Issues with Celtic twist pen mechanism?

[putnamm]

Has anyone experienced problems with this kit'so mechanism? I made my first one today, and the mechanism either gets stuck and doesn't move at all, or it is extremely hard to move. Any tips Orr experience you can share would be welcome.

Mark

 

[eliasbboy]

Has anyone experienced problems with this kit'so mechanism? I made my first one today, and the mechanism either gets stuck and doesn't move at all, or it is extremely hard to move. Any tips Orr experience you can share would be welcome.

Mark

I too have had that problem. I'm sure my method to correct this is wrong on some level, but it worked for me.

On the mechanism there are 3 raised "ribs" that run along the side. I took a small file and slowly filed them down until they fit better.

Before doing that, I could not even get them to twist.

 

[Smitty37]

Has anyone experienced problems with this kit'so mechanism? I made my first one today, and the mechanism either gets stuck and doesn't move at all, or it is extremely hard to move. Any tips Orr experience you can share would be welcome.

Mark

Does/did the mechanism work OK before installing it in the pen?

 

[putnamm]

Has anyone experienced problems with this kit'so mechanism? I made my first one today, and the mechanism either gets stuck and doesn't move at all, or it is extremely hard to move. Any tips Orr experience you can share would be welcome.

Mark

Does/did the mechanism work OK before installing it in the pen?

Yes.

 

[Smitty37]

Has anyone experienced problems with this kit'so mechanism? I made my first one today, and the mechanism either gets stuck and doesn't move at all, or it is extremely hard to move. Any tips Orr experience you can share would be welcome.

Mark

I too have had that problem. I'm sure my method to correct this is wrong on some level, but it worked for me.

On the mechanism there are 3 raised "ribs" that run along the side. I took a small file and slowly filed them down until they fit better.

Before doing that, I could not even get them to twist.

The three small ridges are there to hold the cap to the transmission when the cap is installed. They slightly distort the sleeve in the cap. If they are too high it will likely be the cause of the problem listed by the OP. Particularly if the cap is very difficult to install because they will be holding the cap tightly against the clip sleeve. Filing them a little will work but you need to be careful not to take too much off or the cap will slip when trying to turn it.

You might try a drop of WD-40 or a small amount of light grease on the cap sleeve (not on the transmission) that should also help. See what works for you but eliasbboy seems to have hit the problem. If you get a little grease on the transmission it wont hurt anything but make sure not to get it on the threads.

BTW the cap is not designed to come off the transmission once assembled and if you have to get it of be very careful not to damage in. You might have to replace the transmission if you remove it from the cap.

 

[Jack Parker]

I had a group of Celtic twist kits a while back that had problems with the transmissions in every one of them. The ones that I had just spun but didn't advance the refill. Ruined one before I discovered that they weren't crimped enough in the circular crimp. Wound up taking a tubing cutter and crimping them just a couple thousands deeper. They all worked fine after that.

 

[putnamm]

I tried the suggestion from eliasbboy and it worked like a charm. Just a little filing of the three ribs and the twist is now nice and smooth. Thanks for the suggestion.

I'm going to make another one just to see if it experiences the same problem. If so, I will try a bit of oil first before filing the transmission. However, it may be that that's just the way to do it.

 

[Smitty37]

I tried the suggestion from eliasbboy and it worked like a charm. Just a little filing of the three ribs and the twist is now nice and smooth. Thanks for the suggestion.

I'm going to make another one just to see if it experiences the same problem. If so, I will try a bit of oil first before filing the transmission. However, it may be that that's just the way to do it.

You will probably not have the problem with every kit I think it is a close tolerance kind of issue where if the transmission is to the large end of its range and the cap is toward the small end of its range you have the problem. Difficult to avoid given the design of the kit.

 

[putnamm]

I made three more of these pens today, and none of them had this problem. Probably just a fluke.

 

[nodrogs]

I have just made my first Celtic twist pen over the weekend and wish I had seen this thread first! I too had problems as described with the mechanism, sometimes it wouldn't budge. I also found that when it did work the nib hadn't advanced fully, but I was thinking the tube was slightly too long. Plus the bushings I had received that were supposed to be for it didn't fit (no glue inside).

 

[penicillin]

I know this is an old thread. I am about to turn a Penn State (PSI) Celtic twist pen kit in antique pewter. I purchased the kit a few weeks ago at Rockler. I am confused about the length of the tube in the kit. Here are a few sources:

2.94 inches:
* IAP database
* Paper instructions that came inside the Celtic twist pen kit envelope. (v02/14)
* Instructions on Rockler's website (also v02/14)

2.985 inches:
* I measured the tube itself before I glued it inside the pen blank yesterday afternoon. (The glue is curing overnight.)

2.99 inches:
* Current instructions on Penn State's website (v09/18).

My concern is that at least one customer on Penn State's site asked about the pen tip not coming out far enough. I have seen that problem on other pens, where the exact length of the finished blank is critical to get the correct pen tip extension. An error of 1/16th inch is way too much. (Example: Penn State's Slimline Pro click pen kit. The combined length of the two finished blanks must be exact or the pen tip won't extend the correct length.)

My hypothesis is that Penn State changed the kit slightly, and I have an updated "longer" kit with old (incorrect) paper instructions. I called Penn State, and they told me to ignore the paper instructions from the kit and follow the latest instructions on their website. Penn State confirmed that the paper instructions in the kit are incorrect, and I should NOT mill it down to the wrong length printed on the paper.

In other words, forget the paper and match the length of whatever tube comes in the kit. (I will follow up when this Celtic twist pen is complete.)

 

[penicillin]

As promised, here is the Celtic pen. It is for a relative who is very proud of their Irish heritage. See my description of the problem in the post above. To remind you, I was concerned that the tube length was longer than the expected length from most sources. It matched the latest instructions on PSI's website, but that was the only source that matched (2.99 inches). The paper instructions that came with the kit had the incorrect value (2.94 inches). The difference is .

I glued the full length tube in the blank. I used a common pen mill to square the blank and grind the end of the blank down to match the tube length. When I assembled the pen, everything was sized correctly. The tip comes out the correct distance. It writes well and feel good in the hand. It is ready to give to its recipient.

I had made several pens from bog oak a few days prior to this Celtic pen. I was not happy with the way that the CA finish darkened the wood so much that you could not see the grain, so I used Hut Crystal Coat friction polish on this pen. I like the way the Irish bog oak looks and feels with Crystal Coat compared with a CA finish. (I know that Crystal Coat is not as durable as a CA finish, but it doesn't matter so much with this pen.)

Thanks for reading.