A kit with some meat on it?

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ramaroodle

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Need some suggestions for kits with some meat on them. I am doing more engraved pens and need some kits that when turned have at least 2mm of wood left on the tube. I did a Faith/Hope/Love kit the other day and noticed that there was a lot of wood left on the tube. That pen is made on an 8mm tube but with the thickness of the wood left on the tube it made for a nice sized finished barrel.
 
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magpens

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Check out ...

a) PSI Duraclick EDC
b) PSI Everyday Classic
c) PSI Anvil
d) PSI Slimline Pro

I think all of the above are based on 8 mm brass tubes

You might also look at the Berea "Blade" kit which also utilizes the Schmidt SKM-88 clicker mechanism but its tube is slightly bigger than 8 mm.

In some cases you can use your discretion about how much "meat" you leave. . In other cases, too much meat looks inappropriate.

Please keep us posted (in this thread, I suppose) about what suitable pen kits you find. . I am interested in the same topic.

EDIT: . I just checked the instructions for the Faith/Hope/Love pen kit on the PSI website .... are you sure that's the pen kit that you meant to refer to in your opening post ? . I see different tube sizes there from what you mentioned.
 
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ramaroodle

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I'm not a fan of "fat/bulging" looking pens. When I say "meat" I mean how thick the wood is on the end of the tube where it meets the bushings. This pen had a thicker wood between the tube and the width of the bushings. In order to get a deep enough engraving to fill with whatever material you choose it seems that you need at least 1.5mm in order to fill it and be able to sand it down so there is enough filler in the engraving when sanded/turned down to final size. I'm buying a more powerful laser and better jig so as to get a deeper engraving. With some kits there is very little thickness left. I like and have made the EDC and pens like the Gold Warrior. When doing names and logos on pens my preference is a single tube vs a 2 piece otherwise you sometimes have to squeeze the engraving into one half or the other.

I also just got a 60 deg dead center to start turning between centers as I understand the wood stays truer to the tube and has fewer low spots.

qVhgArEm.jpg


Rockler/PSI Faith Hope Love kit.
Capture.JPG
 
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hbillings

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@ramaroodle - the timing of your post is great for me - I'm looking to get a laser engraver and jig to do exactly the same thing. So thank you for raising this question!

May I ask which power level you have and what do you plan to upgrade to?

Thanks in advance.
 

magpens

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@ramaroodle
That "Faith Pen Kit" from Rockler uses different tubes than the "Faith Hope Love Pen Kit" from PSI.
However, the two instruction sheets seem to be both PSI instruction sheets and the pictured pens seem to look the same.
So I am confused, now, and will have to back out of this discussion related to those kits.

I can fully relate to your desire to work with a "more meaty" pen kit.

Your changing over to "Turning Between Centers", or TBC, is a very good move for the reasons you have stated.

Your pens, that you have shown above, look very nice indeed. . Thank you for showing !!!
 

TonyL

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  • Datacom Professor/Exemplar
  • Dayacom Aero
  • Dayacom Patriot
  • Gatsby Grande (has a 3/8th tube, not 27/64)
  • GT Knurl
  • Cigar pens
  • The ones that Mal identified
Here's the Gatsby Grande
Gatsby Grande Gun Metal Patrot.jpg
 

ramaroodle

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@ramaroodle - the timing of your post is great for me - I'm looking to get a laser engraver and jig to do exactly the same thing. So thank you for raising this question!

May I ask which power level you have and what do you plan to upgrade to?

Thanks in advance.
I think my current one is a NEJE 1000mw unit with a homemade pen jig. Upgrading to a NEJE Master 7W unit with a Benson Pace jig.
 

ramaroodle

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If you go to that facebook page nancy McIntyre is the admin. I asked about the 20W. She says that the 20W is a bad idea as the laser burns out very quickly. I believe there is a 15W also. I'm waiting for her to get units in this week. Everybody on that thread raves about her customer service. She sells the 7W for $225 and the Benson Pace Jig for $75. I'm all over great cust service from somebody based in the US. Seems like she is always on that thread as she responds almost instantly. There are a few threads that she runs and admins. My facebook ID is Phil Hill. (but my name is Andy) You can see my posts on those threads.

 
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magpens

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@ramaroodle

Andy, if you are still looking for a kit with "meat" on it, I just remembered another one.

It is the PSI Phoenix Rising kit .... not the style of kit that fits every requirement, but it does have "meat".

I just checked the diameters: . brass tube is 0.375" and the bushing O.D. is 0.550", so the difference is 0.175" giving "meat" of 0.0875" thick.

I'm actually going to be making one of these and can post a pic in a day or two if you are interested, or just check the PSI website.
 

ramaroodle

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Thanks! I'm looking at a 20w, unless somebody tells me it's a bad idea.
Herb, Nancy has the new units coming in tonight. I was in error. She recommends the 3500mw version, not the 7W (7000mw). She says the lines are crisper and better for pens. You can buy a 7W head for it for $75 later if you find the 3500 isn't strong enough, but if you get the rotary jig everyone says it is exact enough to not have any drift so you can make 2 passes if the engraving isn't deep enough.
 
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