Here’s an example custom feed and collar design requested by a customer, a Visconti Dreamtouch 23k Palladium nib in a Pelikan M800.
Category: CNC Machining
Bock #6 in clear cast acrylic
Bock #6 nib assembly in clear cast acrylic is complete. This one has a steel Bexley nib.
I’m also reverse engineering a Bock #6 with a titanium nib borrowed from Newton Pens. The feed design is different because the nib has a different curvature than the steel Bock nib. The housing is also a little different, but it still fits existing pens that accept Bock #6 steel nibs.
Bock #6 Prototypes
Each day, with the help of my son, I’m able to work about an or so. We’ve made prototypes in acrylic of Bock #6 feeds and housings. The housing is more or less complete; the feed still needs tweaking to fit Bock #6 nibs.
JoWo #6 nib assembly in clear acrylic
I’m finally well enough to spend an hour or so a day in the factory, with help from my son to operate the Mazak QTU-200MSY live tooled lathe. These are production ready prototypes of JoWo #6 feed and housing in clear acrylic. I will tweak feeds and speeds to make the housing more transparent before offering these for sale. This one has a steel Goulet Pens nib in it.
Ebonite feed for Pilot Custom 743 ready for beta testers
I’ll be sending out some invitations to some of my Instagram followers tomorrow to participate in beta testing my new 743 FA ebonite feed.
Pilot 743 Feed in Design
This is a replacement ebonite feed for the excellent Pilot 743 pen, in particular, to support the full flexibility of the FA nib, shown below. This feed will become a standard product, along with the slightly smaller 742 feed, in black and red Nikko ebonite. I’m still tweaking the design, but it should be ready for beta testers by next week.
JoWo #6 feeds/housing shipping to beta testers
Turning a Pelikan M200 feed from red Nikko Ebonite
First op on main spindle before grabbing it with the sub spindle, cutting off, and finish machining on the sub spindle.
Second op on the sub spindle is just machining the tip of the feed. The part gets ejected into the parts catcher, the bar feeder advances the rod of ebonite and the Mazak QTU-200MSY makes another one…
I’m sorting out how to bill and ship so I can start selling these. Stay tuned…
Nikko Ebonite arrives from Japan after a long stay in customs
Zebra G dip pen nib in a JoWo #6 housing
This is the first prototype of a Zebra G dip pen nib in a JoWo #6 housing. I’ll test it thoroughly over the next week or two then send out a few to beta testers.