Pen mandrels

[Morse]

Being new to pen turning I'm trying to get up to speed quickly. I'd like to be able to turn various styles of pen.

I bought the Axminster deluxe compression mandrel and a couple of pen kits and their bushes.
I'm happy with the pens as a start. (took piccys with my IPhone, not good)

Maybe we need a "how to take good pictures" post.

Talking with other turners in our club, they raised a question which confused me.
I'm looking to buy more kits that Axminster do not stock, they said that I'd need another mandrel as the bushes may not fit the Axminster mandrel. I could end up with an oval pen as the bushes may be to big and therefore loose on the mandrel.
They chose to buy another mandrel, Planet if I remember correctly.

Is there a way of knowing that the bushes of the new kits will fit which mandrel?

Dave

 

[Walter]

Mandrels and bushes from different manufacturers can have slightly different tolerances. The bushes from the Axminster mandrels are sometimes too tight to fit other manufacturers mandrels.

Whilst this means in theory that other manufacturers bushes may be a looser fit on the Axminster mandrels I have never found this to cause a problem in thirty years of pen making.

I would just try using the new bushes on the Axminster mandrel and see if you have a problem. Most likely you won't. If you do then that is the time to think about a second mandrel. A Planet mandrel would be a good choice if you do need one.

Edit: Here's a link to a tutorial on product photography with a smartphone. How to Use your Smartphone to Capture High Quality Product Images - Pixelz UK

 

[Morse]

Thanks Walter. You have the experience behind you. Where do you buy your kits and blanks from?
I've been looking at a fly fishing kit, Penn state do one and there's one in the uk Pens direct , I think. The problem comes with wanting to use a carbon fibre blank. No one seems to do both.

 

[Walter]

To be honest I don't have one fixed source I tend to shop around to find who is selling whatever I want at the time at the best price.

Apart from the suppliers who have seller forums on this site I use only those kit sellers who I know supply genuine kits from the original manufacturers and not cheap Chinese copies.

Turner's Retreat, Turner's Workshop and Stiles and Bates are reliable sources and also have good customer service if something does go wrong.

If you are importing from the USA it is usually better to buy from one of Penn State's re-sellers rather than direct from them. Their shipping costs can be silly and customer service is non-existant. If you do buy from abroad don't forget that you will have to pay VAT on import. This will be charged by the carrier plus an admin charge for paying it for you which can be as much as the VAT on small shipments.

 

[Chriscb]

Afternoon,

An alternative to buying a Planet mandrel could be just to buy a second shaft - checking that the diameter is smaller than the one you've got.

As a follow up on Walters last message - who are the Penn State re-sellers?

Regards,

Chriscb

 

[Walter]

An alternative to buying a Planet mandrel could be just to buy a second shaft - checking that the diameter is smaller than the one you've got.

That would work if the compression mandrel has a replaceable shaft.

As a follow up on Walters last message - who are the Penn State re-sellers?

There are quite a few, here are a couple:

Exotic Blanks

WoodTurningz

Best thing to do is find the PSI pen you want on their own website and then do a Google search for it by name. You might find it available in the UK but will certainly find US sellers. Just be careful of Chinese fakes.

 

[Morse]

I was looking at Penn States fly fishing kits. Then found a UK supplier (resupplier?) at PenKitsDirect. Are they Chinese copies or from Penn States?
I guess I have to purchase one plus bushes and see if they will fit the Axminster mandrel.

Re the tax and import duty, would it benefit a few people to club together and share the cost. Not having imported kits I'm clueless to what the extra costs would be.

 

[Walter]

I was looking at Penn States fly fishing kits. Then found a UK supplier (resupplier?) at PenKitsDirect. Are they Chinese copies or from Penn States

As far as I know PenKitsDirect is a genuine supplier.

 

[Penpal]

Contact with companies direct will give you a positive costing if you can determine their postage costs to you, Freight companies can give you their rates for imports and the extras incurred such as Customs etc. I* would seriously look at making some of these blanks if you are set on following special things.

If you are buying in person have a mandrel with you to check their compatability for size. Establish a drill size that suits your mandrel and use that as a guide.

After a while you will discover very few drills are the accurate size stated in other words compromises have to be made. Mandrels are cheap have both sizes if it helps.

Club whispers are fine buy solid proof is easier, belonging to a club is priceless IMHO only work on facts.

Welcome Morse have fun I do.

Peter.

 

[Chriscb]

Think Dave said he'd bought the delux Axminster mandrel - which is removable.

