redfishsc
Member
I love Skiprat's tutorial on making a closed-end mandrel.
I'd like to share, without the cool photos
(or super-cool buffing mandrel) how I make one. It's very easy. All you need is:
some 5/8 or 3/4" brass or aluminum rod,
a good chuck,
some 80 or 100 grit sandpaper (pieces of sanding belt are the BEST)
digital calipers
I've made a couple dozen closed-end pens this way (Baron, Gents/Jrs, Churchill/Elgrandes, etc...) and have yet to have a gripe with it.
1) Using a jaw chuck, hold a 4-5" long piece of brass or aluminum rod. I actually use a Beall collet chuck, with a 3/4" or 5/8" collet (depending on how thick the brass/aluminum rod is). Finding the aluminum/brass rod locally (ie, cheaply) is the hard part and I have almost resorted to ordering it online. If anyone has any they'd like to share (ie, sell or swap) send me an email via my IAP name.
2) Be sure 2-3" of rod are sticking out of the collet/chuck, cinch the chuck tight, and bring up the tailstock.
3) Using the largest spindle or bowl gouge you have, hog away the brass to form a tenon about 1.5-2" long and fairly close to the diameter of the pen tube you are mating up with. I prefer a longer tenon myself. Wear safety glasses (duh) and long sleeves (hot metal slivers aren't fun).
4)When you have turned your tenon nearly to the size you want, use 80 grit sandpaper to sand it down so that the pen tube slides onto it WITH SOME RESISTANCE. No sloppy fits, but no "super tight" fits either. If you get this right, the pen blank won't free-wheel on you unless you are too aggressive. If your tenon/tube fit is sloppy, see below for the bombshell fix-all.
When turning the pen, I rough out the blank with the tailstock in place, and then remove the tailstock for final shaping of the hind-end (I also turn on the highest speed my Delta has, 3700 or something). If you get too aggressive or your mandrel is too long, you will get a lot of chatter. Take light cuts and don't be afraid to whoop out the sandpaper if needed.
I do not use a bushing when turning(I suppose you could "turn" a bushing on the headstock end of your handmade mandrel, but brass/aluminum will quickly wear away and possibly soil your lighter colored wood blanks). I simply have an "open" space at the nib end and use the calipers to get to the right size. Works like a charm.
BTW, the bombshell fix-all is the same thing that fixes pert'near everything in pen making--- CA glue. All you have to do to fix a loose closed-end mandrel is to wipe on a couple of even coats of CA/BLO finish. Hose it with some extra accelerator to make sure it's cured hard, and sand it back down to a snug tube fit. Works like a charm!
I'd like to share, without the cool photos
(or super-cool buffing mandrel) how I make one. It's very easy. All you need is:some 5/8 or 3/4" brass or aluminum rod,
a good chuck,
some 80 or 100 grit sandpaper (pieces of sanding belt are the BEST)
digital calipers
I've made a couple dozen closed-end pens this way (Baron, Gents/Jrs, Churchill/Elgrandes, etc...) and have yet to have a gripe with it.
1) Using a jaw chuck, hold a 4-5" long piece of brass or aluminum rod. I actually use a Beall collet chuck, with a 3/4" or 5/8" collet (depending on how thick the brass/aluminum rod is). Finding the aluminum/brass rod locally (ie, cheaply) is the hard part and I have almost resorted to ordering it online. If anyone has any they'd like to share (ie, sell or swap) send me an email via my IAP name.
2) Be sure 2-3" of rod are sticking out of the collet/chuck, cinch the chuck tight, and bring up the tailstock.
3) Using the largest spindle or bowl gouge you have, hog away the brass to form a tenon about 1.5-2" long and fairly close to the diameter of the pen tube you are mating up with. I prefer a longer tenon myself. Wear safety glasses (duh) and long sleeves (hot metal slivers aren't fun).
4)When you have turned your tenon nearly to the size you want, use 80 grit sandpaper to sand it down so that the pen tube slides onto it WITH SOME RESISTANCE. No sloppy fits, but no "super tight" fits either. If you get this right, the pen blank won't free-wheel on you unless you are too aggressive. If your tenon/tube fit is sloppy, see below for the bombshell fix-all.
When turning the pen, I rough out the blank with the tailstock in place, and then remove the tailstock for final shaping of the hind-end (I also turn on the highest speed my Delta has, 3700 or something). If you get too aggressive or your mandrel is too long, you will get a lot of chatter. Take light cuts and don't be afraid to whoop out the sandpaper if needed.
I do not use a bushing when turning(I suppose you could "turn" a bushing on the headstock end of your handmade mandrel, but brass/aluminum will quickly wear away and possibly soil your lighter colored wood blanks). I simply have an "open" space at the nib end and use the calipers to get to the right size. Works like a charm.
BTW, the bombshell fix-all is the same thing that fixes pert'near everything in pen making--- CA glue. All you have to do to fix a loose closed-end mandrel is to wipe on a couple of even coats of CA/BLO finish. Hose it with some extra accelerator to make sure it's cured hard, and sand it back down to a snug tube fit. Works like a charm!
