Black Walnut Crotch / Ebonite / Jowo #6

[hooked]

This is my first kitless wood pen. Black Walnut crotch wood fully sleeved with alumilite, brass rings, ebonite section, Jowo #6, M13 threads. Just oil and wax finish on the wood. I have been trying wood kitless pens for a few months off and on without success, so I am pretty proud of my result.

I am considering a different clip, but this is the only gold one I have that fits. I might try to make a brass clip.

 

[mark james]

Well done. I like the natural finish, and your proportions are excellent. Thanks for sharing.

 

[Todd in PA]

Very nice!

Gosh I so want to learn how to do this. And I'll admit (with some hesitation) how intimidated I am by all of the technical conversations I read about making these pens. I don't have the tap and dies and can't seem to decipher which ones I'd need to get started. I also don't know the difference between the "acrylics" and which ones to use or where to buy them. I google ebonite and get bowling balls.

 

[bzahn]

That's a very beautiful pen!

 

[jrista]

Excellent work, Mark! Love the pen. Beautifully done, beautiful wood, and I think the clip is nice (not knowing what your other options are anyway.) I like the design.

 

[jrista]

Very nice!

Gosh I so want to learn how to do this. And I'll admit (with some hesitation) how intimidated I am by all of the technical conversations I read about making these pens. I don't have the tap and dies and can't seem to decipher which ones I'd need to get started. I also don't know the difference between the "acrylics" and which ones to use or where to buy them. I google ebonite and get bowling balls.

FWIW, ebonite is hard rubber. You can get it at a few places, but I've bought some rods a few times from Vermont Freehand:

https://vermontfreehand.com/rods/

It seems Ebonite is a material of choice for the threaded nib holder in these kitless pens. I picked some up myself, to try my hand at engraving some surface relief designs into some pens. Haven't actually gotten there yet, trying to just get back into the flow of making pens regularly first here. Next is to just try engraving some cheap black test rods I picked up, which I can turn smooth and engrave, then turn down a layer and engrave again, to get the hang of it.

Vermont Freehand has some excellent resin rods as well. I'm not into kitless myself yet...a bit intimidated by it as well. But, I'm starting to find and pick up some of the materials I think I'd use for them. Some extremely nice acrylic rods here:

https://vermontfreehand.com/product/acrylic-rods/

(Side note: Beware that Vermont Freehand sells a lot of materials for pipe makers, and they clearly smoke themselves. So far, all my shipments have come in with some rather heavy...scents. They fade, but, upon opening the box, be prepared. )

 

[hooked]

Thanks all!

I find ebonite provides a comfortable grip when using the pen. It feels more like rubber than plastic. I get Ebonite from Vermont Freehand. Ebonite has an intense sulfur/burning like smell, which may have contributed to the odor in the box. I also get acrylic rods from Vermont Freehand and some places in the UK.

Gosh I so want to learn how to do this. And I'll admit (with some hesitation) how intimidated I am by all of the technical conversations I read about making these pens. I don't have the tap and dies and can't seem to decipher which ones I'd need to get started.

I felt the same way but really wanted to learn how to do it. So I started by ordering a starter kit for M14 single-start threads to learn with. Getting started in kitless is not cheap, but this kit provides a set of mandrels, taps, dies, and die holders for about the same cost as one triple-start tap/die set. This guide (pages 60-70) used with that particular toolset is pure gold for making a basic pen step by step.

I moved on to more expensive triple start taps and dies with the IAP group buy last year and converted what I learned into different dimensions. I have upgraded tools and discovered new tools to make the process more precise. I used Barry Gross's guide for making my first pens and then altered the process as I learned more techniques and figured out ways to do things better for me. Everyone on IAP has also been an enormous help in answering questions and advising me on improving.

But, starting this way gave me the vocabulary and understanding of the process to understand the technical conversations on IAP since I had nobody locally to teach me.

 

[its_virgil]

Very nice!

Gosh I so want to learn how to do this. And I'll admit (with some hesitation) how intimidated I am by all of the technical conversations I read about making these pens. I don't have the tap and dies and can't seem to decipher which ones I'd need to get started. I also don't know the difference between the "acrylics" and which ones to use or where to buy them. I google ebonite and get bowling balls.

