Trannys???

[jttheclockman]

Is there a way to pull a tranny out abit if you go past the correct install position.???? I was fitting up some bullet pens and one of them I went too far. Is this a case of just desroying the tranny by pulling it out and using another??? Is the tube now too much out of shape that the next tranny will not stay in properly??? Thanks for the replys.

 

[rej19]

Hi, Been there many times myself. Here is a link that helped me.

http://www.penturners.org/forum/showthread.php?t=1886&highlight=disassembly

 

[markgum]

John;
the only luck I have had is to use the a punch and push the nib out then use a larger punch to push the tranny out. So far it seems to work ok. I did have one that I was helping a young person make and he pushed the tranny all the way in. that one did distroy the tranny. From the few that I have had to pull out there seemed to be no ill effect on the tube.

 

[jttheclockman]

The only problem here is I used a real bullet and not a nib. They are also powdercoated. I do not even know how I am going to get it out even if I had to ruin it. I guess this is one downside to using real bullets in these cartridge pens. I am going to use my drill press next time to insert the trannys because the pen press is too unforgiving. The drill press you can control the pressure being applied alot better.

 

[gljjr]

Since you seem to have some bullet casings... take one and drill the cap end out with a 7mm drill bit. Ream the hole slightly oversized so that as you pull the transmission out it won't stick on the casing. Get a threaded rod that will thread into the transmission and stick out the other end of the casing. Put a large washer over the casing and thread on a nut. Tighten the nut and pull the transmission from the pen.

Please note that I haven't tried this. But this should work. And by pulling rather than driving, this should be able to save the transmission.

 

[MobilMan]

John. I'll 'try' to describe something I read some time ago. Drill a hole in a piece of wood [about the size of a pen blank] that is just a little smaller than the trans. I'd try a 1/4" Then cut the piece in half lengthwise. Find a flat washer or something similar that will barely fit over the trans. It wants to be smaller than the tube. Clamp the 2 halves in a vice & using 2 screwdrivers between the vice & washer, pry the tubed blank up away from the trans that's held between the two halves. The waste end of an acrylic blank could take the place of the washer. I can picture it but haven't tried it. I use a pen press [Woodcraft kind] & using the piece that is tapered, slide it over the trans. Then stick a 1/4" bolt in from the nib end a press it out. But using the bullet, this won't work. Hope you can use the first idea.

 

[rherrell]

John, make yourself a limit block, press block, whatever you want to call it. Measure the overall length of a correctly pressed casing and transmission and cut a block of wood to match. Hold the casing and the wood together while pressing and the wood will keep you from going too far. I believe there's a photo of one in my tutorial.
As for getting the transmission out, well let's just say you just learned a valuable lesson.:wink::biggrin:

 

[hunter-27]

Find a reloaders bullet puller to get the nib(bullet) out, then punch the tranny back(gently)

 

[jttheclockman]

Wow alot of good ideas to try. I knew I asked in the right place.

Rick

I agree about the lesson and probably won't be my last. I am making that block as you mentioned for sure. I thought I could control the thrust a pen press applies but was wrong because it jumps and did not move snmoothly. I think the drill press will help there.

gljjr

I like that idea and will give that one a try. I need to find a rod or bolt long enough and with the right threads to try that. will let you know how that one goes.

Mobilman

That will be my next try if the above does not work. Believe it or not I did follow eactly what you were saying. All good suggestions.

Hunter-27

I did not know they make a bullet puller. Not being a hunter and not dealing with bullets before this pen addiction I know nothing about ammo. How in the world would that work???


Thanks all for the help.

 

[Sylvanite]

If the transmission is ever so slightly too deep, you can compensate by not screwing the refill in all the way. Slimline transmissions work just fine like that. I've backed out refills a turn in the past when their lengths have varied.

I've found that both transmissions and refills vary from vendor to vendor, and kit to kit (sometimes even within the same batch). I use a slightly long press-block to get close, and make the last adjustment to fit.

On those occasions when I slip and go too far, I disassemble and start over. If I'm trying to salvage the transmission, I'll pull the bullet (with an inertial puller) and drive the transmission out with a punch. Then I'll soak the case and bullet in acetone to remove the powder coat. All the pieces can be repolished and reassembled later.

If I don't care about the transmission, I'll just drop the entire thing in acetone. Since I use CA glue on the tube, it comes out along with the transmission. The acetone will also dissolve the lube in the transmission, so I don't reuse it. At that point, however, I can repolish and recoat the cartridge without having to reseat the bullet.

I hope that helps,
Eric

 

[Russianwolf]

Simple fix. Pull the black plastic off the refill. use to wire cutters to snip off the back end. reinsert the refill and screw it into place and adjust the refill until it stick out the proper length.

Someone on here has a picture of a modified slim that uses a much shorter bottom tube and this is what they have done to compensate. the refill simple sticks all the way through the threaded portion and back into the body.

 

[jttheclockman]

Thanks Eric

Another set of great ideas. Glad to see all the top bullet pen makers weigh in here. Acetone disolves powdercoating hey. I will have to remember that one. I have a few I am using for keychains and they must have had some dust speckles on them because when powdercoated it showed up and feels quite rough. I think I will take those down and redo when I make my next batch. I just want to get some of these together to have with me for this weekend show and see how they go over. I am thinking of charging $45. Will see how that goes.

