Pen tips not extending far enough with click pen kits

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jnovakpens

jnovakpens

Member
Joined
Mar 16, 2023
Messages
5
Location
Minnesota
Hello,
This is my first post within IAP and I'm excited to be part of IAP. I am a new pen turner and having a blast with turning various styles of pens. Up until now I have mainly worked with the standard slimline twist pen kits but I personally prefer a click style of pen. I ordered up some click pen kits (2 barrel style) from Rockler and after turning and assembling my first click pen kit I noticed that the tip of the pen doesn't protrude from the end of the pen very far. It protrudes far enough to write with it but if you have any angle on the pen when writing it feels scratchy (like it's scraping the edge of the pen tip.
All other normal click pens I've used has the tip protruding much farther than these click pen kits so I'm wondering the best way to remedy this situation. With the twist pen kits all I need to do is push the transmission into the barrel a little farther...so that is an easy solution.

The click pen kits that I have are very popular....so I'm wondering if anyone else has experienced this....or if I'm doing something wrong. My solution (which I have NOT attempted yet) would be to trim one of the barrels down approximately 1/16" shorter than the length of the tubes which, I would assume, would extend the tip out another 1/16".

If anybody has any recommendations or suggestions please post. I really appreciate it.

Thanks
 
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Welcome to the forum. Most of the problems are the cartridge extends too far as a result of over trimming the blank. I'd assume you problem is either not trimming off enough or not pressing the parts where they're seated properly. Make sure all the components are trimmed properly and seated well. It's all a matter of the length of the cartridge and distance needed for the cartridge to extend to the desired position. If everything is tight you might have to disassemble the pen and take off the amount needed. Take Care
 
Thanks Kenny. I've verified everything that you suggested. The challenge to test this out on an existing pen is trying to remove the components and trimming it down to see if that works.....without destroying the pen I'm tearing apart. I've got some inexpensive blanks that I'm going to test this out on...but I'll still end up sacrificing the pen components if it doesn't work. Hopefully with any luck...this test will be a one-and-done and will verify my theory. I'll keep you posted on how it turns out with trimming down one of the barrels.
 
Jeff welcome to the forum. Glad you found us. As far as your problem goes it would be of help to show us the pen or give us the name of the kit. This way we can see what type mechanism is used with the click portion. Some have a small white plastic extension and some are all built together. I would also check the refill and compare it with another in case it is just a shorter off the line problem.
 
Jeff

I've never done a 'click pen', but I know that nib extension is a common problem on slimlines, with the issue being that the insertion depth of the transmission determines how far the nib extends beyond the end of the pen. But in reading through the assembly instructions for a clicker, there doesn't seem to be a similar problem that can occur with that design. The instructions that I read suggested one possible assembly concern, but it would cause the nib to extend too far, so that's not the issue.

As John suggested, it is possible that the refill that came in the kit you assembled was shorter from the factory. As mentioned here in previous posts, there is a known issue with inconsistency in the length of so-called Cross refills supplied by different manufacturers, so I could believe that a similar situation could exist on clickers - especially with components that originate with no-name Asian suppliers.

Update: re length variations on G2 (Parker style) refills "The official ISO standard length is 98.1 mm, but most of these refills measure out to 98.4 mm, or exactly 3 7/8″. However, they can vary from 98 mm to 99 mm due to manufacturing tolerances."

So ultimately, the answer may be that you have to fine tune the barrel length. But if you do, may I suggest that you measure both the infill length and the length of the turned barrle on the first pen that you do, and retain those measurements as references if you do somilar kits in the future. That way, you can measure the length of the infill and barrel on subsequent pens and compare those dimensions with the recorded dimensions to determine if you need to make adjustments before assembling each subsequent pen.
 
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I updated my avatar picture with one of the pens that has the click mechanism I mentioned in my post. As you can see at the tip of the pen....it isn't protruding as far as I believe it should.

The pen kit I used is a Slimline Pro Click Pen Kit #PK-PENXX.
 
jnovakpens said:
I updated my avatar picture with one of the pens that has the click mechanism I mentioned in my post. As you can see at the tip of the pen....it isn't protruding as far as I believe it should.

The pen kit I used is a Slimline Pro Click Pen Kit #PK-PENXX.
Click to expand...
https://www.pennstateind.com/store/PK-PENXX.html

Put up a link to the kit because we can not see that pen in an avatar photo well. If you look at the shown photo on PSI site you will see that tip is a very small showing. Does yours resemble that look?

Thinking outside the box here it looks like it could be possible to epoxy a small thin piece of plastic to the bottom side of that plastic stem that comes in contact with the refill for a fix or as mentioned possibly shortening that lower barrel some.

