Yes - I am new to the forum. I hope I don't offend anyone or break any rules, but I have a quick question. I'm interested in making some fountain pens and am having a hard time locating quality pen kits. Tried Woodcraft and all the usuals (Penn State, Woodturners Supply, etc) and cant find a anything that appears to be of good quality. All appear to be cheap Asian junk. Don't need a Rolls Royce but would like something to make a good quality pen for my dad. The guy has over 100 fountain pens and making one for him seems the next logical step. Probably easier to email me if you don't mind (hdgis1@yahoo.com). Thanks in advance for any help.

A little more info - At this point I don't have the tooling to turn a stock kit into something fancy. Would like something along the lines of Eagle's blue woven pen. Medium nib, platinum or sterling (no Gold anywhere!), maybe closed end pen,. Anymore info needed Ill do my best.

Chris

the kits are actually pretty decent, and the nibs are usually very smooth.

The kit used for Eagle's blue weave pen was a Gentleman from Craft Supply USA http://www.woodturnerscatalog.com/, who have some of the nicest kits out there. It is a very heavy pen though, due to those large chunks of metal at the ends, including a metal section. I made one, but found it too heavy to write with for any length of time, but they sure look nice. A closed end would lighten it significantly. Some people, myself included, don't find the metal section to be very comfortable to write with.

I find the El Grande or Churchill FP's from Arizona Sihouette to be very nice, comfortable pens, if you don't try to post the cap. You can get very reasonable upgrade steel or gold nibs for these from DC Bluesman over on the IAP forum http://www.penturners.org/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=32430

I have no connection other than being a satisfied customer.

Dan

Craft Supplies USA have some high end components.

Click Here!

Mark

"All appear to be cheap Asian junk. "
not to nit pick, but exactly where do you think most Mgrs get their hardaware?
Do you think each individual piece is sitting in a velvet lined box waiting to be lovingly assembled into a component that was handcrafted?
More likely those high end pens are spit out by a machine 24-7 and the finds are dumped in a bin waiting for someone who is paid piece work to assemble it.
Then the FP purchaser pays the big tag price for a mass produced item and brags about it.

Well, yes thats exactly what I am trying to avoid. Perhaps german or american kits are better made?

Chris

How exactly does one go about making a closed end pen?

Chris

HAve you tried any of the components that you think are"Asia Junk"?

Chris - why don't you check out the penturners association of america website? They've got lots of info on pen kits, making closed end pens, etc. http://www.penturners.org

As far as the kits being junk - they aren't all that different from the mass produced pens that you can buy with name brands on them. Many manufacturers are moving their production lines to Asia, and there are some very nice pens coming out of the Far East.

Also, there are some expensive kits available at Woodcraft, at higher prices. If you're worried about the quality of the $5 kits, pick up a $25 or $50 kit, and the components should have better plating and more embellishment.

Now, if you use the information sources that have been offered here, you should be able to

1) Make pens without kits at all. (You'll need a tap and die, maybe several - penturners.org has that sort of information)
2) Make closed-end pens. (instructions available on penturners.org, as well as from arizonasilhouette, and other pen turning supplier sites)
3) Find high quality components to upgrade kits with gold nibs. (www.nibs.com for Bock nibs, and other sites linked via the Penturners.org site for materials, etc.)

Good luck with your project!

-George

Denying trolls food since 2003.

In regards to Gepzos post,more specifically read the original posters comments in this thread.
I made the pen in question but the person was inspecting the finds with a Jewlers loupe was a dealer of high end pens.
There were approximately 10 people witnessing this occurance.
This event took place at the Chicago Fountain pen collectors show"after hours" this past May.
http://www.penturners.org/forum/topic.asp?...chTerms=Emperor

Chris

As has been mentioned, you can go to penturners.org, and in the library you will find articles on turning closed-end pens. Arizona Silhouette has some free videos, too. Finally, you can go to the Penmakers Guild articles at http://www.penmakersguild.com/articles.htm.

Thank you all for your help! So nice there is a wealth of informaiton always at ones finger tips!

Chris

If I remember I will post pic when finished.

Yes, I sell them at Woodcraft!

Chris

Most of the Woodcraft kits are made by Berea. For some reason, WC doesn't choose to stock most of the higher end plating that is available. Arizona Sihouette and other resellers do stock most of the kits in Ti Gold or Platinum, which are much more durable than the standard platings. But to answer your original question, there are no American or German made kits that I'm aware of. If there were, the cost would be prohibitive.

Dan

Speaking of... anyone checked out the Schmidt website? I emailed their customer service line, and the response was "Tell us what you want, and how many."

So, we could get the parts that the big manufacturers use. Anyone tried their Pison-fill system out? Know of any pens that have them installed? They sure to look swanky.

That would be your "German" manufactured parts, direct from the manufacturer. I think Levenger uses their nibs, as well as Filcao. That's two, I'm sure there are more.

- George