My kitless bash entry

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Penultimate

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Joined
Aug 22, 2010
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1,099
Location
Bartlett, IL 60103
Greetings
Here is my Bash entry and a slightly longer description than 500 characters.

My wife gave me a Mont Blanc Classique rollerball many years ago. It is the finest writing instrument I've used. So why not try to replicate it? Maybe I could learn some design secrets.

I started by measuring the MB and drawing it in Fusion 360. I had some Lucite from member Gerry Rhodes that would look good with Aluminum parts. After making the design drawings I started machining. There were design challenges along the way like making the snap cap part, the clip and cap rings. This was my first time making rings and the second time making an Al clip. The Birthday Bash and Summer Extravaganza encourage me to try new things.

Making the section, nib, threaded section were straight forward. The body presented a challenge with the trim ring. My original two piece body design didn't work so I had to swage the ring. After some prototyping I got the sizes right and swaged the ring on using my collet chuck. Then I made three protos of a snap cap, I got close but bought some nib units from R Greenwald and one of the snap caps fit perfectly. The trim rings on the cap are slipped over a tenon. I hogged the clip from 1/8" thick Aluminum finished it with rotary tool, files and wet sanding then bent around a transfer punch.

What did I learn? Dimensionally, my pen is very close to the MB so it fits in my hand as well as the MB. The MB is weighted at the section that makes it feel better than my copy. My pen writes well but MB brand refills are superior to the Schmidt 5888 refills. I like my pen, it sits next to my MB on my desk and I use it daily for work.

Thanks for reading and looking.
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Dale Lynch

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Dec 12, 2011
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1,819
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Hastings,NE
I casted a vote your way.I like the workmanship that went into it.Nice to see some rollerballs and ballpoints mix it up with the fountains.
 

darrin1200

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Joined
Mar 17, 2010
Messages
1,836
Location
Lyn, Ontario, Canada
The replication work is fantastic Mike. I have never swaged rings, and have no idea how you would do it. Perhaps you could show a bit of a demo.

Personally, the only thing I am not fussy on, is the material colours. I find that the white lines merge with the aluminum accents making it seem very busy/chaotic to me. Especially with the high contrast black.
But that is just my own view, it is a fabulous pen.
 

EricRN

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Joined
May 16, 2019
Messages
760
I like the lines of your pen better. Seems a little thicker overall and narrower at the ends. Very nice.

can you give a little bit more of a description on how you swaged the rings on and what that means?
 

Dr. Ed

Member
Joined
Jan 22, 2020
Messages
5
Location
Kennett Square PA
Greetings
Here is my Bash entry and a slightly longer description than 500 characters.

My wife gave me a Mont Blanc Classique rollerball many years ago. It is the finest writing instrument I've used. So why not try to replicate it? Maybe I could learn some design secrets.

I started by measuring the MB and drawing it in Fusion 360. I had some Lucite from member Gerry Rhodes that would look good with Aluminum parts. After making the design drawings I started machining. There were design challenges along the way like making the snap cap part, the clip and cap rings. This was my first time making rings and the second time making an Al clip. The Birthday Bash and Summer Extravaganza encourage me to try new things.

Making the section, nib, threaded section were straight forward. The body presented a challenge with the trim ring. My original two piece body design didn't work so I had to swage the ring. After some prototyping I got the sizes right and swaged the ring on using my collet chuck. Then I made three protos of a snap cap, I got close but bought some nib units from R Greenwald and one of the snap caps fit perfectly. The trim rings on the cap are slipped over a tenon. I hogged the clip from 1/8" thick Aluminum finished it with rotary tool, files and wet sanding then bent around a transfer punch.

What did I learn? Dimensionally, my pen is very close to the MB so it fits in my hand as well as the MB. The MB is weighted at the section that makes it feel better than my copy. My pen writes well but MB brand refills are superior to the Schmidt 5888 refills. I like my pen, it sits next to my MB on my desk and I use it daily for work.

Thanks for reading and looking.View attachment 300136View attachment 300137View attachment 300138View attachment 300139View attachment 300135
A really well done piece of workmanship!
 

Pierre---

Member
Joined
Jun 10, 2012
Messages
410
Location
France
A nice pen, and very interesting comments Mike.
You say "The MB is weighted at the section that makes it feel better than my copy." What is the balance difference coming from you think?
And yes, some more about swaging rings would be welcome. Never swaged neither...
 

Penultimate

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Joined
Aug 22, 2010
Messages
1,099
Location
Bartlett, IL 60103
Greetings
Thank you for the kind comments and votes.
Darrin, I agree that the white swirls make it a little busy, especially when the cap has more black than swirls. it tool me three times the make the cap so it wasn't from the same blank as the body.
Pierre, the section on the Mont Blanc has more metal. There is metal underneath the red material.

I will try to make a description of how I swaged the rings.
Thanks
 
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