Originally posted by angboy
<br />Randy, I think you may be right.....
And now back to dear sweet pain in the......oops, Angela. Just kidding[
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] You have added a couple of new elements to the mix, one of which "REALLY" puzzles me?? I sort of feel like the Columbo of pencrafting right now!!(maybe Monk would be a better description)
As to your above comment.....maybe and maybe not.....we'll see???
For lack of a better way of doing it, let me respond to the items in your second post in the posted order.
"...The problem pen actually isn't the one that you pulled the picture of, I went back and checked that one and it works fine. What is different though is that with that one, when you twist from extended to unextended tip, the top stays in the same place, same distance of small space. So I wonder why that one works....."
I don't know. This long distance diagnosis stuff is really difficult, sometimes. Maybe the barrel on that pen is a little shorter?? Or maybe there is something wrong with the cap and it is not slipping fully onto the transmission even though the tranny is properly seated. Maybe.....multiple possibilities....if the pen is working and the look doesn't bother you, I wouldn't worry about it--especially if it is a pen for your own use. OTOH, if it is a pen you were planning on selling or gifting, I might want to look into it more carefully against the possibility that a problem might arise at a later date.
"....I took two pix of the one I'm having trouble with, and when I twist the top, all of a sudden, in what would be the nib extended position, there is a gap that wasn't there before...."
Thanks for the pictures. They are always helpful for what they show as well as for what they don't show!! This comment is driving me up the wall. If I understand, correctly, how this kit works, what you are seeing should not be possible?? The "all of a sudden" comment also puzzles me. Could you elaborate a bit??
".....I wonder though, am I likely to still have a problem since the barrel is definitely shorter? The third picture shows my pen with a tube from another kit placed next to it and you can (hopefully, if the picture is good enough) that the extra tube extends past the lower part of my turned barrel...."
All other things being equal, with a shorter barrel, the tip will stick out further when in the extended position and may not fully retract into the barrel when in the other position. I don't remember that you stated how the barrel got to be shorter? Did you cut it shorter on purpose or did you just cut to the existing tube length and perhaps have a short tube to start with? Remember that when comparing just 2 tubes, you can tell if they are different; but you don't know if one is too long or the other is too short. It is also possible that both are OK. How...perhaps the company has redesigned the kit for some reason and are using a longer transmission with a shorter tube or visa versa?? Wish I had the pens in hand to look at and measure up. Please measure the barrel length of the problem pen and the tube that you photographed so we can compare those measurements against what the instructions call for. If you still have it, it would be interesting to measure the barrel length of the one pictured in your gallery, as well.
With all of the brain power here at IAP, I'm sure we will get this solved for you; but it may take a couple of trys. Hang in there!!