Next on the list of choices is to pick the component set we will use for the pen. As we decided in the previous blog entries, we will be making a ballpoint twist pen. So, we will be selecting a component set from one of the available retailers. In this country there are three primary large manufacturers of pen component sets and at last count about 36 different retailers in this country. One of those retailers has over 300 different ballpoint, twist component sets to choose from. Overwhelmed yet? Wait it gets better. Each of those component sets comes in at least three different plating’s.
The plating is the process of using electrodeposition to coat an object in a layer of metal. Or in simple terms, plating is a coating of metal bonded to the original metal the component is made of. Plating for a pen is normally on the clip, the tip, and the center band if it has one. There are 16 different platings available to choose from, some are not available on some components sets. All have different prices attached to them. The three most common platings are chrome, gold, and gun metal. For our pen we will go with the gun metal. It’s a more subdued kind of chrome and used on the pen in the picture.
As I mentioned there are over 300 pen component sets available to choose from and all of them result in a different looking pen. Whether you want a thick pen or a thin pen, a longer one or a mini pen there are component sets available. Most people that make pens will try to envision what they want the pen to look like and match the material they are making the pen out of, be it wood or some other material, and the component set to complement each other. For this blog we will make a cigar style pen.
A Cigar style pen, like in the picture, is a thick robust style of pen. It is what we call a two tube or two-barrel pen because it has the two distinct halves to it. There is another reason but we won’t get into that right now because we have another choice to make.
The last big choice to make is about material. What material do you want to make your pen out of. This is important because it will determine how your pen will look and feel. You really should have been thinking about this the entire time to match your components to your material. Most often people will think of wood or some type of resin, but the list of materials is as limitless as your imagination. You may have to modify the material, but you can make a pen out of almost anything. To keep this as simple as possible we will use wood to make our pen.