My First Artemis

Threw the curve ball through the whole process. First Artemis, first time turning the stabilized hemp. Its a tough pen to make and of course the cap is a bit short. I haven't wrapped my head around the process to make it correctly, even though I had the warnings. I know based upon tips/tricks to leave the end a bit long at the joint but when you epoxy the cap on and screw it to the body for grain alignment it brings the cap insert down flush and will never 'cover' Or atleast not in my head. other crazy thought from the experience. Can you use a forstner bit to ensure flat bottom holes, especially where the cap insert seats? What if I reversed the process glued the cap up first and then epoxied the body, turning that blank for alignment? Mods: If I need to move this from Show-off to penturning please let me know. I don't want to unnecessarily duplicate the postings.

Don't over complicate it. Standard drills are fine. Remember when setting your depths that it is to the shoulder of the drill not the tip.

Biggest thing is to drill the cap so that the insert is about .050 (or a fat millimeter) recessed from the edge. This ensures that you don't end up with a gap between the cap and body. Often first timers will glue it flush and then you have a gap. (same applies to the Apollo).

I make quite a few of these and have a dedicated set of drills with stop collars on them that are only used for these kits. Once you get all the depths dialed in and the collars set, every one you make will be exactly the same. Another option is Rick's step drills, many folks like those for the Apollo and Artemis. I started with dedicated drill sets and have just stuck with it.

As far as aligning the grain when needed, 5 minute epoxy gives you a bit of time to adjust things. Just be very aware of squeeze out so that you don't epoxy a pen shut. Also remember, they are triple start, the pattern will only align on one thread out of the three. I remember wigging myself out early on because I knew the pattern was glued right and then it "wouldn't" align after taking the cap off. I just hadn't caught the "right thread" for alignment.

Ditto on everything that Frank (@Sugar Creek Pen Co.) said.