlines I've assembled gave me issues with the transmission going too deep. I'm using a hand clamp as I have from the beginning. It's like the clamp builds up pressure and then snap releases causing the transmission to go in a little too deep.

I'm in no way saying the issue is the kit by the way. It's totally me using a clamp.
 

budnder

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Joined
Dec 28, 2015
Messages
527
Location
Chicago/Tucson
+1 for the milescraft press...

I started out with clamps, had the occasional issue as well and at some point I figured out I didn't want to spend hours on a pen and then have something bad happen when I was in the home stretch. So bought the press and have never regretted it. No doubt I could have made my own if I wanted to trade-off time and money.
 

qquake

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Joined
Feb 8, 2004
Messages
5,007
Location
Northern California
It seems like they always "grab and pop", allowing them to press in too far. They're a bear to pull back out. That's why I started using the v-block. It prevents it from pressing in too far. I heard about it from the old Yahoo penturners group years ago.
 

JimB

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Mar 18, 2008
Messages
4,683
Location
West Henrietta, NY, USA.
The clamp can be a hard way to do it. I use a pen press. Practice and go slow so you can watch the alignment.

The straight barrel is just a matter of experience. I've used the block of wood and sandpaper method and it works very good to remove the last bit of material.
 

farmer

Member
Joined
Jun 16, 2012
Messages
807
Location
NV
I was turning a slimline today and got my blanks ready to go. I had a nice dark wood blank and a purple acrylic blank for this pen. I put together the top portion with no problem. Once I got to the transmission, I had a whoopsie mistake. The transmission wasn't perfectly straight and I was using a clamp to insert it and it cracked off a piece of the acrylic. I quickly glued it back on and it isn't too quickly noticeable, but it bothers me. I had a similar issue with the last slimline I turned.

1) How do you ensure that your transmission is going in straight?

Also, something that's been bothering me is the bulging blank dilemma. After turning tonight's pen, my aunt asked if I could turn a blank perfectly straight without much curve to it. I've seen one video where a guy attached sandpaper to a wooden board to ensure he has a straight blank turned. I know part of it is confidence. When I first started I had to gain the confidence to turn down deeper the blanks I was working with.

2) How do I turn a blank completely (for the most part) level? Is it experience? A good eye?

It really depends on what kind of lathe you have and how the lathe is set up or if you have a doweling machine .
There are just tons of ways to make square wood round and straight.
 
Last edited:

Sappheiros

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Joined
Sep 26, 2015
Messages
900
Location
Chicago, Illinois
I actually do have a pen press in the house. I honestly just haven't brought it into the garage yet. I wasn't having problems with any other kit, but I really should just move it out to the workshop.
 

mecompco

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Joined
Apr 24, 2015
Messages
1,607
Location
Fairfield, Maine
For a press, I just turned a couple of more-or-less MT2 tapered pieces of oak, epoxied on some cutting board plastic and turned them flat. Chuck them in the lathe and they work very well as a press, and for pretty much free. With the lathe, there's not much drama--just keep turning in the tailstock as fast or slow as you deem prudent. If the component goes askew, just back off and re-position it. Upon occasion (especially with 7mm transmissions I do have to slip a piece of hard wood between the component and the plastic surface or it will dig in). Just a thought.

Regards,
Michael
 
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