Bad pen parts ....

[Willee]

I make somewhere around 100 pens a year and order in quantitys of 50 or so.
Some are sold and some are gifts.
Sometimes I dont get around to making the kit for months ... only to find a bad or missing part.
So that kit is tossed into the parts bin cause I know it wont be the last bad one I ever find.
Hopefully the next one bad one will be a different part.
So do the rest of you have this problem or do you check every pen kit when you get it for missing parts and defective transmissions?
It dont matter if it is a $3 SlimLine or a $25 high end kit.
It cools my beans every time I half to scrap a pen kit because I did not check every kit for every part when they came in.

 

[magpens]

Usually I don't bother to check for every part in every baggie ... that's quite a chore.
Fortunately, in my experience, there have been only extremely rare instances of missing parts.
I always check the baggie contents before beginning to make a pen though. . Saves having to scrap a pen after starting it.

 

[jttheclockman]

I am right there with you unless it is a very expensive kit and then I will check platings and as much as I can because usually I am only buying about 10 kits. But I have bags of kit parts that I have no idea where or what kit they go to. Just a pack rat. Now I know I lost money on those but chalk it up to a price we pay for doing this. Something like in my other hobby scrolling, I can cut a piece and finish it but happen to drop it or break it in a way it is unfixable. Never made it to market so time and price of material is lost. Just another example of what we encounter in hobbies.

 

[Willee]

LOL JT ... reminded me of a cue maker that was once asked what he would do if he ever hit the lottery.
He replied that he would keep right on making pool cues until all the money was gone.
I am sure a lot of pen turners feel the same way.

 

[howsitwork]

Got to admit to buying spare tubes having taken the workshop apart to locate some "missing ones".

New tubes came, right I thought now where to keep them safe until all the blanks are drilled and I need them. Ah yes that drawer then I can't lose them ..... Oh damn there's the tubes I couldn't find.

I have sparea now of most bits having had a few failures and disappointments where Ive been able to salvage something from the wreckage.

 

[wolf creek knives]

I've had kits that I've purchased then not used for a couple of years. In one case the plating was not done correctly and I contacted the vendor, PSI, and they took care of it. I just showed them a picture of the invoice and the plating and in a few days I had the needed parts in my mail. I've also had a similar experience with Exotic Blanks. I had a coffee scoop with a bad plating and contacted Ed and it was taken care of. I just sent them a photo of the invoice and the bad plating and Dawn sent me the new parts. I guess it really depends on the vendor. This rarely happens to me but I heard of others that have had problems.

 

[TellicoTurning]

I'm like John, when I was still making pens, i usually only bought 10 or so kits at a time, maybe only 2 or 3 of each style... but I'm from an industry that specialized in receiving freight for customers that were repacked and shipped on their behalf... we checked every box against the packing list and against the purchase order to make sure we had everything the customer ordered.. they often never saw their freight... as a hold over from my professional life, I always check every shipment I order against the packing list and against my order.