Some Questions On Pen Making

[Flippy]

Hello, everyone

 

I have planned to make a simple pen out of lacquered clay and a nib unit. I wanted to ask several questions:

 

Where can I buy nib units (including a section)

 

How do I make the threads for a pen cap, the screw on part under the section, and the barrel screw on section?

 

Any tips for cap making?

[Jamesbeat]

If you want to buy the nib and section as a ready made unit, your best bet might be to buy a pen or a pen kit and use the section out of that.

 

For threads, most people use taps and dies.

 

What type of clay are you planning on using? I can't imagine any type of clay would be able to be threaded.

 

If you are using a fragile material, you may be better off using a pen kit.

I'm not a big fan of kits, but in this case it may be your best option, because the metal tubes would provide support for the clay, and the threads are already made for you.

[Flippy]

If you want to buy the nib and section as a ready made unit, your best bet might be to buy a pen or a pen kit and use the section out of that.

 

For threads, most people use taps and dies.

 

What type of clay are you planning on using? I can't imagine any type of clay would be able to be threaded.

 

If you are using a fragile material, you may be better off using a pen kit.

I'm not a big fan of kits, but in this case it may be your best option, because the metal tubes would provide support for the clay, and the threads are already made for you.

 

 

Why not thread clay? (Sorry for the rather unintelligent question.)

 

Flippy.

[dcameraman]

I don't know a whole lot about clays in general, but if you can thread the clay while dry AND it won't distort when you fire it, I would think it should be fine.

 

When you work with materials that are out of the ordinary, you get to do a bit of experimentation . . . many times you learn what doesn't work. It's when you find something that does work, that makes it worthwhile.

Enjoy it, and have fun.

 

Let us know how it goes.

[Jamesbeat]

If you're talking about regular clay used for pottery, I don't think my earlier suggestion of taps and dies will work.

 

Fired clay is very hard and brittle. I don't even know if taps and dies would work, or whether the clay would just blunt them, but my guess is that the clay would just crack.

 

If you did the threading before firing the clay and managed to get it to hold its shape during firing, that could work.

 

Another concern I would have is that the metal or plastic section screwing into the clay barrel would damage the threads because clay is so abrasive. I expect the threads would wear out very fast.

 

Have a look at the pen kits - they have pre-formed metal threads. The kits have brass tubes which you cover with your chosen material (usually plastic or wood, but I expect clay would work).

Then you just press the threaded inserts into the tubes, and you have a pen.

 

YouTube is full of videos of people making this type of pen.

Many of these people don't really know anything about fountain pens, so you will have better luck searching for 'ink pen' rather than 'fountain pen'.

[Flippy]

But what if you were to lacquer the threads to reinforce them?