Rollerball nib/section question...

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Hendu3270

Hendu3270

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Just easing into kitless (more accurately custom) pen making. I'm not into fountain pens and don't know a single person who uses them. I'm thinking rollerball / ballpoint and I have a couple in progress using a rollerball from a Vertex and even from a slim, (just testing the waters). The cartridge rollerball system at the link below from exoticblanks...

Exotic Blanks :: Refills, Inks & Nibs! :: Fountain Pen Nibs & Accessories :: Cartridge Rollerball System

the clear plastic piece in the pic, that holds the ink, screws on to the threaded area it looks like. So you would turn a section that this nib would just slide in to, correct? Don't have any in hand, so is it sized for a typical sized drill bit? And also, I foresee a huge mess trying to fill this with an ink bottle used for fountain pens. What's the method for filling something like this without ending up with ink all over yourself?
 

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The clear plastic cap in the picture is a snap cap that fits over the roller ball for protection and can also be installed in the cap of your pen to make it a snap cap fitting instead of a screw cap.
The roller ball nib in the picture will accept an ink cartridge or a piston filler.
Lin.
 
Chris
I just finished a pen with this nib except I didn't use the snap cap. I drilled the ID of the threaded portion of the section with a #1 drill and the drilled out the rest with a letter I drill. I cheaped out and bought a 1/4 - 50 WF (Whitworth Fine) tap (about $8 on eBay) for the threaded section because 6.4 mm is .252 inches and .5 pitch is 50.8TPI. The molded threads have a lot of clearance in the root and the flanks are thin. If you lay the tap threads on the nib threads they match perfectly. I had no trouble threading the nib in securely.

I use cartridges and the ink flows from the medium point easily. It writes smoothly like the nib is floating on a ribbon of ink. I don't get that feeling with my fountain pen.

Good luck and have fun.

P.S. For my first custom fountain pen I used a feed from a Vertex fountain pen.
 

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Penultimate said:
Chris
I just finished a pen with this nib except I didn't use the snap cap. I drilled the ID of the threaded portion of the section with a #1 drill and the drilled out the rest with a letter I drill. I cheaped out and bought a 1/4 - 50 WF (Whitworth Fine) tap (about $8 on eBay) for the threaded section because 6.4 mm is .252 inches and .5 pitch is 50.8TPI. The molded threads have a lot of clearance in the root and the flanks are thin. If you lay the tap threads on the nib threads they match perfectly. I had no trouble threading the nib in securely.

I use cartridges and the ink flows from the medium point easily. It writes smoothly like the nib is floating on a ribbon of ink. I don't get that feeling with my fountain pen.

Good luck and have fun.

P.S. For my first custom fountain pen I used a feed from a Vertex fountain pen.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the info and pics Mike. Pen looks great! Nice to see this exact nib used in an example. Did a little searching yesterday and didn't find the right size tap for it so it's good to know of an alternative. :good:
 
This thing is really neat as they can swap with Schmidt nib-feed-holder assembly easily (do not know of others, Bock and JoWo?).
That makes me have "rollerball" option of custom FP that I make with Schmidt nibs, and already led to one sale.
 
Polishing the threads ?

Fellas,

Strange question ?

What is the best way of polishing the thread on the pen body that the cap screws onto ?

I feel this has let down the few kitless attempts I've tried, apart from the poor design and execution,LOL !

Regards,
Cam
 
yaroslaw said:
This thing is really neat as they can swap with Schmidt nib-feed-holder assembly easily (do not know of others, Bock and JoWo?).
That makes me have "rollerball" option of custom FP that I make with Schmidt nibs, and already led to one sale.
Click to expand...

Where can you find the Schmidt nib-feed-holder assembly? I was searching last night for nibs, feeds and the housing that screws into the section, but only find the bock, and it doesn't match the tap I have for these rollerball. Was hoping to find a housing and feed that will work with a decent nib and NOT have to buy another tap.
 
They are compatible or better than Bock. THey are considered to be an upgraded nib. No need to change them.
 
mredburn said:
6.5 x.5 tap for the threads.
Click to expand...

Mike, two questions for you. I know you posted this info recently because I saw it, but can't find it and didn't write it down. What is preferred size bit for the above size tap I bought for you?

And second, do you, or anyone else, know the size of tap I would need for the Vertex feed housing?
 
Hendu3270 said:
mredburn said:
6.5 x.5 tap for the threads.
Click to expand...

Mike, two questions for you. I know you posted this info recently because I saw it, but can't find it and didn't write it down. What is preferred size bit for the above size tap I bought for you?

And second, do you, or anyone else, know the size of tap I would need for the Vertex feed housing?
Click to expand...


FROM you...not for you. lol
 
THe 6.5 a B or C drill bit will work I use C. For the the 7.4 use a 7mm or J drill bit.
 
lorbay said:
The clear plastic cap in the picture is a snap cap that fits over the roller ball for protection and can also be installed in the cap of your pen to make it a snap cap fitting instead of a screw cap.
The roller ball nib in the picture will accept an ink cartridge or a piston filler.
Lin.
Click to expand...

So you just insert the plastic cap into the cap of your pen and don't have to thread the cap to the body?
 
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