Kitless

[Displaced Canadian]

The only factory parts are the G2 refill, clip, and spring. I made the blank out of fiberglass resin and testors paint cast in a PVC tube because that's what I had. It was cheaper than buying blanks to practice on, and there was about 3 explosions. The worst part was when one died it was because I was doing something that I was doing that was wrong. The top ring and the nose are 6063 aluminum. I used a 9x1 mm, 3/8 NF, and 7/16 NF tap and die. The cap is about 14mm wide and the body about 12mm. It is just slightly longer than a normal capped pen. I left a little more materiel on the back because the back ring is threaded on and epoxied to keep it there. Wasn't sure how strong it would be. Next time I'll make the body bigger because when you thread a 9mm hole inside a 11.1mm hole there isn't much left. The 2 aluminum rods with threaded inserts on them were used for final polishing, the whole tape it and put it back in wasn't working for me. I could feel the spot where the polished ends met. I also had to make a collet to go in my collet. Please give me your honest opinions because I can't improve without your help. And if you say something mean I promise not to sneek onto your house at night and lick the inside of your coffee cup.

 

[lorbay]

One thing I noticed was the threads do look a little course, but hey if that is what you have on hand that is fine.

Lin.

 

[BRobbins629]

Looks pretty nice and I like the creative mandrels. I agree that the threads look a little coarse as well. The other thing that strikes me is the length of the metal section. There may be reasons why you like the metal, but for me I would have made the straight part out of matching plastic and have a much shorter metal piece, starting at the taper. Maybe make one of each and see which looks better? Or add some design feature to the metal and keep the length. Only way to really tell is to make a couple of variations and see which you like best. All in all, a nice pen.

 

[Curly]

It is a great start especially with the G2. I agree with the others about the thread pitch, but it is a refinement to play with down the road.

:coffee: I'm really glad I don't drink coffee! :mad-tongue:

 

[Robert111]

I like it, Chris. And I agree with everything that's been said so far.

My first impression was Hey! That's pretty creative! And I immediately thought it was Cumberland, so that blank's certainly a plus.

I was wondering what shape pen would go with that clip. I have a few and couldn't decide what to make to use one. Everything I held it up to didn't work for me. I do like it on your pen, so now I know!

Well done!

 

[Twissy]

+1 on all the comments. Only other things, maybe the finial on the barrel closer to the length on the cap, and the detail ring a bit thinner.
All said and done though, a fantastic start....and a really nice blank! Looking forward to the next creation.

 

[glycerine]

Dang, that looks pretty good!

 

[Displaced Canadian]

Thank you for the comments. If I make the metal shorter I'm not sure how to hold on to it. I'll have to think about that. This was a lot of fun to do. In time I will do finer threads, right now my equipment is fairly primitive. This is very much a "joy in the journey" type of project.

 

[OOPS]

If this was a "joy in the journey" type of project, you should be thrilled right now! I really like the beauty and style of the pen when capped, and I really love the color. Some have discussed the more pronounced size of the ring, but I oftentimes think those decorative rings are too thin, so to my eye, your pen looks more substantial as a result. I do agree with the others that the long, metal nib looks unbalanced, but hey, that will be another "joy in the journey" project.

I would like to hear your comments regarding fiberglass resin, as I have not used it before, and I would think most others haven't as well. Does it turn well?

Thanks for posting, and greetings from Spokane, WA.

 

[Displaced Canadian]

Fiberglass resin does have it's quirks. It hardens fairly quick and if you use less hardener the blank is too soft to work with. It is light brown in color so coloring it is a challenge. That blank was colored with metallic red paint and a little of my wife's bare essentials makeup to add a little sparkle and it still has a hint of brown to it. It chips fairly bad while you are turning the blank round after that it isn't bad. It's difficult to get the bubbles out because it hardens fast. It was also a little more work to polish. When I went to thread it 2 places chipped out and I had to fill with CA and rethread. I have another one to try and see how it turns. It was colored with blue and it looks kinda grey/green. Fiberglass resin also shrinks more than regular PR. I cast in an 8 in pipe and the blank was about 7 5/8" long

 

[John Den]

Love the pen.

The satin aluminium works for me it is a pleasant surprise when you take off the cap! The shape is really pleasing to my eyes.

The thread is a little on the coarse side ------- but I hope my first "Kitless" turns out a quarter as good!!!!

Kindest Regards
John

 

[mredburn]

Most of the comments are opinions on aesthetics which means both they and you are right. I could recommend a little thicker aluminum ring added on top of the clip ring for balance. Or one Down on the cap below the clip. But these are design functions and there is no "you did it right or wrong", if your happy with it its right.

You can hold the nose cone by making a mandrel to hold it.

Drill the inside holes to match your refill except for the smallest drill bit. If you have to, make a dummy - go/no go out of aluminum to check the fit. and then cut your tenon and thread your piece destined to become the nose cone. You can rough out the shape before cutting it off the stock it was made from or just leave it until later. Make something your lathe can hold onto and drill and tap it to screw finish drilling your nose cone with the smallest bit, ( I use #37) for the tip of the refill.

All in all its a great start. GJNP

 

[bluwolf]

I think in general the pen looks good. I agree with Bruce that the aluminum nose looks a little long, but only because it has no detail in it, to break it up visually.

Getting picky, it looks like when you were finishing the metal nose, you rounded over the edge by the threads so it's not a tight fit visually. Which reminds me, you said something about if you make the nose shorter, you wouldn't be able to hold onto it. What did you mean by that?

Mike

 

[cnirenberg]

Well done. Looks terrific. I like your take on the polishing mandrels.

 

[Displaced Canadian]

I think in general the pen looks good. I agree with Bruce that the aluminum nose looks a little long, but only because it has no detail in it, to break it up visually.

Getting picky, it looks like when you were finishing the metal nose, you rounded over the edge by the threads so it's not a tight fit visually. Which reminds me, you said something about if you make the nose shorter, you wouldn't be able to hold onto it. What did you mean by that?

Mike

For this one I held it in a collet chuck turned to size and threaded and drilled. Then turned it around and cut the taper for the tip. To make just the very tip it would be tapered the whole length so I'll have to make something to hold it .

 

[bluwolf]

Chris,

For the one I just did I made a little mandrel. Just a piece of aluminum drilled and tapped with the same threads as your nose cone. Put a little drop of oil on the threads before you put it in the mandrel. When turning it, it will want to tighten up on you and sometimes it's difficult to unthread it after you're done making it.

Mike

 

[Jjartwood]

I love a pen that isn't garbaged up! You nailed it with this pen,All the comments I've
seen so far are preference changes,nothing looks out of place or like a mistake.
The guys who are much better than me know what to look for.
I've not done a kitless yet so any effort is better than I can do but that it does not look like a kitless is great,the trick to a good custom, is that it does not custom,just really nice
I'm jealous
nice pen