Delrin & Brass

[Kuryaka]

Poor dorm lighting, bah.

After a few weeks of getting used to things, I got access to my college's woodshop and found the time to make another pen.

Jinhao nib, feed, and converter. Feed's sealed with an o-ring.

In comparison to the TWSBI 540, it's a good bit lighter, it posts comfortably, and the nib is customized to my liking. I ground down the M nib to an F point, starting with a Dremel (power tools! the horror!) to trim some metal off the sides of the tip, and then transitioning to 400-600 grit for further shaping.

 

 

Writing sample - I generally just write whatever pops into my head at the moment.

 

Next up is figuring up a creative way to make pens resistant to rolling, because some of my classes have really slanted desks. As this pen looks decidedly modern, maybe I could bend some piano wire into a clip shape, Safari-style, or just flatten a face on the cap and barrel...

[dali3464]

For roll-stoppers, I very much like Romillo's or Hakase's variety: a simple circular brass stud in the cap. Hakase has this other rather ingenious roll stopper, where the cap band (or a barrel band) has a raised relief of a geometric pattern, and that functions well as a roll-stopper too for a more seamless appearance (if a random brass stud seems a bit odd).

[FLZapped]

Delrin? As I remember, that is an oily feeling plastic.

 

-Bruce

[Kuryaka]

Ooh, I might try the brass stud, or try to see if there's anything else similar. Maybe a brass strip instead, which could be bent to function as an actual clip?

 

Delrin can't be polished to a glossy finish, but it threads excellently and feels warmer than acrylic. Great material for testing out designs in my opinion, and it's better at hiding imperfections than a shiny surface. However, it's slightly translucent so reverse-painting the inside and/or dyeing the plastic is going to be important for a clean look. In terms of materials costs, 3/4" round rod for the cap is $3/foot, and 1/2" round rod for everything else is $1.50/foot. I've noticed that most modern pens have matte finishes or softer materials, which just feel nicer to slip into your pockets.

A combination of inexperience and cheap tools make my pens... clearly handmade, in the un-fancy way. For this one, I was going for a more rugged feel, like the Kawco Stonewashed AL Sport.