Titanium Twist Fountain Pen

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btboone

btboone

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It took a lot of last minute tweaking and long nights, but here's the latest version of the titanium twist fountain pen. It's pretty well complete other than the trap door, which will close to seal off the nib. The twisting motion works well now, although I can stand to ease up on some tolerances to allow it to move a little easier. I took it to the Southeastern Pen Show today and got some favorable responses. This one is all polished, and I'm toying with the idea of doing an anodized fade in the grooves so that it stands out from the stainless and chromium pens out there.

Opinions and critiques are welcome.

20054433514_twistfpiso.jpg
 
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Beautiful work, Bruce! That is certainly a pen to be proud of. What kind of nib does it have? It looks kind of heavy. Is it? It really looks great, Bruce.
 
Bruce, that looks AMAZING! The anodizing would look really cool, too!

Have you ever seen Niobium? I wonder how that would look in one of your pens.

Oh, and since that's only a prototype, I know you'll want to get rid of it. I'll E-mail you my home address so you won't have to think about it any more... :)
 
That is one beuatifull pen Bruce. Great job on the engineering and making of it.
If I have one citique on it. It would be the clip.
I am not sold on the look of the clip.
Maybe it's just me, but I carry a pen case everywhere. I have a single, double & tripple case
allways ready to go out with me.
Very seldom do I have a pen in my shirt pocket.
Anyways, if I owned that pen, I would want it without the clip, and would put it
in my pen case and carry it proudly!

Most golf shirts don't have pockets. & I refuse to ware a white shirt & tie!
 
Gosh, Thanks Jim! [:)] The pen is actually not that heavy. It is hollowed out in any and all spots. I made the mechanism part from acetal plactic to save weight and reduce friction. The nib is from Germany that Rich got for me. I don't see a brand name, but it has a script F on it. I do have some niobium wire. It's quite a bit softer than titanium, but can be anodized in brighter colors. I have in mind just a subtle anodize fade from a dark blue purple at the tip to a light seafoam blue at the back. I tried a fade like that only on the front section last night. I was going to try to polish it so that it appeared to fade to clear polished by the time it got to the back part, but I didn't get good results with that blending operation, and I polished it all out again.
 
Anthony, I put the clip on the underside and made it to the contour of the pen so that it's not really felt when writing with it. The little part of the clip that does stick out will keep it from rolling off of a desk. I could certainly make it without the clip if someone wanted it that way. It would save a lot of work. Just getting those tiny screws cut down and screwed into the tapped holes was a chore!
 
What an awesome pen, Bruce! You've nailed it again! I think that a bit of anodizing could look VERY nice...although as is it's gorgeous. Thanks again for keeping us in the loop during your development of this piece of art. [:)]
 
It sounds like you have really thought this out, Bruce. Let me know when you want to sell me a fountain pen. I intend on familiarizing myself a little more with fountain pens, and what better way to do it then to use a Boone original?
 
Thanks Jim. I'm by no means an expert at this stuff, but hopefully I'll learn a bit along the way. It was good to talk with some of the experts today. I'll let you know when I feel that either of the fountain pens are ready for production. On my other one, I'll be trying to design around a better nib than the El Grande one. I also need to dial in the cap of that one, making a better click than the taper fit that it has now. I feel that this twist pen is getting close mechanically, but the trap door will be a very difficult thing to do. I'm looking into different designs and manufacturing methods for that. I need to do all this in the spare time from my "day job."
 
Dang it Bruce, that is sweet, the thickness/length proportions look right on..
Good thing you live so far away or my wife would never see me, I'd be hanging at your place learning how to do stuff... any kind of stuff... I have the greatest respect for anyone who can do something like that in metal...
My grandfather was a tool & die maker (apprenticed in Switzerland).. but could never get me to do the kind of work he did... I really regret not learning now...
 
Man o Man, do I have a long way to go to come up with anything that comes even close. Outstanding craftsmanship. One critique I gues I am used to the clips standing out some from the body but I like the 2 small screws holding it down. But as Mark Twain so wisely pointed out, the only person who likes change is someone with a wet diaper LOL My age has caught up to me.
 
What an amazing looking pen, your design looks outstanding.

I think I am with Anthony on the clip though, with out lding the pen it's hard to get a feel for ho the clip design works with the pen...it's not a big deal, the over all appeal of the pen is first class, this is art!
 
Bruce,

I think you are in with the pen guild with that one! (If you are not already)
Talk about inovative and unique. You may think about taking to the producers of Jame Bond. I hear they are getting ready for a next movie. You may just have your first major sale. [:)]
 
Thanks guys. The grooves actually add a nice hand feel to it. I wasn't sure when I started designing. I'll take some more pics when I have a chance to do some anodizing. It might be around the end of the week or so before I get ahead with rings.
 
Bruce, where are your priorities??? I mean, jeez, the rings just bring in the money; they can't be anywhere NEAR as much fun as this pen! :)

Can't wait to see the anodized pics.
 
Wow, don't know how I missed this---just not enough time anymore now that I'm working again. Bruce, Bruce, Bruce!!!! That is "Fantastic"!!! Very nice work----that pen and styling is a winner for sure!!! Thanks for sharing it here!!
 
Thanks for the kudos guys. Jim, you're right; the pens are a lot more fun to design. The long hours of working to 5am on it are starting to catch up with me though. As you said, the rings pay the bills. Maybe one day the pens can pull their weight as well.
 
Hi Mike, yes it could probably work in wood, although it would be a tough project. Some of the parts here are pretty thin, so it might have to be a bit thicker, but it could probably work. It would have to be turned similar to the way I did it with the stalk left attached so that the blind end can be supported. The trap door parts will be tough in any material.

That might be something for me to try too. If only I had a source for some good olivewood... [:)]
 
Hold on.......


Wait a minute.............

When I pick my jaw up off the floor and brush all the dirt from my tongue I'll tell you how awe inspiring that pen is.
 
Bruce....You are truly an inspiration to the rest of us. Like others have said..That is one beautiful pen. Thanks you so much for sharing it with us. You are very talented.
 
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Nice job Bruce, thats a beautiful pen, but I agree with a couple of the others on the clip. Maybe if it was held on another way besides the screws I would see it different. IMHO the screws make it look like it had been braken and you tried to fix it.

Wayne
 
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