New To The Forum

[ThomPens]

undefinedMy first post. Just found the site today. I machine somewhat expensive fountain pens as a hobby (small business actually). I have been turning pens for about 6 years and am getting ready to move to CNC equipment. I have turned several thousand pens using a Pratz SD300 lathe and mill combination. I am taking a short course at a local vo/tech school, trying to learn to use the Haas S/10 that I am planning to puchase. The machine is "over-kill" for pen turning plus expensive ($45,000 or so after tooling up is complete). I am also considering the Mini Mill that Haas offers. It's only money right? I will be seeking advise from the list members about other machines that are available which might do the job I need done. I also own a Sherline but they are not powerful enough to drill a 7/16 hole 3 inches deep in Titanium or Stainless Steel. I turn pen parts from seven different metals and many different other materials such as: Acrylic, Micarta, Ebonite (hard rubber), and Polyester.

I look forward to being able to pick the brains of others who have applied themselves to learn the art of using the lathe and mill.

Chris Thompson
www.thompsonpens.com

[CNCadmin]

Glad to have you aboard, you should have no problem getting you're questions answered here.

[HomeCNC]

Wow! Is there really a market for pens that cost that much??

[DDM]

Wow, a little better than the pens I did out of PennState a few years back on my little wood lathe. I think that Haas Machinery may be a little extream for your situation but I could be wrong. Do you make everything from raw materials or do you have stuff already to go. I would be interesting to see your process to get a better idea of what would be best.

Carl

BTW, welcome to the Zone

[ThomPens]

The machining of higher end fountain pen parts is not "big business" because the end user is a very select group of people. It is not your average dude who pays several hundred or even several thousand dollars for a writing instrument. I became interested in fountain pens because I am also a vintage pen collector and restorer. I then came in contact with an international group of collectors. It was through that group that I became interested in turning custom pens and eventually designed pens that bare my own name sake. Now I have made a small business of pen turning. That is what has brought me to this group. I need to upgrade my shop equipment because I need to make parts that are enterchangable. Each pen in a series must be just alike. That goal seems to best reached by using a CNC machine. I realize that millions of pens were made for several decades on basic engine lathes. I just do not have good enough equipment to do exact duplication work.

In the past I have leased time on a Mazak 20. That was wonderful but "over kill" is an understatement for the application. I hold a doctrate in the Administration of Vocational/Technical Education, and am around nice turning equipment frequently. However, I would consider most of the machines that are in the school shop were not really designed to do hobby work. Especially when one considers the investment vs the return. A $50,000 machine needs to turn lots of parts. So as you might assertain, I am caught up in a delima. Which machines are right for my application?

[kevinb]

I watch a show called HOW It's Made on discovery channel. They had a show on custom pen making and found it very interesting. If you want to go CNC lathe I would suggest looking around for a used machine. There is a few lathes out there that are just like a conventual lathe but can be run like a CNC or by hand, I know Romi has a nice model.

Kevin