24kt Gold & Deer antler bolt action pen

[Scott Woodson]

Finished the last of the xmas gifts (a little late) and had to post this one as I was pleseantly pleased. Kit is from PSI and turned the antler just enough to leave just a hint of the outside. C&C always welcome

Scott

[John W Dixon]

Scott, that sure is a pretty pen. The antler sure goes nice on that style pen. I have not done one of the bolt action pens yet, do they work pretty well?

[Jamie Donaldson]

Scott, I'm not much of a pen maker, but am a very experienced shooter, and I wonder if that bolt action handle can be rotated around 180 degrees to the proper position? I thought I read somewhere that the handles in later kits could be rotated, and the pocket clip positioned differently. I hope you didn't stink up the shop too badly while working that antler!

[Jim Burr]

Beautiful Scott! They sell like hotcakes up here...I trade my gun dealer inventory for pens. Did you fix the bolt?

[James Combs]

Scott, I'm not much of a pen maker, but am a very experienced shooter, and I wonder if that bolt action handle can be rotated around 180 degrees to the proper position? I thought I read somewhere that the handles in later kits could be rotated, and the pocket clip positioned differently. I hope you didn't stink up the shop too badly while working that antler!

Scott/Jamie, yes it can be turned to the more traditional rifle bolt orientation. There is a set screw in the finial cap that can be reached with a no.1 Philips(long and slender if already assembled) that releases the bolt handle and will allow it to rotate or completely unscrew from the bolt. Loosen it and rotate the handle then re-tighten the set screw. Of course this mod now puts the clip on what now appears to be the bottom of the of the bolt housing. If you want to rotate the clip also you must completely remove the handle and the bolt prior to assembly of the pen(or disassemble the pen) then use a punch to remove the clip holder(similar construction to other pens). After it is removed you will note a notch in the side of the upper barrel for the shoulder of the clip to rest in. This notch must be duplicated on the exact opposite side of the barrel. Some of us use a dremel, I use a small jeweler's file. Once you have the slot made to fit the clip then reassemble everything in the reverse order to the dis-assembly.

NOTE: I have seen reports that newer versions of these kits come with both slots already milled into the upper barrel. However, I have no first hand knowledge of this.

BTW the pen looks great as is.

[Steve Schlumpf]

Very nice work on the pen! The antler works well! Didn't even notice the bolt handle until Jamie mentioned it...

[Tim Leiter]

I just loosened the top of the finial so the clip can be moved. (I had to do this so the pen could fix in a jumbo sized rosewood box.) I told the buyer to move the clip and bolt where he wants it and then retighten the finial. I think this should work.

Here is a pic of mine: Bolt action-antler.jpg

[James Combs]

I just loosened the top of the finial so the clip can be moved. (I had to do this so the pen could fix in a jumbo sized rosewood box.) I told the buyer to move the clip and bolt where he wants it and then retighten the finial.

Scott in my previous posting I should have clarified that the finial cap does screw onto an insert. The threaded insert is pressed into the upper barrel. The insert is what must be punched out to allow cutting of the new shoulder slot. Then the insert must be pressed back into the barrel again.

Tim I am not sure I would tell my customer to turn the clip unless there were two alternate slots for the clip. I tried just tightening down the finial cap onto a rotated clip(no new slot) and it just didn't look right nor would it stay tight. However, YMMV.

[Tim Leiter]

James, the finial cap on the pens I have is two piece. You can loosen the cap and the slot and clip can be moved wherever you want it. The slot is on the the upper part and thus moves with the clip.

[Scott Woodson]

All,

Thanks for the comments. JD, thanks for the tips on how to move the bolt, I might have to try one to see if it feels as positive as the bolt being on the wrong side.

Scott

[Rich Aldrich]

Nice work Scott. I just made two for Christmas presents and forgot to take pictures. I used babinga- I like the idea of using antler. I will have to round the pens up and take pictures. My dad and uncle received these two pens, so it should be difficult to get them for pictures.

[James Combs]

James, the finial cap on the pens I have is two piece. You can loosen the cap and the slot and clip can be moved wherever you want it. The slot is on the the upper part and thus moves with the clip.

It appears then that PSI has changed the design completely. For the half dozen or so that I have done the slot was in the main body of the upper barrel. That actually sounds better then having two slots as some have reported. PSI must be trying different designs that would allow turning the clip without modifying anything. Hope they have purged all the early and interim designs by the time I buy them again.

[Scott Woodson]

Nice work Scott. I just made two for Christmas presents and forgot to take pictures. I used babinga- I like the idea of using antler. I will have to round the pens up and take pictures. My dad and uncle received these two pens, so it should be difficult to get them for pictures.

Rich, the antler turns pretty easy, but does give off a little bit of an odor (especially when drilling, drill also clogs easily so lots of cleaning out as your boring). I made a bunch of these and other pens in antler and people love them, the only problem is I use shed antlers (as to not upset anyone) and they are getting more difficult to obtain without paying a lot for them. Would love to see how your turned out.

[Michael James]

Thanks James / all,
Making one of those for my nephew's boy and as a military family it would have to be correct. That was the easiest "fix" I've done in a long time!
mj