American Classic Pens

[JRD]

While I have been turning for about three years now, only in the past 6 months have I been drawn to pens, thus my questions about the American Classic Style.

I have just completed two, for my daughters. Both have problems.

The first pen works just fine except for the double action of the pen. A twist to the right extends the pen tip an appropriate amount. A twist to the left extends the tip beyond a "normal" extension. Any thoughts as to why?

The second pen extends the same amount with a right or left twist, but unless twisted firmly the tip does not lock in place. When twisted firmly to lock the tip in place it will not retract unless the tip is pushed on. Any ideas on how to fix this and the cause?

I suppose more importantly, if there is a fix, how do you get the blasted things apart to make corrections or repairs?

Any help to a pen neophyte would be most welcome.

Jim

 

[mrcook4570]

My first thought would be that the refill is slightly too large. If this is the case, the nib could be reamed out with a small file, drill bit, or hobby knife. Also, if this is the case, you would not need to disassemble the pen - just unscrew the nib.

It also sounds as if you may have overtrimmed the barrel on the first pen. If so, sand a little of the black plastic piece at the transmission end of the refill. That will shorten it so it does not protrude too far. I would not attempt to seel a pen with such a modification.

Should you ever need to disassemble a pen, I suggest purchasing a transfer punch set. Harbor freight often has them on sale for less than $10. I have yet to make a pen that couldn't be taken apart with a transfer punch set and a little persuasion []