Good material for a kitless

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alexkuzn

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Guys,

what are some good kit-less pen blank materials?
In other words, I am looking for a material that is "tapping friendly" and can also hold threads without stripping.

I assume it would be some kind of plastic. I have some nice stabilized wood but it still have some pores. It does not look like it is going to be good for threading.

Thanks,
Alex
 
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cnirenberg

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Alex,
I am in no way an expert, but have used aluminum, brass, SS, lucite and any kind of acrlyics/plastics I can get my hands on in these type of pens. Others have used Ebonite and trustone. I haven't tried stabilized wood yet (don't have any) but wonder hoe it would hold a fine thread.
 

JJturns

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Alex,
Here is a pen made of M3 composite metal that is very easy to thread and works great.
JJ
1_jjspen.jpg
 

BRobbins629

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In my experience, Ebonite and Delrin are probably the most forgiving, but with care most plastic materials as well as brass and aluminum will also work. If you want a kitless wooden pen, make a plastic, ebonite or brass insert and thread that.
 

alexkuzn

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I've machined delrin before and just love it for its easy of machining.

I wonder why delrin is not popular material for pen? Does black acrylic or Ebonite look better than black Delrin?
 

Texatdurango

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I've machined delrin before and just love it for its easy of machining.

I wonder why delrin is not popular material for pen? Does black acrylic or Ebonite look better than black Delrin?

In my mind, choosing a materal that would provide long lasting durability and beauty far outweighs ease of machining or threading.

Delrin is so soft it would be a poor choice for a pen because within a week it would look like it has been man handled for a year. You can leave a mark with a fingernail.

I made a few pens from truestone and m3. Both were dissapointments as they threaded easily but threads in both materials failed within a few months. I still use truestone but use threaded brass inserts instead of threading the truestone itself.
 

Texatdurango

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George,

do you put female threaded brass inserts into a cap or male insert over pen body or both?

I've tried several combinations but the one I like best is to glue the gold or chrome coupler from a Ligero kit into the lower barrel. The section threads into that coupler. The nib section is already threaded and I use the multi-start tap to cut threads in a delrin sleeve in the cap. Look at the upper coupler of many kits, the threaded part is usually delrin which is swedged into a brass tube, I just glue mine to the upper body itself.

Using a delrin sleeve doesn't work well for light colored or semi-transparent blanks.
 

RAdams

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George, If i can ask, How do you turn the nib holder portion? That part is giving me fits. I have failed so far every time i try.
 

JerrySambrook

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Using a delrin sleeve doesn't work well for light colored or semi-transparent blanks.

George,
There is white delrin as well as the black, and there is a brown, but it can be significantly more expensive.
The white should be good under light-colored blanks, but the semi-transparent would probably still give you fits.

You can buy it in tubes as well as rods from Graingers.

Jerry
 

JJturns

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JJ,

how your M3 pen feels in hand? Does it feel more like metal or plastic?

The pen feels just like metal. I decided to try this material after using an M3 pen made by someone else every day for about 3 months. I have not had any trouble with that one anbd like the way it feels. Now I need to work on design and proportions.
JJ
 

Texatdurango

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George,
There is white delrin as well as the black, and there is a brown, but it can be significantly more expensive.
The white should be good under light-colored blanks, but the semi-transparent would probably still give you fits.

You can buy it in tubes as well as rods from Graingers.

Jerry
Thanks for the info Jerry, I never saw it in tubes, I just drilled out solid rod stock. I buy my delrin in rods and have most diameters in both black and white but I just don't like white for threaded sleeves. Everyone is used to seeing black insides and the white just looks odd.
 

alexkuzn

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It does not look like drilling will be eliminated when you are using tubes instead of rods.
Delrin or Acetal tubes come only in 1/4" or 1/2" inner diameter.
Most likely you have to buy 1/4" inner diameter tube and drill it to size.
 
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