Sleeving questions

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Golem Pens

Golem Pens

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Joined
Nov 6, 2023
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5
Location
Victoria, BC
I've got the basics of kitless pens down and am pretty pleased with what I'm turning out. I'm hoping to branch into sleeved materials (fordite, wood, etc) and have a few questions! (Apologies if this has been covered but I didn't find anything directly relevant.)

1) I see most folks use ebonite for the internals. So far I haven't found an ebonite source here in Canada, so resin and acrylic (if I can find a supplier) is probably more cost effective. Any reason to focus on ebonite/should I avoid other materials?

2) I am working exclusive on a wood lathe (moving to a metal lathe is not in the near future). Am I asking for a lot of pain trying to turn the internal sleeve to good enough tolerances or is it within reason?

Any and all advice is appreciated!
 
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Hello Michael, There are others far more experienced than I here on the IAP, but here is my 2 cents.

I am using a wood lathe, a Jet 1221VS.

I get my ebonite from Vermont Freehand. They aren't in Canada, they are in Vermont USA.

I like the ebonite because I like how it machines. It is smelly when turning (sulpher) but that goes away eventually for the finished product.
 
d_bondi said:
Hello Michael, There are others far more experienced than I here on the IAP, but here is my 2 cents.

I am using a wood lathe, a Jet 1221VS.

I get my ebonite from Vermont Freehand. They aren't in Canada, they are in Vermont USA.

I like the ebonite because I like how it machines. It is smelly when turning (sulpher) but that goes away eventually for the finished product.
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Thanks David! Vermont Freehand has been recommended to me before, but shipping all my pen materials up from the States ends up costing quite a bit! I'm sure I'll get an order going with them eventually though.
 
mwynne said:
Thanks David! Vermont Freehand has been recommended to me before, but shipping all my pen materials up from the States ends up costing quite a bit! I'm sure I'll get an order going with them eventually though.
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You might want to search for pipe making materials suppliers in Canada. Ebonite is used for pipe bits, etc...
 
mwynne said:
I've got the basics of kitless pens down and am pretty pleased with what I'm turning out. I'm hoping to branch into sleeved materials (fordite, wood, etc) and have a few questions! (Apologies if this has been covered but I didn't find anything directly relevant.)

1) I see most folks use ebonite for the internals. So far I haven't found an ebonite source here in Canada, so resin and acrylic (if I can find a supplier) is probably more cost effective. Any reason to focus on ebonite/should I avoid other materials?

2) I am working exclusive on a wood lathe (moving to a metal lathe is not in the near future). Am I asking for a lot of pain trying to turn the internal sleeve to good enough tolerances or is it within reason?

Any and all advice is appreciated!
Click to expand...
You can use Alumilite as well, it's possible and yes, you can turn to the tolerance on a wood lathe..we do. Though we are not as experienced as some.
 
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Hippie3180 said:
You can use Alumilite as well, it's possible and yes, you can turn to the tolerance on a wood lathe..we do. Though we are not as experienced as some.
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Thank you! It's good to know someone else is doing it successfully. If you have any tips other than patience and practice I wouldn't say no ;)
 
hokie said:
Using ebonite to sleeve kitless pens always seemed wasteful to me. I say use any machinable plastic. I use delrin/acetal, personally. Just make sure the outside is roughed up or has tooling marks on it for the best adhesion.
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Jeremy, where do you get your delrin/acetal? Does it polish up well? Or are you only using internally where it isn't visible?
 
Ebonite, while expensive, is nice and machines well. But, so do other materials. Blanks made with Alumilite Clear or Clear Slow (their urethane resins) work nicely. Kirinite is another favorite. I'm sure there are others.

My go to is Acrylic Acetate. I have not used epoxy blanks so no comment on them.
Do a good turn daily!
Don

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d_bondi said:
Jeremy, where do you get your delrin/acetal? Does it polish up well? Or are you only using internally where it isn't visible?
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You know, because of your question about where I get my delrin, I am coming to the embarrassing realization that delrin is actually not much cheaper than ebonite. 😳 To answer your question though, I used to get it from eBay fairly inexpensively several years ago. They don't seem to have as much available when I checked just now.
However!... it machines like a dream and doesn't smell like burning rubber when you work with it. haha. The only application I use delrin where it's visible is on the threads. It cuts so well, I don't think it even needs polishing. If you were to use it for something else where a nice polish is expected, your tooling better be ideal because I don't think it polishes very easily/well. For internal sleeves, drill bits usually leave a nice, smooth wall, so it's just an easy choice for me when I consider materials for that application.
I like to use ebonite on parts you touch because it's got a warmer, less slippery feel than other plastics and can be finished to any sheen pretty easily.
 
For my sleeved pens, I use acrylic acetate on a small wood lathe. No problem so far. Just try it, you'll see if it works for you.
 
Hey Michael

Most of your questions seem to have been answered. You can do all your custom work on a wood lathe. It just takes a fine hand and a little more time. That being said, I know a couple of makers that can turn out a high quality pen on a wood lathe faster than me on the metal lathe.
For sleeves, I've used just about everything. I don't use ebonite anymore, as I have developed a sensitivity to it. I mainly use Alumilite, because I mix and make my own blanks. So I can make whatever colour I like.
As for suppliers, I've never found an good ebonite supplier here in Canada. The shipping costs from Vermont Freehand, is just the cost of doing business. My go to supplier for everything else, is William wood-write, but I'm a bit biased, as Bill is the one that got me into this rabbit hole years ago. LOL
If you have any questions, just shoot me a line.
 
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