Thanks for the resellers info.

Regards,

Chriscb

 

[Pierre]

I was looking at Penn States fly fishing kits. Then found a UK supplier (resupplier?) at PenKitsDirect. Are they Chinese copies or from Penn States?
I guess I have to purchase one plus bushes and see if they will fit the Axminster mandrel.

Re the tax and import duty, would it benefit a few people to club together and share the cost. Not having imported kits I'm clueless to what the extra costs would be.

I use an Axminster mandrel ( Axminster Deluxe Adjustable Pen Mandrel - Pen & Pencil Kit Accessories - Woodturning Kits - Lathe Accessories - Machinery Accessories - Accessories | Axminster Tools & Machinery ) with a mandrel pen centre Axminster Evolution Series Quick Change Pen Centre - Tailstock Centres - Woodturning Fitments - Lathe Accessories - Machinery Accessories - Accessories | Axminster Tools & Machinery some bushes fit and some don't, where they are loose just wrap a bit of masking tape to take up the slack. Make sure that the centre goes over the full metal and not the thread and you should be OK. If you are using a centre point on the tailstock make sure it is a 60 degree else make sure it is dead centre on the mandrel else it will wobble.

Now I appreciate that some of the experts here will say different but then they sell more than my miserable 20-30 pens per month.

PG

 

[21William]

I did some research and elected to buy a collet chuck and some silver steel instead of buying a mandrel. I also bought a mandrel saver as it seemed to be a far better solution. As I don't intend to make slimline pens I use a 7mm shaft which is a little less likely to bend anyway though. I may not have bothered if I could have got the "maxi" mandrel avalable to our cousins over the pond. All the bushings fit my "mandrel" as I simply drill them out to fit the shaft.

 

[wm460]

I got this mandrel saver from Peter, he had it made to his specifications by some one in Canberra, luckly for me my mandrels are a snug fit.

 

[Penpal]

Top quality Aussie Engineering Mark made by a Florist as his hobby.

Peter.

 

[wm460]

Top quality Aussie Engineering Mark made by a Florist as his hobby.

Peter.

So you could say it was made by flower power.[emoji12]

Sent from my D6683 using Tapatalk

 

[Penpal]

So you could say it was made by flower power.[emoji12]

Sent from my D6683 using Tapatalk

Machinist Pedal Power.

Peter.

 

[AllenN]

I think that half the problem is engineering tolerance. I suspect that whether the size has been specified in imperial or in metric the manufactures are using imperial or metric 'equivalent' tooling. This means that if the errors are both additive something will be too big and if negative too small. If you stick an accurate micrometer on many drill bits you can see this variance. I know that that best quality ground drill bits are really good and size accurately but most of what we get is not. I am also sure that no one is really truing up a pen mandrel shaft or reaming out a pen bush. I guess for the most part we will just have to live with it and continue to 'fettle' bushes to fit.
I know the alternative is to turn between centres, but personally I prefer to use a mandrel most of the time. I also find that using bushes between centres only really comes into its own if they have 60 degree ends. I think Phil's have this although I used his on a mandrel anyway. I do agree this is all a bit frustrating.

 

[21William]

This is the Pen Centre I bought.

SCT Pen Centre

Well made and excellent value for money IMO.

 

[21William]

I think that half the problem is engineering tolerance. I suspect that whether the size has been specified in imperial or in metric the manufactures are using imperial or metric 'equivalent' tooling. This means that if the errors are both additive something will be too big and if negative too small. If you stick an accurate micrometer on many drill bits you can see this variance. I know that that best quality ground drill bits are really good and size accurately but most of what we get is not. I am also sure that no one is really truing up a pen mandrel shaft or reaming out a pen bush. I guess for the most part we will just have to live with it and continue to 'fettle' bushes to fit.
I know the alternative is to turn between centres, but personally I prefer to use a mandrel most of the time. I also find that using bushes between centres only really comes into its own if they have 60 degree ends. I think Phil's have this although I used his on a mandrel anyway. I do agree this is all a bit frustrating.

I did make a note of the many sizes of mandrels available but I can't seem to find it. If memory serves though they were between 6.15 and 6.25mm. I suspect this size was chosen to be a clearance fit inside a 6.35mm (1/4") hole. Different companies obviously had different ideas on what constitutes a "clearance fit" though.

 

[Penpal]

When I made my mandrel savers I worked on 6.20. Because I only do half a pen at a time I cut off the outside thread on the mandrel. Always wished I could face to counter buy after checking for true round and size.

Peter.