I would also encourage you to read the reviews on that kit especially the 1 star ones. Not good. Maybe time to find a better kit. You get what you pay for in slimline kits. They are cheap for a reason.
 
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Thanks JT for pointing that out. To be honest....I never noticed the tip in that picture on the PSI site. That's exactly how mine looks. I do have some different click pen kits that I ordered from Rockler that are supposedly much better quality so I'll see what they look like.

I guess I've learned that not all pen kits are created equal! :) I'll pay much closer attention to the types of pen kits I order.

BTW....if anybody has recommendations on higher quality pen kits please let me know. My mentality is more about quality than pricing...especially since I'm hoping to make many more pens for gifts and potentially selling them.
 
Before you go too much farther, try a different refill, just to be sure the one that comes with the kit is not slightly shorter than normal.

IF you confirm the refills are the same, then the next pen like that you make, reduce the length of the brass as much as you think would look good--when you face the blank.
 
I have made quite a few Slimline Pro pens and other click pens purchased at Rockler and through Penn State. Honestly, the Slimline Pro pen and pencil set have been my personal desk favorites. For myself, I like slender, cylindrical pens.

The Slimline Pro pen kits are extremely fussy about pen tip extension. You need to get the pen length perfect. You need reliable, accurate calipers to check your work as you go. For Slimline Pro pen kits, "perfect" means within 1/64 inch. No kidding. If you think about it, the pen tip extends less than 1/8th inch. If your pen tip is off by 1/4 of a pen tip extension (= 1/32 inch), it will be noticeable.

Here are the steps that I follow:
  • Use calipers to measure the length of both tubes and confirm they are correct.
  • After gluing the tubes, be extra careful when you square and mill the blanks.
    • Whatever tool(s) you use for milling pens, avoid grinding off any of the pen tube. (After all, you just carefully measured them to make sure they are correct as they are.)
    • The essential point is to make sure that the pen blank is flush to the tube, but no more than that.
      • Do whatever it takes - inch up on it one micron at a time.
      • Be patient - you can always cut off, but you cannot "cut on."
      • This is where you get to test your penmaking skills.
  • After milling, use calipers to verify the length of the pen blanks at the tubes.
    • This step is important. Otherwise you risk wasting your time on a pen with tip length issues.
    • You can use a file on the top side edges of the blank to give access for the caliper tips to measure accurately at the tube ends. (The edge part of the blank that you file will get turned off anyway.)
    • If you have cut down the tube at all, you will have pen tip problems.
      • This is why I recommend having spare tubes on hand.
Slimline Pro Kryptonite Glow Stonez.JPG
 
CA glue fixes this, put a couple drops on the black plastic end of the refill, it might take a couple drops to fill in the cross hatch in the plastic then the last drop will form a nice round dome on top of the plastic which is usually enough to add the length needed. You can add more CA or sand the CA as needed for fit. Medium CA works great.

If your blanks end up to short and the ink won't retract all the way in the black piece on the end of the ink can be sanded to get the right fit.

The black plastic piece on the end of the ink tube usually just pulls off the tube so it can be switched to a new ink refill when the original runs dry.

I have a couple long and short pens from starting out and figuring out my blank squaring process.
 
Muddydogs said:
CA glue fixes this, put a couple drops on the black plastic end of the refill, it might take a couple drops to fill in the cross hatch in the plastic then the last drop will form a nice round dome on top of the plastic which is usually enough to add the length needed. You can add more CA or sand the CA as needed for fit. Medium CA works great.

If your blanks end up to short and the ink won't retract all the way in the black piece on the end of the ink can be sanded to get the right fit.

The black plastic piece on the end of the ink tube usually just pulls off the tube so it can be switched to a new ink refill when the original runs dry.

I have a couple long and short pens from starting out and figuring out my blank squaring process.
Click to expand...
This is okay for a personal pen, but not to sell.
 
Well of course. I would hope that any subpar pen isn't for sale. I don't make stuff to sell, I've kept about 25 pens and have given away over 75 so far .
 
The click mechanism on a slimline pro kit is made of plastic. If you use a transfer punch to disassemble the top half, you'll likely destroy it. At least, every time I disassembled a slimline pro kit, I destroyed the click mechanism.
 
randyrls said:
Jim; Some time ago I posted an article to the IAP Library about how to judge the blank length. I was having problems with a style of pen kit being too short. Hope this helps.

https://www.penturners.org/resources/adjusting-ink-tip-extension.236/
Click to expand...

Well thanks? I was answering the OP's question about fixing a pen. I don't have trouble with blank lengths anymore, only the first couple I made.

Heck you glue a measuring stick into the blank what better way to judge length then that? Figure out how to square up the blank and remove CA on the end of the tube without removing to much or to little material and your good to go. The to much or to little part is what got me and I assume many new pen turners.
 
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