pen kits

[marcros]

I tend to get some spare tubes for the kits too for a few reasons:

1. if you ruin one, you can have a spare blank glued up and ready to continue.
2. tubes are cheap and kits at £7 each get expensive to have on your shelf.
3. if you are in a hurry, you can turn the pen whilst you wait for the kit to arrive in the post.
4. it is also easier to glue up in batches of a few, again you may not want £70 of kits sat there, but £10 of tubes is not so bad. Same goes for painting tubes, so you can have some ready, otherwise you wait for paint to dry, then for glue to dry and 3 days after starting you can put it on the lathe!
5. When doing a few pens, I find it annoying to have to go through every bag taking out the tubes. having the spare set, you just leave them in there until you are assembling the pens and replenish your stash.
6. You do damage the odd one now and again.

 

[woodbloke66]

Ah, of course. Yeah in that case all I can really say is avoid the really cheap kits. They work ok, but having put an hour into a pen, it is spoiled by having cheap metal parts.

Interesting as I've had a hankering to do some pen turning. As most (read all?) pen kits seem to be made in China, I'm loathe to invest in tat and would rather get some kits from the top end (as it were), so who make the best kits and are there any that are made in the UK or Europe? - Rob

 

[marcros]

The best of the best kits are not my area of expertise, but the couple.of links that I posted are good quality. Taylors do some made in the UK ones but I haven't used those kits.

 

[gog64]

After egging Phil.p on I feel the need to stick my oar in. I’ve made loads of different Axi kits, they are cheap as chips so you don’t feel any pressure to “get it perfect”. They make really nice pens, not the best, but good to get a few under your belt before you shell out on the expensive sorts. Beware, it’s addictive! I must have made pens for all the relatives and most people within a half mile radius, including the postman.

 

[Phil Pascoe]

I've not done pens before. Anything to look for, anything to avoid? Best and worst places to buy from?

Can we have pics of the finished products please?

I'll use the other pink piece for another pen - I drilled the hole too large. Fine for a first attempt. The pen is better than the photos.

 

[ScaredyCat]

Late to the party yet again, but prokraft have some nice kits.

.

 

[Phil Pascoe]

and another.

 

[gregmcateer]

=D>
He's on the slippery slope...

 

[Distinterior]

Here are a couple of pens I made for my Wife's niece's last Xmas......

The pen kits & acrylic blanks were from Axminster if remember correctly ?

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Taylor's have just taken another sixty quid ...

 

[Sideways]

Beaufort do some great blanks. Try the diamond stuff.

 

[Phil Pascoe]

I have a diamond one coming from Taylor's.