Kit Less Pen Challenge

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PaulDoug said:
Thanks, Rick, added to my favorites for future work. I have to learn a lot about metals, i.e., so many (I guess) hardness', thickness. It also looks to me like it would be worth buying brass tube from a place like Online Metals, wouldn't it, instead of buying the short lengths from a pen kit selling place?
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I've gotta work on a kitless myself, because a lot of these look cool (and the rest are good, they just aren't my style). However, I can help with this. If you want to send me a message or something about a particular metal, I have the Bible (engineers and machinist's bible: Handbook of Machinary (I went to look up the spelling, and can't find it right now... But I will is anyone asks. :) (it's the only other book I've seen that uses those really thin pages)

On the other hand, as a rule of thumb, I'd say carbide + coolent for stainless steel and the harder aluminums, and softer ones you can probably get away with a normal bit (not brad point (and note I didn't say 'cheap'... If you're doing metal, carbide or HSS) and plenty of coolant. Brass, be careful of, because it can 'catch' (a machinist friend knew someone who was trying to mill some brass by hand (not a bright idea...), and it caught and shattered his forearm), so make sure your vice is secure to the table. I'd think the softer aluminums might be like that, too. Titanium, same as Al (it's not strong per volume, but per weight). Gold is way too hard for an amateur to deal with... send it to me. I'll even get rid of the chips for you, and rough it out, free of charge.

For different materials, different speeds are better (like in wood). There's a table in the bible, I believe.

'course, this is a 'theory' engineer's opinion. See a machinist for better advice.
 
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Paul , here's another place to get metals of different types , http://www.speedymetals.com
These are the guys I get my Brass and Aluminum from , their prices are good and they ship any size order fast .
For the brass I'm using T360 type bar and tube stock and for Aluminum I use 6061 type bar and tube stock .

Rick , what thickness flat brass have you tried , I've tried the .064 and its way too thick and puts allot of stress on the finial instead of flexing .
I have been buying my strip stock brass from my local hobby shop and they only carry the .035 and the .064 stuff but if you've had better luck with a certain thickness let me know and I will order some from speedy metals later in the week .

Zirnike , Welcome to the challenge thread . What type of kitless pen are you interested in , maybe we can help with any problems you come across .
 
Butch,
This is my faorite pen, here. The shape and combination of materials sets it apart from others. Polaris clip I assume?

ldb2000 said:
This is my latest attempt at duplicating most of the ballpoint kit pens we make . It is a Kitless Polaris . It is made from 2 7mm tubes and a slimline transmission , and a clip I bought from Elliot (xylostyle) , all of which I buy in bulk , and some Black and White Corian .
I love these Finial operated kitless pens , they are a blast to build .:biggrin:

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This is fun , next is a 7mm cigar pen . :biggrin:
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Hi All,
I wasn't sure if I should post here, but I was looking at some of the others and I read the rules and decided to enter.

I used the tubes, transmission, clip and finial from a fancy slim kit. As you can see, the nib and center band are custom made. It is wrapped in red and black marble celluloid from Woodcraft (I think).

Hope you like it,
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Like it ??? .... I LOVE IT !!!
Steve that is an awesome pen . I'm not a fan of the cartridge pens but this one has "Class" . The blank gives it an elegance that regular bullet pens lack , and the CB is the perfect size to bring it all together .
Great job :good::good::good:
 
doesn't quite qualify

Here's my first completed kitless. It doesn't quite qualify because the tubes and clips are from a euro instead of a slimline. It was pretty challenging, and Butch suggested I post it in this thread as well. It is BOW and Bloodwood. The stripes on the centerband and nib are gray pearl ex. They don't show up as well in the picture, but are pretty nice in person.
 

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Newest kitless design

This is my newest entry here in the Challenge . It is based on the Longwood which is my favorite pen design . I have beefed up the design a bit , this pen is 1/2" in diameter and has a real nice feel to it .
It is Purple Plum wood with 3 coats of thin CA as a sealer and 6 coats of Fast drying Poly .
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The picture don't show the beautiful coloration of this wood , there are subtle tones of pink and red in the grain . I just wish I had more of this wood .
It uses a 7mm transmission and tubes with polished brass for the kit parts . Using Brass and Aluminum for these kitless designs has added a bit of elegance to them , and has opened up several new design possibilities which I will be showing soon .
 
kitless flower pen

A Chritmas flower for the wife of our heart.

He is made with spalted "castanea sativa" and "prunus domestica"

Only with tubes & transmission of an old slimline



As always, comments and suggestions are appreciated!
 

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WOW! very creative. I even like the looks of it which is hard to do with me. I don't take to different very well. very nice work.
 
My First Kitless!

Ok, here it is. My first ever kitless pen. Yes, it is far from perfect, but, I really enjoyed making it. I have followed the rules. The pen twists closed and the upper body comes off to change the refill. This pen is made of Mahogany, Walnut and Veneer. I may change the clip out yet. Thanks for the challenge. Thanks for looking.
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Blue Turquoise Calypso

This is my next entry , it is a Blue Turquoise Kitless pen . It's another in my Calypso line of pens . It is made from some Blue Turquoise Tru-stone and Aluminum bar stock and uses 2 7mm tubes and a 7mm transmission with a custom Aluminum clip .

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This is, my favorite pen I have made to date. It is made from scraps because I was using my "feather" jig and didn't want to ruin another good piece of wood. The feathers are so light that at first glance you may not see them. It is some wood a friend of mine built his deck with (the darker) and the light is dogwood. I did not use a kit, the tubes and trans and clip are parts I bought separately. The finial is two pieces of wood, light and dark.
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Bravo Paul . That is a spectacular kitless pen . I see the feathers just wish you had picked a little darker color for them it really would have made this one a Stunning pen . Great job on the nib and finial , I can just see the dark wood peeking over the top I think .:worship::worship::worship:
 
Gee, Butch, somehow I missed your post of the tru-stone one. I really like that. I have got to get brave and try turning some soft metal. I only have the Harbor Freight set of turning tools and don't know it they will hold up to it. They do fine on wood.
 
Paul , I don't think you will have any problems with those tools (they are the better set ? M2 steel?) if you take it easy and don't get too aggressive . You will have to sharpen them more often but they will work .
I think you would be better off trying brass first , it turns better then aluminum . Get C 360 free machining brass or if you want to try the aluminum then get the T 6061 type aluminum which is the most machinable .
Just remember that metal won't chip or break the way wood and plastic do when you get a catch so keep your tool rest up nice and tight to your workpiece so your tools have a very small overhang and hold on tightly .
For around $30 to $40 you can get the carbide tipped set of tools from PSI (Amazon is cheapest when they have them) , they hold up real well and stay sharp for quite awhile . This set works great for Tru stone and other hard materials and you don't have to keep resharpening them every 5 minutes .
 
I've been busy with some other projects and haven't had much time to play , but I'm back .
This one is a Kitless BX Cable pen . It is made from a piece of BX armored electrical cable cast in Alumilite , have I said lately how much I hate Alumilite (sorry Curtis) and aluminum , 2 7mm tubes and a 7mm transmission with a clip from Elliot. It was a blast to be playing again .
Hope you enjoy it .

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Congratulations Bob, that's a mighty beautiful pen !!
What kind of filling system did you use ?




bobkeyes said:
Here is a fountain pen. All parts made by me except the nib. 4 start thread done on the mill. Two views of pen and one of small diamond on the cap. Made from tortoise shell acrylic.
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