Question about a desk pen/pencil set

[XxLabanxX]

So I am trying to fill a request from a family member. He wants a pen & pencil to go into a desk set that he made in shop class when he was a kid. It has 2 funnels on it and I am making the longer, closed end style pen that just seats in the funnel. Something like you would see on an executives desk.

Now the pen is no problem. Take a slimline kit, throw away the clip and extend the blank past the brass tube and shape the end. The problem I am having though is I'm not sure how to proceed with the pencil. The funnels are meant for slimline kits. I want the pen & pencil to match. The only pencil kits I can find are the click style pencils. That will not work for this because the end is elongated and closed off. I have not been able to find any kind of twist mechanism pencil kit except one from PSI, Which is currently out of stock and it is also using an 8mm tube and looks to be a euro style that I am 99% sure will not be able to be turned down far enough to fit in the funnel meant for a slimline.

I am fairly new to this whole woodturning thing. I have owned a lathe for less than a year. So my question to some of the more experienced turners out there is do any of you know of a pencil kit that will suit what I am doing or know of any way to modify a click style pencil kit to suit this purpose?

 

[magpens]

Well, there are twist style pencil kits available, but they won't match your slimline pen and they probably won't fit the funnel. . The pen/pencil kits that I am thinking of are the El Grande and the Perfect Fit ... both from Berea, and you can buy them at Berea.com or at BearToothWoods.com. . Both of those kits can be used as pens or pencils, so getting a match is not the problem, it is the size. . To convert the pen kits to pencil kits, you just need to insert a Schmidt 2006 mechanism.

There is (or was) a slimline matching pen and pencil set available from Berea (I bought from LeeValleyTools.com), but the pencil is a button click design, while the pen is a twist design, both using 7mm tubes so should fit your funnels but not your closed-end, clipless design criteria.

 

[XxLabanxX]

I don't have the pen made yet. I only made a prototype to see if I could even do it out of some scrap wood I had lying around. I have some Ebony that I will be making the final set from. My main concern is that the pen will fit into the funnel and that I can match the pen & pencil. The opening of the funnel is only 5/16" and the packaging read "perfect for slimline pens" so it doesn't have to be a slimline but I couldn't think of any other pens that would fit into the 5/16" funnel opening.

 

[magpens]

OK, the funnel opening is 5/16" = 0.3125". The slimline at the top of it's nib is 0.33" so the rest of the pen will be no smaller than that.

Seems to me that even slimlines won't fit your funnels.

 

[XxLabanxX]

I just went out and measured it myself. It is actually .390 at the opening, that would be a really tight fit. I had just went by the measurement that Rockler had posted. I have already turned a test pen out of a slimline kit that did fit with a little room to spare. I also went ahead and tested a Euro Pen (Apprentice line from Craft Supplies) I believe that I could turn that down and make it work. I was going to go ahead and test one because it looks like the same pen style as the Berea Round Top European Twist Pencil after looking at it though the Berea is drilled with an O bit vs. The Apprentice Euro from Craft Supplies which is a 7mm. Something tells me I probably wont be able to turn down the Berea small enough.

 

[Mr Vic]

Cross make a pencil insert that replaces the regular pen refill. However it is made for a specific Cross pen. Unlike the pen refill it is very finicky about having an exact length.

Here's a link to a source: http://www.theonlinepencompany.com/cross-switch-it-ballpoint-to-pencil-convertor.html

Also here's a link to IAP Discussion: http://www.penturners.org/forum/f14/cross-pen-pencil-converter-95533/

I ordered a few but never devoted the time to get them to work properly. I'm think the nib needs to get built up on the inside and then re drilled. Also the threads on the transmission were a bit off.

 

[More4dan]

Have you thought of replacing the metal click part of the pencils with one made of matching ebony? You might get a similar look to your closed end pen with a slimline mechanism.

 

[XxLabanxX]

Thanks for the link Mr Vic, I will check this out for sure.

More4dan - That is indeed my backup plan!