Just bit the bullet

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Hippie3180

Hippie3180

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Joined
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I have been coveting some kitless clips for ages now, but couldn't bring myself to pop on them until now. Yikes!

It seems to me that if someone within the U.S. could obtain a bunch of clips, one could make a tidy some. Why, is Beaufort the only place to get clips, my goodness? Not only, is the pound to dollar conversion crazy, but the courier is wildly expensive. Oh well, what're you gonna do? Also, no hard feelings against Beaufort at all, just would be nice if clips were easier to purchase here within the states.

Sometimes folks wonder why there aren't more fountain pens with clips, this is why. You either have to have the skills to make your own, or buy from the UK. There just aren't many resources here in the states.

Anyway, I'm excited to get them and give them a whirl.
 
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Boy I have a bag of 100 solid brass clips, no plating. Maybe I should think about getting them plated.
Are there any good companies in the USA that do a good job? I wanted to get these plated years ago and never got around to it.
Keith
 
The ones we want/need aren't really in the finishes I would prefer. Would certainly buy from them, but I think the preferred sizes and finishes fly out the door when they get them.
 
mrburls said:
Boy I have a bag of 100 solid brass clips, no plating. Maybe I should think about getting them plated.
Are there any good companies in the USA that do a good job? I wanted to get these plated years ago and never got around to it.
Keith
Click to expand...
I have no idea about plating, but if they are a popular size clip for kitless, they would fly out the door.
 
I feel your pain. All that is why I make simple, cigar clips work.

Royal Mail seems on par with USPS. Waiting now for Royal Mail package from a UK seller... shipment originated in France, took 2 weeks to get to the UK & now waiting on the slow boat.
 
penkitsmall.com has more clip styles and finishes than you can shake a stick at. Very affordable as well. No, it's not stateside, but the variety and price probably make up for it.
 
hokie said:
penkitsmall.com has more clip styles and finishes than you can shake a stick at. Very affordable as well. No, it's not stateside, but the variety and price probably make up for it.
Click to expand...
Really? I had no idea, I've not heard anyone mention them for clips. 🤔 Thank you for the heads up.

Took a peek and will browse some more, but they look to be for kit pens.
 
I do make a lot of Custom Clips, because they are for clients I rarely post pictures. I can make the ring to fit what ever size pen your making.
If you have a custom design I can make one clip and then just change the ring. They are labor intensive. I have to make each one so the price reflects that. I just finished an order for a stone blade tomahawk custom clip. You can PM me or email me if you want to have a conversation.
Rough first draft picture, and the 3d printed model from the clients drawing.
20240903_182943.jpg 20240824_165240.jpg
 
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mredburn said:
I do make a lot of Custom Clips, because they are for clients I rarely post pictures. I can make the ring to fit what ever size pen your making.
If you have a custom design I can make one clip and then just change the ring. They are labor intensive. I have to make each one so the price reflects that. I just finished an order for a stone blade tomahawk custom clip. You can PM me or email me if you want to have a conversation.
Rough first draft picture, and the 3d printed model from the clients drawing.
View attachment 377582 View attachment 377583
Click to expand...
Oh! Wow! I will keep your information. I just bought several from Beaufort, to make the shipping worth it, but this is good to know. Thank you!
 
Hippie3180 said:
Really? I had no idea, I've not heard anyone mention them for clips. 🤔 Thank you for the heads up.

Took a peek and will browse some more, but they look to be for kit pens.
Click to expand...
I'm nearly certain most, if not all of the clips on the Beaufort Ink site are connected to a kit of some kind as well. It's just that the penkitsmall includes the name of the kit in their description/title and Beaufort is a lettering system. Maybe I'm wrong, but most of them seem familiar.
 
hokie said:
I'm nearly certain most, if not all of the clips on the Beaufort Ink site are connected to a kit of some kind as well. It's just that the penkitsmall includes the name of the kit in their description/title and Beaufort is a lettering system. Maybe I'm wrong, but most of them seem familiar.
Click to expand...
Hmm? I'm going to do some more poking around because maybe so.
 
