Jeff turns
Member
What is the best and easiest pens to turn for the beginner. I like the twist pens. but not sure what kits to buy and who is the best to buy from. Thanks for any info.
This is pretty much my thoughts as well. If your goal is to learn to turn then my recommendation is to stay with inexpensive slimlines. Two reasons: first, the hardware is very cheap relatively speaking, 2nd you have two barrels to "practice" and develop your skill on. That practice will cost you in the neighborhood of a couple bucks. To get the same practice with a single barrel pen, in most cases it will be 3-4 times that. However, if you are already a turner and you are just looking to diversify then single barrel pens might be a much better beginning. Just MHO.The Slimline components are the easiest to get accessories for. I started out with the 30 assorted Slimline Funline pack at Penn State. They only cost $1.25 per component kit so I didn't have any worries if I ruined one of them.
I would not recommend starting with the Sierras (also known as Arrow) for the cost per component kit, usually at least $5.
Stuart