Heavyweight material for kitless?

[Parson]

The biggest gripe I receive from pen collectors is that the kitless pens I show them aren't heavy enough. So how do I make 'em weighty?

 

[ashaw]

The trim pieces add weight to the pen. Center band, Receiver band, but before just add weight you need to balance to pen out.

 

[InvisibleMan]

I would show those customers a nice Jr. Gentleman.

 

[Parson]

Nah, these guys buy LE Montblancs, Visconti, etc. they can smell a kit pen a mile away.

They also won't touch a pen unless it has an 18k nib.

Pen snobs, really.

 

[GoodTurns]

M3 will give you some weight

 

[mredburn]

put lead shot in the cap? Wrap the tube in lead flashing? depleated uranium front sections!

 

[InvisibleMan]

edit: never mind, I read bad. Are you talking about fountain pens?

I don't have the pens mentioned, but the commercial fountain pens I do have (Pelikan, etc) are not any heavier than my kitless pens.

 

[frank123]

You could make the section out of brass and give it a baked enamel or baked epoxy finish to make it look more like ebonite or resin or plate it, maybe drill the body out full length and add a lead or brass rod to fill the unused part of it.

I've made sections from brass and they look pretty good just polished and clear coated (to prevent tarnish) but I find Ii like lighter weight pens, and particularly like them sort of evenly balanced from the middle instead of front or rear weighted (but that's just my preference).

 

[yaroslaw]

Anodized titanium/aluminium, stainless. Depending on design, can be VERY heavy. Stainless especially