Not ALL Kits are the Same.

[Kenny Durrant]

I'm sure most here already know this but this is for the New People and the slow ones like myself. First a little something about me. When I started pen turning I bought the cheapest kits I could. Since I give more away than I sell I would try to save every chance I could. When I started getting better and doing more with the pens I was able to sell a few here and there. Then the problem was how much can you get for a nice pen you put a lot of work in that has cheap hardware. I guess before I get some upset with me I'm not bashing any of the pen kits I'm saying they each have there purpose or place. I guess while I'm on the rabbit trail I'll throw in that pen kits are great gifts. Birthdays and Christmas I give out the phone number and kit number and everyone can shop for me and never leave the house. That way you can get what you want and friends and family don't have to stress with what and where to get your gift. Now for the original purpose of the thread. I started getting different kits from different suppliers that were "The Same" kits. Same diameter tubes and bushings. Well I do a lot of casting so I buy several tube to cast with so I don't end up with a bunch of kits with missing parts. I had a Triton and Jr.Gent 2 kit that I turned two pens that were basically the same pen. Luckily before I had them engraved I pressed them together and the Tritons spring was too short. I get a Jr. Gent 2 kit to swap the spring and the cap is longer so that's why it needs a longer spring. That's when I notice the lower pen tube on the Triton is shorter. I was able to mill the tube down to size and refinish without any trouble. That's when I learned that there are some kits that are the same and some are basically the same. I hope this wasn't too long or boring but maybe something for a few to think about. Thanks

 

[ed4copies]

Kenny,

You are absolutely correct!! The triton is shorter than the junior series. To make matters more confusing, some of the recently introduced Dayacom "junior" kits use different length tubes, too (Jr. Aaron, Jr Antony etc). However, if you settle on the longer tube and make a triton (for example), you need only insert a longer spring in the rollerball to make it work well. So, I suggest using the longest tubes that are compatible and slightly modify your "innards" to make it work GREAT.

In another vein, however, there are manufacturers from China who have "knocked off" the bolt action, the sierra, the cigar and others and are using the same name as the original equipment manufacturer (kind of a "street version Rolex" marketing plan.) This will be much more difficult to detect when being offered by US dealers. I am confident that these lower quality kits will have a failure factor and, therefore the dealers' reputation will suffer in the long term.

However, for the remainder of this year, I expect confusion to run rampant. Be careful in selecting your sources.

Happy turning!!
Ed