Kitless Rollerball

[Gregory Hardy]

Hey, folks - Another question. Has anyone used ebonite for the nose cone on a rollerball kitless pen? I am trying to avoid introducing anymore metal than possible. Just curious if anyone has done it and if it held up. Any suggestions for alternate non-metal materials other than ebonite? Let me know. Thanks in advance.

 

[Bigblackdog]

yes, I did one with an ebonite nose. It worked ok. I didn't thread it, I glued it in. I have also used acrylic which worked too.

 

[Phil Dart]

No reason why ebonite wouldn't work Gregory. There is arguably less stress on a rollerball section than there is on a fountain pen section - the spring at the top of the barrel takes all the longitudinal stress, and you don't have to worry about coinciding internal/external threads either - there's just one thread which is external.

 

[Penpal]

No probs I can foresee mate.

Peter.

 

[Gregory Hardy]

Alright, Gents...An ebonite nose it shall be!

(All feint of heart to the rear of the bus. I am on a mission from God!)

 

[Gregory Hardy]

Perhaps this warrants a new thread, but I wonder...Do you suppose God prefers a rollerball or fountain pen? (I KNOW He prefers a fountain pen...but just day-to-day signing...?)

For the big stuff, I bet He uses a #5. Blue ink so we know it's not a photocopy. (Certain He prefers black.) Just one man's opinion.

 

[Phil Dart]

Certain he prefers blue actually

 

[wm460]

Certain he prefers blue actually

View attachment 33012

Something for every occasions.

 

[Walter]

I used ebonite for the section of the rollerball in this article. Not the prettiest of pens on reflection, but the section is still holding up which is what you wanted to know.

http://www.walterhall.co.uk/images/stories/Kitless_Rollerball_Pen.pdf

 

[Gregory Hardy]

Thanks for that link, Walter. That was all I needed to see to be a believer!

 

[Gregory Hardy]

Walter - I just read that article again twice. I wanted to thank you AGAIN. I am relatively new to turning - except for dabbling here and there through the last forty years, I have only been making pens regularly for about two and a half years. (I've made nearly four hundred in that time. When I jump, I jump.) I tell you this only because the idea of "working on center" has been a challenge. That article was really a nice thing for me to read and to reassess my processes from another man's standpoint. Thanks again for sharing, sir. I'll be a better pen turner tomorrow because of your willingness to share your expertise.