Thoughts on making the Dawn click pen kit

[hilltopper46]

I recently completed one Dawn click pen kit. I bought the kit from Exotic Blanks and I believe it may be available from some other sources as well. I am reasonably happy with the outcome, but there are some things that may be helpful for anyone else who is making or considering this kit.

The first thing is the length of the blank - I believe this is the longest pen blank I have ever made. It takes a 8mm bit and to finish drilling the blank I had the bit only inserted about 1/4 inch into the chuck and I still had to turn the bit by hand to clean out the bottom 1/32 inch or so. I am "drilling challenged" and was really glad that I started with a large blank as the bit wandered considerably off center as it went through the blank. If I were to make a lot of these (I probably won't) I would get a longer bit to make them with.

The instructions do say to make sure all the glue is cleaned out of the tube after it dries. I did not have an issue here, but I want to underscore the importance of this. I also highly recommend the use of a sharp chamfer tool to take any burrs off the ends of the tubes after facing off the blanks.

Assembling the pen was tricky in a couple ways. The instructions are written in "Chinglish" with excellent illustrations and less than excellent text. The text repeats itself and is difficult to understand. So...

There are two springs in this kit, the standard "Parker" spring and something called a "click spring." Don't worry about the click spring, you will be able to install it after the pen is assembled.

Same with the finial click button, you will be able to install it after the pen is assembled, in fact it holds the click spring in place.

There is a plastic sleeve in the click mechanism. This is installed in the bottom end (nib end, writing end) of the pen and must be installed before the threaded insert that holds the nib.

The instructions say to use the refill or a tool and push it all the way to the other end of the barrel. This is where I ran into a problem. I installed the other two click components and in pushing this assembly to the other end, the pieces jammed and would not operate properly. I got them unjammed, but then had trouble getting them to all fit together properly. I pushed the sleeve back to the nib end of the pen, but I had already installed the threaded insert so could not get it out to see what was going on. I then pushed the sleeve back to the click end of the pen, put the other two pieces in and after a bit everything started working correctly. Bottom line here is two things;

1. before assembly, lay out the plastic parts on the bench and see how they fit together.
2. if possible, push the sleeve through the tube with a transfer punch or other tool, not with the plastic click parts already installed in it.

Subsequent investigation shows the following. The sleeve has four bars molded internally which engages four slots in the bottom plastic piece. Engaging these together is made tricky because there is also an interference fit between the bottom plastic part and the sleeve, presumably to keep the click mechanism from falling out when you replace the ink infill. Aligning the slots and bars while pushing through the interference fit is tricky. I'm sure other pens are similar.

Below are the click parts - I have the two on the right laid out in reverse order - sorry.

After I got the pen assembled and put together it clicks very nicely and repeatedly.

One comment about turning the barrel - the nib has a flange on it that allows for some artistic license as far as accurately matching the bushing size. I turned to the bushing, but one could be several thousands larger that the bushing and have a good match to the pen. The click end requires much more accuracy in matching the bushing.

After I wrote this post this morning, I prepared the pen for delivery this evening and put a Schmidt EZ-Flow 900 in it only to discover it did not fit. I cleaned out the top of the nib inside the threads with a 15/64 drill bit and it fit okay. It just took out a bit of the plating, but it was enough to keep the infill from fitting in the nib.

 

[montmill]

Thank you Tony. The kit certainly shows off the beautiful wood you used. I love the clean, simple look of the kit. I have some to make and will copy this post and add it to the kit box.

 

[sorcerertd]

Thanks for the heads up on the quirks. I do love the opportunity to show off a very attractive blank on a long barrel, but am also somewhat drilling challenged. I've had good luck with the parabolic bits on the longer ones, though they are not cheap. It definitely takes patience to limit the wandering (and often a round file )

The clicker looks similar to the one in the PSI Compson. I'm guessing that disassembly is not an option if you goof anything up? For what it's worth, I find that using the eraser end of a pencil is handy when working with stuff like this because it offers a little bit of grip and is easy to pull back out (also handy for snap caps when adjustment or disassembly is needed).

 

[ed4copies]

Hey Tony,

Your thread prompted me to make a movie

Hope this helps anyone trying to understand the instructions:

 

[hilltopper46]

@ed4copies I discovered another quirk to this pen after I wrote the above post. I prepared the pen for delivery this evening and put a Schmidt EZ-Flow 900 in it only to discover it did not fit. I cleaned out the top of the nib inside the threads with a 15/64 drill bit and it fit okay. It just took our a bit of the plating, but it was enough to keep the infill from fitting in the nib.

 

[sorcerertd]

If anyone is looking for a parabolic bit, Berea has some on sale. This letter O bit will work great for an 8mm tube.
edit: I should mention that they are half price right now.