Check Vermont Freehand for ebonite.
Don

 

[jrista]

Thanks all!

I find ebonite provides a comfortable grip when using the pen. It feels more like rubber than plastic. I get Ebonite from Vermont Freehand. Ebonite has an intense sulfur/burning like smell, which may have contributed to the odor in the box. I also get acrylic rods from Vermont Freehand and some places in the UK.

Oh, no, the odor in the box wasn't the ebonite.

 

[TDahl]

Looks great!

 

[Todd in PA]

I felt the same way but really wanted to learn how to do it. So I started by ordering a starter kit for M14 single-start threads to learn with. Getting started in kitless is not cheap, but this kit provides a set of mandrels, taps, dies, and die holders for about the same cost as one triple-start tap/die set. This guide (pages 60-70) used with that particular toolset is pure gold for making a basic pen step by step.

Ok, I'm diving in.

Thank you.

I've got the starter kit in my shopping cart. I'm going to read the guide to make sure there's nothing else I need to add to my order.

Looks like the ebonite rods come in every diameter at Vermont. Which diameter did you buy for this starter set?

 

[Oliver X]

I've found it's best to buy ebonite oversized by at least a few millimeters.

 

[hooked]

Ok, I'm diving in.

Thank you.

I've got the starter kit in my shopping cart. I'm going to read the guide to make sure there's nothing else I need to add to my order.

Looks like the ebonite rods come in every diameter at Vermont. Which diameter did you buy for this starter set?

I get 18mm mostly for the fact that it fits in my collet chuck without turning the piece down first.

I also get 14mm for rods that I use for sections so that I don't need to turn them down much.

 

[Todd in PA]

I read the doc hooked linked to.

Do I really need the "y" and "i" drill bits? The Y is .404" whereas the 13/32 that I already have is .406.

So, yeah, I'm kinda cheap.

 

[hooked]

I read the doc hooked linked to.

Do I really need the "y" and "i" drill bits? The Y is .404" whereas the 13/32 that I already have is .406.

So, yeah, I'm kinda cheap.

I would imagine the Y replacement is fine. That is what you are using with the M11 tap. You could always hit that with a little file before tapping if you find it too tight.

The I bit is the size of the jowo housing to converter connection. I don't have my chart in front of me because I am out of town. I do know that the housing fits perfectly and tight in the section with the I bit. Maybe someone else uses a different bit and will chime in to verify it works.

 

[Todd in PA]

"i" is .272 inches, whereas a 7mm bit I already have is .275". But reading the instructions, it sounds like those are very lightly cut threads and so that difference might be important.

I'll just get the starter kit that includes all the drill bits even though some of the bits will be redundant.

 

[PatrickR]

Ok, I'm diving in.

Thank you.

I've got the starter kit in my shopping cart. I'm going to read the guide to make sure there's nothing else I need to add to my order.

Looks like the ebonite rods come in every diameter at Vermont. Which diameter did you buy for this starter set?

Unless your plan is to just make a couple and stop you can get better than what is in that kit. You know the saying, buy once, cry once.
the mandrels in the kit are aluminum. Brass or steel are less flexible. it includes a tap that is 7.5, 7.4 is the correct size for a Jowo #6. That is a common misconception so it must work, just not correct.
Ebonite ~ I love it, it threads great and takes an awesome polish, but it requires more work to get it there especially with black. Start with the Japanese as it's less expensive but I like German better.
feel free to DM me if you have questions or for resources.

 

[jrista]

"i" is .272 inches, whereas a 7mm bit I already have is .275". But reading the instructions, it sounds like those are very lightly cut threads and so that difference might be important.

I'll just get the starter kit that includes all the drill bits even though some of the bits will be redundant.

I would be careful about drilling too large... Too small is one thing, too large, and you've removed material you cannot get back.

I picked up a 115 bit drill bit kit from Harbour Freight. Cobalt Steel, some of the hardest stuff around. $114 for the entire box. Its every fractional, numbered and lettered bit there is. If you pick up this set of drill bits, then you'll never be wanting for any imperial bit again.