Dean Thomas
12-10-2007, 3:42 AM
Well, it's 2am and I'm back with a few more "last minute" questions about pens. After having my hands in the guts of nearly 400 pens in the last couple of months, I feel as though I could write a book about many aspects of it all. Intimate little details that make good pens or that keep some from being as good as they could/should be.
While wrapping the last 175 pens for shipment to Ken & Jackie (about 345 pens shipping on Monday December 10, if you're reading this, Ken; will provide tracking info when I get it later this morning), I ran into a couple of different problems. I have solved one, may have a solution for a second and third, but the fourth has me vexed. I'm hoping for a simple and elegant solution. And where else would I find an elegant solution except at SMC?
Problem 1: As I was wrapping these puppies and admiring their glorious grain and color, I twisted in and out, just to make sure things were working. I found two that no matter how much I twisted, no refill appeared from the hole! Popped the cap and voilą, problem solved. He who assembled those two pens forgot to insert refills!!! :eek:
Problem 2: More testing while wrapping. I found a couple that would not twist at all. Yup, refill in place, but no twisty whatsoever. Apparently, the assembler in this case plunged the transmission too deep into the body so that the chrome plate part of the transmission cannot spin in the brass portion. I'm guessing that if I use my extraction tool, I may be able to tap the tranny out enough to make a usable pen. Does that seem right? (PS I bought a 12" long 1/8" drill bit and ground it in two pieces so that I now have a hardened piece of steel to beat on to pop pieces of pen. I also have a 3/16" piece of soft steel for whacking transmissions. MUCH cheaper than the alternative of buying a kit for much larger money)
Problem 3: During the last round of assembly, I found one bottom half of a pen that the tranny simply slipped calmly into place. Zero friction, zero resistance. Finger pressure is sufficient to push the transmission completely into the lower half of the pen. Steve T from this list and from the KC area suggested that I score the brass part of the tranny and see if that would raise enough metal to keep the tranny in the lower tube. That's tomorrow's project, after mailing what I have wrapped. What I think I learned in this particular instance is that we had more than a few problems with insertions. Two of us did all of the insertions for the KC2007 FPP effort, and I really did learn a lot in doing it. "Don't drill too far ahead" would be a biggie, I think. I found that if there was a significant change in humidity, a hole that used to be Baby Bear perfect (juuuuuuuuuuuuust right) could suddenly become a real PITB to get inserted. As a well-glued tube started to stick, I think that extra force was applied, then a LOT of extra force to get the tube in before the glue set beyond redemption. I have to wonder if the extra force stretched the tube. Or is it possible that particular tube was thinner walled and thus larger inside diameter than normal? In any event, the tranny doesn't fit--actually 4 different ones are all the same). If the scoring trick doesn't work, does that mean I lose the bottom half and have to turn something to replace it?
Problem 4: This is my biggie for tonight, and comes with an abundance of sub-questions. I tested randomly for the first 175 pens, relying on those who helped me. I'm praying that what I've found is limited to the last 175.
Situation: I've made up little tags to thanks those who'll receive the pens for their service and to let them know the species of wood. Some of the pens we made were used to write the species on the tags. I discovered while writing that some of the refills would not stay extended! Another horror to contend with. No, wait, a whole BUNCH of horrors!
Is there any way to fix this problem without removing the transmission?
Perhaps some special place to gently squeeze the transmission to create enough tension for the refill to lock in place in the "out" position?
Some magic words to say??
If not, I need to either cannibalize a bunch of kits or find a source for a dozen transmissions. I've found extra tubes in several sizes, but no ads for transmissions. Suggestions?? These are all PSI kits and to the best of my knowledge, none of them were abused, they just don't work.
Now a larger issue, at least for the anal part of me: Is there any way to discover a bad transmission before one installs it??? I'd much rather pitch one than have to pound the durned thing out once I get it squoze in! :confused:So, I'm counting on my several thousand new friends at SMC to help me find some solutions to this little stygma in my morning. Thanks folks. Looking forward to hearing from you to help me solve these things.
While wrapping the last 175 pens for shipment to Ken & Jackie (about 345 pens shipping on Monday December 10, if you're reading this, Ken; will provide tracking info when I get it later this morning), I ran into a couple of different problems. I have solved one, may have a solution for a second and third, but the fourth has me vexed. I'm hoping for a simple and elegant solution. And where else would I find an elegant solution except at SMC?
Problem 1: As I was wrapping these puppies and admiring their glorious grain and color, I twisted in and out, just to make sure things were working. I found two that no matter how much I twisted, no refill appeared from the hole! Popped the cap and voilą, problem solved. He who assembled those two pens forgot to insert refills!!! :eek:
Problem 2: More testing while wrapping. I found a couple that would not twist at all. Yup, refill in place, but no twisty whatsoever. Apparently, the assembler in this case plunged the transmission too deep into the body so that the chrome plate part of the transmission cannot spin in the brass portion. I'm guessing that if I use my extraction tool, I may be able to tap the tranny out enough to make a usable pen. Does that seem right? (PS I bought a 12" long 1/8" drill bit and ground it in two pieces so that I now have a hardened piece of steel to beat on to pop pieces of pen. I also have a 3/16" piece of soft steel for whacking transmissions. MUCH cheaper than the alternative of buying a kit for much larger money)
Problem 3: During the last round of assembly, I found one bottom half of a pen that the tranny simply slipped calmly into place. Zero friction, zero resistance. Finger pressure is sufficient to push the transmission completely into the lower half of the pen. Steve T from this list and from the KC area suggested that I score the brass part of the tranny and see if that would raise enough metal to keep the tranny in the lower tube. That's tomorrow's project, after mailing what I have wrapped. What I think I learned in this particular instance is that we had more than a few problems with insertions. Two of us did all of the insertions for the KC2007 FPP effort, and I really did learn a lot in doing it. "Don't drill too far ahead" would be a biggie, I think. I found that if there was a significant change in humidity, a hole that used to be Baby Bear perfect (juuuuuuuuuuuuust right) could suddenly become a real PITB to get inserted. As a well-glued tube started to stick, I think that extra force was applied, then a LOT of extra force to get the tube in before the glue set beyond redemption. I have to wonder if the extra force stretched the tube. Or is it possible that particular tube was thinner walled and thus larger inside diameter than normal? In any event, the tranny doesn't fit--actually 4 different ones are all the same). If the scoring trick doesn't work, does that mean I lose the bottom half and have to turn something to replace it?
Problem 4: This is my biggie for tonight, and comes with an abundance of sub-questions. I tested randomly for the first 175 pens, relying on those who helped me. I'm praying that what I've found is limited to the last 175.
Situation: I've made up little tags to thanks those who'll receive the pens for their service and to let them know the species of wood. Some of the pens we made were used to write the species on the tags. I discovered while writing that some of the refills would not stay extended! Another horror to contend with. No, wait, a whole BUNCH of horrors!
Is there any way to fix this problem without removing the transmission?
Perhaps some special place to gently squeeze the transmission to create enough tension for the refill to lock in place in the "out" position?
Some magic words to say??
If not, I need to either cannibalize a bunch of kits or find a source for a dozen transmissions. I've found extra tubes in several sizes, but no ads for transmissions. Suggestions?? These are all PSI kits and to the best of my knowledge, none of them were abused, they just don't work.
Now a larger issue, at least for the anal part of me: Is there any way to discover a bad transmission before one installs it??? I'd much rather pitch one than have to pound the durned thing out once I get it squoze in! :confused:So, I'm counting on my several thousand new friends at SMC to help me find some solutions to this little stygma in my morning. Thanks folks. Looking forward to hearing from you to help me solve these things.