Cartridge Bullet Click Pen

[Ronald Fox]

We bought a couple of Cartridge Bullet Click pen kits from Woodcraft. I aquired some deer antler and decided I needed a fitting kit to make with it. First impressions are that I really like this kit. There are more pieces to put together than other kits, but it sure looks nice and shiny ;)

Ron
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[Tim Leiter]

I have tried the bullet pens, the twist version, and made most of them with white-tailed deer antler. I made 3 with olive wood burl. They were all very well received and I have sold almost all that I have made. They pretty much sold by word of mouth since I do no advertising.
They are a real nice kit and a great seller, I got very good prices for them too. I bought most of mine from Rockler when they had a good sale on them. Much better price at that time than Woodcraft.

I bought two of the click versions from Woodcraft recently, but I have not made them yet. I am sure they will sell as well or better than the twist version.

The one you made is very nice. I always try to drill the antler in a way that allows part of the outer ribs of the antler to stay on the pen. They sell much better than the plain ones with no distinctive antler ribs.

Again, good job Ron.
Tim.

[Bernie Weishapl]

That is a great looking pen. That is one I have never tried.

[Chris Burgess]

Great looking pen. I have been wanting to do one but am still a noob at the pen game so I have been putting it off. Hard to think of a better blanks for for that pen than antler or bone.

[Billy Tallant]

That is a very nice looking pen. I've made a bunch of the twist bullet pens. I haven't tried any of these yet. That looks like a new kit I'm going to have to try.

[Ronald Fox]

Thanks for the comments.

Tim, how do you drill the antler to show the rib without blowing out the side of the blank. Or do you have a sizable curve as you turn it to expose the ribs? I have a gradual curve so that the blank doesn't push out the clip and there isn't much material between the brass tube and the outer surface.

Thanks,
Ron

[Tony De Masi]

Very nice pens Ron. I've just finished a dozen of the twits type but I'm going to have to try these next. Of course I need to have some luck this hunting season too.

[Jim Burr]

Really cool Ron!! Are you dipping your cartridges or just polishing them like crazy? When I did antlers I had good luck with a slight oversize and turning so the concave part had ribs. Only a small part of the antler can be used in this way

[Ronald Fox]

The cartridges are gold plated and come shiny out of the bag ;)

Cool, thanks for explaining how you exposed the outer surface of the antler. I figured that had to be how you did it.

Ron

[Tim Leiter]

Ronald. I hold the blank on the lathe with pressure on the antler, between the drill bit and the live center. I then line up the two tips by holding the pen tube on top of the antler then lining it up even with the two points. Then I adjust the drilling and live center points to where I can determine the antler ribs will show at some point after drilling.
I don't know if it explains it clearly enough. I then hold the antler with a pair of pliers with a paper towel wrapped on the ends and drill it out. It seems to work for me. Some times the antler is drilled at an angle, but that way I can have some ribs exposed after turning.
YMMV.
Tim.

[James Combs]

Ronald. I hold the blank on the lathe with pressure on the antler, between the drill bit and the live center. I then line up the two tips by holding the pen tube on top of the antler then lining it up even with the two points. Then I adjust the drilling and live center points to where I can determine the antler ribs will show at some point after drilling.
I don't know if it explains it clearly enough. I then hold the antler with a pair of pliers with a paper towel wrapped on the ends and drill it out. It seems to work for me. Some times the antler is drilled at an angle, but that way I can have some ribs exposed after turning.
YMMV.
Tim.

I use a drill press and a vice but I line it up similar to what Tim does. I try to make sure the drill is inside of antler for the length of the hole but close to surface where I want the ribs to show. This is one I posted last year. The dark brown areas are the ribs showing.

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[Donny Lawson]

I just bought the same kit from Woodcraft and hope to get time to work with it in a few days. Yours looks real nice. I hope mine turns out that well.