Josiah Brown Posted April 13, 2016 Report Share Posted April 13, 2016 I've been turning pens for some time now and have recently moved into turning higher end fountain pens. I have tried several kits, but for the most part I have been using the navigator fountain pen kit from woodcraft. I have not been overly pleased with the way that the pen writes. Does anyone else has experience in turning fountain pens and have suggestions on which kit is the best? I am willing to spend more on kits if it will actually perform better. Any suggestions would be great! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Llama Posted April 14, 2016 Report Share Posted April 14, 2016 I am interested in this as well... As a pen lover (yes, as if I don't have enough stuff to spend money on...) I am interested in hearing what you come up with. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomP Posted April 14, 2016 Report Share Posted April 14, 2016 I turn Executive pens and the Nouveau Sceptre Ball Point pens. I just did one with Rhodium in it. It retails between $60 and $90. Look at Penn State Industries. I get most of my supplies from them. I also do slimline and bolt action pens. They list a lot more kits than Woodcraft. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
minorhero Posted April 14, 2016 Report Share Posted April 14, 2016 These are the two nicest (also the most expensive) I have come across. https://www.woodturnerscatalog.com/p/3/3544/Artisan-Statesman-Fountain-Pen-Kit https://www.woodturnerscatalog.com/p/3/5031/Artisan-Gentlemen%27s-Fountain-Pen-Kit They are well reviewed online at other forums. I turned the "Jr" version of these kits before and found they wrote well but some of the components were plastic which I did not like. All the external pieces were metal but /shrug I wanted an all metal kit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wdwerker Posted April 14, 2016 Report Share Posted April 14, 2016 I have never turned a pen but could you buy a fountain pen and strip it for the parts ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Llama Posted April 14, 2016 Report Share Posted April 14, 2016 6 hours ago, wdwerker said: I have never turned a pen but could you buy a fountain pen and strip it for the parts ? The problem with that is a quality fountain pen costs much more than these kits. One problem with these kits is they come with a fine nib.. In general people that use fountain pens prefer a broader nib with a wet flow. Writing with a fine nib rigid nib is basically like writing with a ball point pen.... There are no writing samples, no shots of the pen un-posted, or mention of how the cap is attached to the pen. Is is a friction fit, or screwed on? All of these things matter, and are not addressed in the sales info. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomP Posted April 15, 2016 Report Share Posted April 15, 2016 19 hours ago, wdwerker said: I have never turned a pen but could you buy a fountain pen and strip it for the parts ? Yes you can. I have a kit that disassembles pens. When you make a mistake or they blow apart you can get the parts back. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wdwerker Posted April 15, 2016 Report Share Posted April 15, 2016 So don't they sell broader nibs that you could use with the rest of the kit ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Llama Posted April 15, 2016 Report Share Posted April 15, 2016 Steve, That's what I'm interested in... options. I have been looking around for a decent kit to have someone make me with some ebony I have set aside. But all of the kits I've seen are either poorly described, or just expensive junk. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woodenskye Posted April 15, 2016 Report Share Posted April 15, 2016 Maybe the following links would be helpful. http://www.xfountainpens.com/collections/nibs http://www.mazurkapens.com/fountain-pen-nibs/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pwk5017 Posted April 15, 2016 Report Share Posted April 15, 2016 I always wondered about the writing quality. I have a half dozen 149s in various custom grinds and flexes. I just cant see how anyone can top the vintage MBs, so why try? In the spirit of being more helpful, I would look for broken or damaged pens on ebay and the FPN. Second, see if pelican, sailor, mont blanc, or another manufacturer will sell you just a nib/feed/piston etc. Long shot, but you might have luck with all the pen repair guys and nib meisters. Ive seen guys with bins full of vintage pen parts before, so I know there must be a lot out there. Third, and I don't condone this, but buy vintage pens and cannibalize them for parts. The "2,3, and 4" series MBs are blue collar in their adornment, but they write fantastically. More importantly, they are 1/3rd the cost of the "1" series. The 50s pelicans are pretty good as well. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Llama Posted April 16, 2016 Report Share Posted April 16, 2016 On April 15, 2016 at 1:06 PM, Pwk5017 said: so why try? Seems to be price point. But looking for a cheap fountain pen is silly... All of this FP talk, I just purchased a new Franklin-Christoph Model 02. Should be here soon! Now for some new ink Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Josiah Brown Posted April 17, 2016 Author Report Share Posted April 17, 2016 Thanks for all of the suggestions! I like the idea of salvaging nibs from other pens but it seems like the parts would not be compatible... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adambaum Posted April 18, 2016 Report Share Posted April 18, 2016 If you want information overload, go here: http://www.penturners.org/ They have a specific forum just for fountain pens. Adam Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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