Just noticed this Video. Remarkable Machining

[Robert Fontaine]

JohnGrimsmo - "

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The final finish seems rough, but the scale and the sheer number of features are amazing.

 

[Gordie]

Thanks, Robert. I wonder what they charge for the finished pen?

 

[Dabbler]

The Saga pen in question is around 400$ CDN.

 

[Gordie]

Many good Fountain Pens are available for $400. No ball bearings in their mechanisms though.

 

[Dabbler]

Many good Fountain Pens are available for $400. No ball bearings in their mechanisms though.

I dunno.... to profligate spending for a ball point pen. The super luxury pen market confounds me. All I want is an easy flowing pen that gives a good line. Zebra at 5$ each is pretty swank to me, and are superb to write with... 'mebbie' I'm just cheap!

 

[Robert Fontaine]

I was more interested in the machining than the pens and knives that they try to sell. There is either enough of a market or they have found some very foolish investors to pay for their tooling. Personally, I just enjoy the cuts.

 

[Aliva]

He makes some great looking products. Them seem to be of great quality and functionality , but his prices are way beyond my budget. But somebody is buying them.

 

[Gordie]

I was more interested in the machining

I appreciate your points, Robert and Aliva. The video caused me to muse about the maxim "Form follows function" which was applied to excess ornamentation in architecture and industrial design. In this case, a mechanism which requires quality materials, precise design and manufacture to function at all misses the dictates of this maxim entirely. A cheap ballpoint uses a brittle plastic cam design and functions well enough to last for many years, albeit not providing a source of pride for its owner.

 

[trevj]

Dunno. For the quality of equipment they are using, it seems a bit of a fail, to me.

Guys are dropping thousands of parts a day off similar machines, and repeatability is not an issue. Repeatability changing from one chuck to the other, same. Operator issues, not machine ones. Especially if the machine has any option for probing.

To me, that part looks like a one and done set-up. Extend enough rod out of the main spindle to make the whole part. Turn, groove as required, Drill and bore center, drill holes, deburr, cut off. Possibly a chuck change to deburr the inside of the 'inner' end, though you could cheat a bit of a bevel in the center bore so that is minimal enough to do by hand.

Further, with all their mumbo-jumbo about how accurately placed their holes need to be, you would have thought they would have designed it so that it could deal with a reasonable variance in position, and still work well. Sorta like the crappy plastic pens full of even crappier injection molded parts...

I have made a LOT of parts out of 17-4 H900, as well as 17-4 H1100, and these guys' surface finishes are kinda poor too... No biggie where it is out of sight, but all they need do is put a sharp, larger radius tipped insert on the lathe for the finish to be much improved.