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A Question for Pen Makers

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Can you recommend a foolproof and high quality assembly press?

I have started my Chicago Waldorf students in pen making and they are loving it--- more on that later. We get a bit bogged down in the assembly process though, and I want to invest in the best choice.

Thanks.
 
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In a pinch you can use an adjustable wood clamp for many of the pen kits, you just need to align the pen barrel between the front and back clamping faces and slowly tighten the wood clamp to press the fitting into the pen barrel.
 
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My club turns “Freedom Pens” at the county fair every year.
A few years back we turned a lot of pens three turners one assembler who used an arbor press from Harbor Freight. This is the fastest and most efficient way that I have seen to assemble pens. I have owned 4 different pen presses none are as efficient as the arbor press.
 
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Hi Tom, when I started out in pen production I bought the PSI pen press and used it for many years and never had any problems at all with the press. We're talking thousands of pens and I still have that pen press today and it still like new. You won't go wrong with a PSI pen press. ( I'm not a pitch man for PSI......their stuff just works! ) :D
 
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My club turns “Freedom Pens” at the county fair every year.
A few years back we turned a lot of pens three turners one assembler who used an arbor press from Harbor Freight. This is the fastest and most efficient way that I have seen to assemble pens. I have owned 4 different pen presses none are as efficient as the arbor press.

Vote 2. When I made pens I also found the HF arbor press to be the best solution. I glued a piece of leather to the arbor and used a second piece of leather on the base.
 
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Tom,

I have worked around large numbers of trades over the years and there is always a percentage of the craftspeople that live by the concept if 10 pounds of torque is good twenty pounds is surely better. Some of the pen kits these days use thinner wall metal tubing which can easily be crushed if too much force is exerted on the finished pen tube, you definitely want a feel for knowing how much pressure to exert and know when the end fitting has seated. The pen presses can be adjusted to press the end pieces on and not exceed the needed insertion depth for the length of finished pen tube. The operator of an arbor press has to know when to stop unless they have a way of setting a predetermined stop on the arbor press for the pen kit.
 
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Tom,

I have worked around large numbers of trades over the years and there is always a percentage of the craftspeople that live by the concept if 10 pounds of torque is good twenty pounds is surely better. Some of the pen kits these days use thinner wall metal tubing which can easily be crushed if too much force is exerted on the finished pen tube, you definitely want a feel for knowing how much pressure to exert and know when the end fitting has seated. The pen presses can be adjusted to press the end pieces on and not exceed the needed insertion depth for the length of finished pen tube. The operator of an arbor press has to know when to stop unless they have a way of setting a predetermined stop on the arbor press for the pen kit.
e

That's what I thought you meant, thanks Mike. I am sure I can deal with the arbor press just fine. My students on the other hand can spell and define finesse, but the practicality of actually using it is something they have yet to acquire. I'll go with a dedicated pen press.
 
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upload_2019-9-21_17-55-37.jpeg
I bought the press shown here at Woodcraft. Both of my granddaughters, ages 10 and 12, have no problem using it after a few minutes of instruction.
 
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I can now say that I have tried some commercial Pen Presses, and a modified Arbor Press. The Arbor press is by far the easiest, most accurate, and less expensive option.

Thanks for your input.
 
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Using the lathe for assembly definitely works well, especially as you describe it Jim.
In my classroom with only 4 lathes and as many as 20 students, I need to maximize turning time. A dedicated assembly station is a big plus.
 
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I have seen a couple of handmade pen presses on YouTube. Laney Shaunghnessy has one made out of wood that looks really nice. Have the students make one and learn joinery also.
 
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I have been using my drill press to assemble pens for the past 8/9 yrs. I have the parts to make a pen press similar to the ones shown above (Woodcraft, Milescraft etc) . One question springs to mind. With the drill press you are assmbling the pen in the vertical position and your hand/arm providing the pressure is to the side and out of your line of sight. Now most of the pen presses use an "cam lever" directly over the pen and horizontally.
Question is how does this interference in your line of sight affect you and secondly is the press sideways , below you and you are pressing down. Or do you sit down have the press pointing away from you /towards you and you are use a pulling motion similar to a drill press.
Does anybody mount the press vertically against a wall.?
What are the pros and cons of the different mounting possibilities?
Thanks
Richard
 
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I am not an expert Richard. I was a busy pen maker 35 years ago, then quit the pens and didn't get back to until recently. I had never thought about using an arbor press until a couple of guys mentioned here. For me, it is the easiest way to align the parts.
 
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I am not an expert Richard. I was a busy pen maker 35 years ago, then quit the pens and didn't get back to until recently. I had never thought about using an arbor press until a couple of guys mentioned here. For me, it is the easiest way to align the parts.
Tom
When you think about it an arbor press and a drill press are pretty much the same thing. Just the torque multiplier being the big difference. Also thinking about using a reloading Press. Probably Toooo much torque there
 
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Tom
When you think about it an arbor press and a drill press are pretty much the same thing. Just the torque multiplier being the big difference. Also thinking about using a reloading Press. Probably Toooo much torque there

All true Richard, but again in a classroom situation, using the drill press ties up another machine.
 
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Agreed Tom which is one of the reasons why I'm toying with the idea of building a pen press. and have also thought of re purposing my RCBS reloading press . But I like the idea of vertical assembly instead of horizontal, and of getting the operating lever out of the direct line of sight.
 
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Here's a press I made years ago for my wife to extrude polymer clay. Could easily be converted to assemble pens with just a few wooden blocks added where needed. I make a few pens so I may convert one of these. Still have parts laying around.
 

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I just started making pans again after many years. I have been using the Artisan Pen-Ultimate Assembly tool from Craft Supplies/Woodturners Catalog and it works very well. It provides a soft material to not mar the plating on the kit parts and alignment features. Granted it mounts in the lathe which appears to not be what you want but it works. The Penn State press also works well and it it what we use in our club shop and at our big woodworking show in the spring where we have people make pens for their very 1st lathe experience. We do several hundred over the weekend. Sounds like you have a good thing going with the kids-good luck!
 
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If you have some larger good quality C-Clamps you can mount one of these in a vise and tighten the C-Clamp onto your pen project to press the fittings into place, every wood shop has a few of these hanging on the wall. The newer style wood clamps that have ratcheting hand levers also work nicely for installing pen fittings on tubes.
 

hockenbery

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If you have a woodworking vice that will press all the parts together quite nicely.
Use a wooden pad with a small hole to protect and hold the tip and any other metal pieces that are pressed.

I use a little trial and error to get the depth for the first twist mechanism. The all the rest get closed the same amount.
You can cut a wooden block to the closing length desired.
 
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