 

[epson]

I had the same thing happen. I used the dissasembly kit for the removal. It is the same steps for the slimline. The only problem is that the rod gets a little stuck in the hole in the bullet. I was able to hold the bullet in my hand to work the rod back out. When you go to replace the bullet, press it in place until the powder coating reaches the casing. Not a big deal.

 

[MobilMan]

Ya know Mike, that sounds like an easy fix. Never thought of it. Just grind off the plastic the same amount the refill sticks out too much. Wouldn't especially hace to take the black plastic off the refill, just grind it down a little at a time & keep checking. Why the devil I didn't think about that a while back. I found out that if you push the mech. in as far on a CSUSA kit the same exact as one from Woodcraft--it's too far out. So, I removed the nib then trans., but in each case the CSUSA nib bent out from the inside. So I bought new nibs. Good idea feller.

 

[jttheclockman]

Thank all. I now have more ideas to try and hopefully one will work and I am filing all these because I know there will be another time.

 

[rherrell]

Don't bother with the bolt being used like a gear puller. I tried that some time ago and all it did was pull out the transmission innards. It did a good job though!:wink::biggrin:

 

[pipecrafter]

I did not know they make a bullet puller. Not being a hunter and not dealing with bullets before this pen addiction I know nothing about ammo. How in the world would that work???

Most bullet "pullers" out onthe market today are actually bullet "poppers". They work by using Newtons Third Law to propel the bullet out of the casing:
http://ds5.org/1325
Essentially, you insert the bullet in one end, and smack the opposite end against a hard wooden table until the bullet pops out. They work great from heavy cartridges like .45ACP or .40S&W, but I've never tried it on rifle rounds. Seems like it should work, but it may require more smacking.

The other type uses a collet to grab the projectile in order to pull it out. Unfortunately, the only ones I've ever seen require a reloading press to do the job. By the time you've bought the press, the dies for the specific cartridge, and the puller, you'd be into it for well over $150 for even the least expensive models. And, I'm not actually sure that you could use this kind with the tail of the transmission sticking out the rim.

The kinetic pullers (first one) are going to be gentler on the projectile (amazingly enough), since the collets tend to deform the projectile slightly when they grab it.

Hope that helps.

 

[Sylvanite]

...they must have had some dust speckles on them because when powdercoated it showed up and feels quite rough. I think I will take those down and redo when I make my next batch.

If the powdercoated surface has "orange peel", that is, a texture that looks like (believe it or not) an orange peel, then I think the best thing is to strip and recoat. Orange peel is usually caused by too thin a powder application, but also by too hot an oven or too cold a part. It's a flow-out problem.

If the surface has what feels like dust specks, you can just knock them down with 0000 steel wool. That will also take the shine off the surface. If you like a satin finish, leave it, or you can restore the shine by buffing with white diamond. Eastwood actually recommends wet-sanding and buffing powdercoat. The "specks" are sometimes caused by too heavy a powder application, too high a voltage in the gun, holding the gun too close when spraying, or powder contamination. I'm not a powdercoating expert by any means (simply been there - done that), so there could easily be other causes.

Regards,
Eric

 

[Chasper]

I haven't pushed a transmission in too far, but I've damaged 2-3 of them because they were too tight and they bunched up when I pushed them in. What I did was to rip them in half with a pliers, leaving the inserted part of the transmission still in the tube and leaving the tube still inside the cartridge. Then I put the cartridge with tube and partial transmission into a spring collet on the lathe and drilled the damaged transmission out. It came out clean, no damage to the cartridge and the drill hole was precise enough so that the next transmission fit as it should.

 

[sbell111]

Ya know Mike, that sounds like an easy fix. Never thought of it. Just grind off the plastic the same amount the refill sticks out too much. Wouldn't especially hace to take the black plastic off the refill, just grind it down a little at a time & keep checking. Why the devil I didn't think about that a while back. I found out that if you push the mech. in as far on a CSUSA kit the same exact as one from Woodcraft--it's too far out. So, I removed the nib then trans., but in each case the CSUSA nib bent out from the inside. So I bought new nibs. Good idea feller.

Grinding the plastic end won't make the refill stick out of the nib less. Just pull off the black end, just like you would pull the end off a mini refill if you were changing the ink on a keychain pen. It is not glued on or anything. It just sits on the refill.

Besides, if you grind on the end of the plastic bit, you will go right through the little cup that holds the refill. The first time that you try to write with the damaged refill, the cartridge will slide all the way back into the pen.

Rather than nip the end of the refill off, I have ground them down slightly with a dremel. It is quick and easy to remove just a tad from the length of the refill.

 

[rherrell]

The big problem with modifying the refill in any way is with the customer. Are you going to admit you're selling him a faulty pen? If so, will you sell it for less? Will you modify the refill every time they run out of ink?
You can shorten a Parker style by grinding the plastic end but that won't work on a Cross type. For that you have to do it like Steve said, remove the plastic and grind the metal tube.

 

[jttheclockman]

Speaking of trannys. I ordered a whole bunch of slimline kits from two different companies and one company the trannys suck in plain english. I am going to have to go through my order slips and try to find out which ones they were but I will not be ordering from them again. I put some in my cartridge pens and they are way too loose. In that I mean they turn with little resistance and doesn't have that positive lock open. They were shipped in a bag grouped together and not as individual kits. I can not pull them out so will have to watch these and probably have to warn the customer and give them a break in price. . I used 3 and will not use the others. The thing is you turn them by hand and they feel OK but set them in and no good. I do not like them. Disappointed to say the least. I will say this, once I find a reliable compamy I will stick with them no matter what the prices are.