Pen Kit Frustrations

[Jack Norfleet]

Has anyone else had the same frustrations of their turned pens not writing worth a darn?

I buy most of my kits from the local Woodcraft and have switched from style to style trying to find kits that write well. Most don't do well on shiny credit card receipts and some barely write at all.

I am planning on just stocking up on name brand refills and tossing the ones that come with the kit.

It is pretty embarrassing making custom pens and having to use freebies from a bank or hotel because they write better.

Just a little rant.

[Ed Breen]

Hi Jack,
I am a beginner at turning, I've only turned 5 pens so far, all from my local Woodcraft store. I haven't had any trouble with the ink, All five were the simple american twist using a cross type refill. Perhaps I have not done enough but time will tell. So far I truly enjoy the turning, I'm afraid the slope is just too enjoyable.
Ed

[Keith Burns]

I've used perhaps a hundred or more of the pens from Woodcraft without any problems. In fact I buy their refills because they are inexpensive compared to Cross refils.

[Michael Cody]

A lot of the pens come with a coating over the ball.. you can see it, it's sorta a black spot. You need to remove this to get them to write correctly.. check that out if you've not been removing it.

[Richard Gillespie]

I've only done slimlines and all of them (40+/- ) write well.

[Corey Hallagan]

So far no problems with the pens writing that I have purchased. To date they have all been PSI slimiline kits.

corey

[John Shuk]

No problem here. I use PSI and Woodcraft. Even had some Jet branded ones. I second the suggestion about making sure the coating is removed.

[Jim Bell]

Any pen I sell usually gets an upgrade refill. Had too many fail for no good reason. On the other hand some of the cheapies work great. For me it's worth a couple dollars to be sure.
Jim

[Jack Norfleet]

I am obviously in the minority here. I did remove the coating. The ink just doesn't flow very well so the lines are spotty at best.

[Corey Hallagan]

Jack, I will also say that it is not an uncommon thing from what I have read on pen making sites. Many of the regular pros by other refills right out of the gate, others say they have no problem at all. So far I haven't had a problem, but I did pick up a pack of Cross refills in case I get a bad one. Hope you have some good luck!

Corey

[Blake McCully]

Most don't do well on shiny credit card receipts and some barely write at all.

Jack,
I've noticed the same thing myself. I think the biggest problem is the type of paper. We shop at a local grocery chain store and the paper they use for their receipts is really something. It won't even take the rollerball ink that I use

[Lars Thomas]

For the pens I 'care' about (and the one I use everyday), I toss the included refill and put in a name-brand refill. I figure it would be easier for the owner to figure out what replacement to use since they are generally marked while the included one usually doesn't have any identifying markings. Let's face it, looking at the refill aisle at office max can be overwhelming - especially when you don't have a brand/model to go by. Lars