Im glad you found some clips to suit your design. One of the reasons I have turned to making my own, is because it is so hard to find clips to begin with. Just imagine the inventory that Beaufort has to keep in stock, to at least provide the variety he does. There are only so many customers for the clips, and the more suppliers there are that carry clips, the more diluted the market share becomes. I think that's why a lot of our suppliers stopped carrying a huge variety.
I started using Triton clips, because I had a dozen at home. Then suddenly you couldn't get them anywhere, so I decided not to base my pen design on it. So then I designed my Lewis pen without a clip, which I made in a full and junior size. When people started asking about clips, I looked a Beaufort, but couldn't find a clip that was available to fit both sizes. That's why I am now really focusing on making my own clips.
It doesn't really take a lot of tooling to make them. My first ones were made using a
  • drillpress,
  • hacksaw,
  • grinder
  • files.
Now I make them the same way, but have some tools that make it a little quicker and easier.
  • Drillpress
  • Jewellers saw
  • Hand reamer
  • Veil belt sander
  • Swiss files
  • Ring bender
My next purchase will be a disc cutter.
 
darrin1200 said:
Im glad you found some clips to suit your design. One of the reasons I have turned to making my own, is because it is so hard to find clips to begin with. Just imagine the inventory that Beaufort has to keep in stock, to at least provide the variety he does. There are only so many customers for the clips, and the more suppliers there are that carry clips, the more diluted the market share becomes. I think that's why a lot of our suppliers stopped carrying a huge variety.
I started using Triton clips, because I had a dozen at home. Then suddenly you couldn't get them anywhere, so I decided not to base my pen design on it. So then I designed my Lewis pen without a clip, which I made in a full and junior size. When people started asking about clips, I looked a Beaufort, but couldn't find a clip that was available to fit both sizes. That's why I am now really focusing on making my own clips.
It doesn't really take a lot of tooling to make them. My first ones were made using a
  • drillpress,
  • hacksaw,
  • grinder
  • files.
Now I make them the same way, but have some tools that make it a little quicker and easier.
  • Drillpress
  • Jewellers saw
  • Hand reamer
  • Veil belt sander
  • Swiss files
  • Ring bender
My next purchase will be a disc cutter.
Click to expand...
Is there a way around a drill press? I can see that it would make the ring, and how much easier a drill press would be, but I sold one because I don't have room. We are crammed into a 1/4 of a small two car garage. Everything else seems to be hand tools except for the belt sander. Could you use a dremel to smooth and polish? Hmm? 🤔
 
You can drill on the lathe by mounting the metal to a block of wood by gluing it or screwing the piece of metal your starting with to the wood. Then cut it out. You can either mount the wood on the chuck and drill it or you can mount the drill bit in the chuck and hold the block of wood against the tailstock. There are drill chucks that will fit on your headstock spindle either threaded on or using an MT shaft or on a straight shaft mounted in the std wood chuck.
 
mredburn said:
You can drill on the lathe by mounting the metal to a block of wood by gluing it or screwing the piece of metal your starting with to the wood. Then cut it out. You can either mount the wood on the chuck and drill it or you can mount the drill bit in the chuck and hold the block of wood against the tailstock. There are drill chucks that will fit on your headstock spindle either threaded on or using an MT shaft or on a straight shaft mounted in the std wood chuck.
Click to expand...
This sounds like a possibility. We drill out all our internals on the lathe, so pretty comfortable with that. Great idea! Always a wealth of knowledge here.
 
Absolutely you can use your dremel. The sander just makes things easier. The one I have is nice and tiny with a good long belt.

Sander/Grinder - Lee Valley Tools

www.leevalley.com www.leevalley.com

You can use a hand drill, it's always tricky drilling through sheet goods with one though, because the bit tends to grab the metal and spin it. OUCH

You can use a step bit like this. Doesn't grab as bad.

You can also get a hand drillmate stand like this
www.homedepot.com

Milescraft DrillMate Portable Multi-Angle Drill Guide with 3/8 in. Chuck 1318 - The Home Depot

The DrillMate drill guide provides accurate drilling results. Everyone knows that the success of many DIY projects depends on drilling straight and accurate holes. Now you can add a whole new level of
www.homedepot.com

The other option is to cut it out using a jewellers saw. I never knew how amazing these are until I took a silver course at a local club.
This one comes with a good selection of blades. They do have a bit of a learning curve for the techniques, but they are amazing.
www.riogrande.com

German 4" Saw Frame and Saw Blade Kit - RioGrande

www.riogrande.com www.riogrande.com

If you have any questions, just give me a shout.
 
d_bondi said:
Turners Warehouse has "some" of the clips that Beaufort Ink sells.

I can't wait to see what/how you do with them!!
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hokie said:
I'm nearly certain most, if not all of the clips on the Beaufort Ink site are connected to a kit of some kind as well. It's just that the penkitsmall includes the name of the kit in their description/title and Beaufort is a lettering system. Maybe I'm wrong, but most of them seem familiar.
Click to expand...
If there are clips on our site that you feel Turners Warehouse should be stocking, have a word with Chad. We supply the ones they ask for, and I'm pretty sure they'd be happy to expand their selection of Beaufort's clips if they knew you all wanted them.

Most of our clips are bespoke, and are not connected with kits. Some are of course, and they tend to be the cheaper pressed metal ones as opposed to the better quality cast ones. Most though, as I say, are bespoke.
 
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