I'll have to try it. Turn the blank on bushings and finish just on the tube. Ditching the mandrel would be nice. Less setup. And hopefully no CA lifting and annoyed me when a nice kit and blank are screwed by an unclean CA break.
You are perceptive. You would be surprised at how many times over past few years that people with the mandrel problems of different kinds could not "see" the "less setup". From many, questions came back as I have to buy more (dead center, more bushings etc - while at the same time they will spend much more on a new mandrel than a dead center. Other replies were it is too complicated to imagine while in fact it is much more simple requiring far fewer steps, and less dropped bushings
, and easier checking on the work.
This last step is a bonus on the TBC. How many times do we want to take a blank off and check it very closely but refrain because of the steps of unscrewing the mandrel, taking the bushing off, afraid of a misalignment when remounting - so we don't. It is one step with TBC. Much less complicated.
Less complication, more simple, less things to go wrong, less parts involved! Cheaper too than extra mandrels. The real hang up is Three-fold -
1. Some enjoy the ability to do BOTH parts of a two part pen at the same time. (Nothing really gained except for seeing them together.)
2. It is a little daunting with all of the investment to get started and learn the pen making process for most. To immediately have to "re-adjust" our thinking, it is hard to let go of what we have just learned. (Stockholm syndrome taking effect on a minor scale.)
3. Trusting the big catalog makers recommendations / I'm a beginner, not a cutting edge person yet. All of the big catalog and large companies have and sell these items (mandrels) so it MUST be the BEST way. / TBC is for advanced users, I am not there yet.
Give it a try. It is not for advanced users only. More focus can be to making that pen instead of the complicated mechanics of mandrels.
ONE WARNING: The lifting "can" still happen, but it is much easier to "score" the edge of the finished blank on TBC than with bushings. There is a greater sizing difference on the end of the TBC blank/center than with blank/bushing on a mandrel. But with over CA'ing, it can still happen, just the percentages are GREATLY reduced.