Is 3D Printing Really " Used ' At All For Fountain Pen Making

[Mech-for-i]

A couple of days ago on a local group on social media I see yet another couple ( yes 2 of them ) of designer project so to speak of doing 3D printed ( the guys emphasized that ) pens. Unfortunately when I check them out those are yet another couple of fancy barrel for ED to take nothing more than the typical ( Bock , Schmidt, Knox, ... well type in your own ) nib unit. in fact from a fountain pen technical / engineering these are no more than yet another hack back to pre self filler era of how fountain pen were ... I've got in some discussion with the project initiaters and they are genuinely good guys but I must say too many of them are just so much hobbyist in the 3D printing part, and artsy designer, to the point that almost all of these come out to be nothing more than fancy barrel / ink container. Yes they are fashion designer item, not 3D printed pens. they are pens that have a 3D printed ( and fancy to the pint of impractical ink container / barrel )

 

Well sure those are attractive I am not against that , but in their promoting material they all like to brag about the usage of 3D printing as how something new and revolutionary; but when drilled the only real cause is that now they can do barrel that they cannot do with traditional method in a small batch operation / production .. again noting wrong with that, many fountain pen today are actually fashion item alright so why not yet another ..

 

My ranting to them is that .. then do not try to emphasis that you are using 3D printing to say give us REALLY SOMETHING NEW in tech and pens ( their word , not mine ) Sorry guys but you are not using 3D Printing to produce pens, you are using the to produce pen parts ( again nothing wrong with that ) please sell the pen as it is for its own virtue ..

 

I am by training and by profession an engineer .. and I can see the technology used in fountain pen making and a lot can be done with the technology other than giving us yet another fancy barrel ( and even that can do an engineering re make using the technology in a meaningful and practical engineering reasonable cause other than just for good looks ) ... you guys thoughts on these regarding ...

Edited July 20, 2018 by Mech-for-i

[Chrissy]

This thread shows that 3D printing was used for a pen. I've seen several others.

[inkstainedruth]

I think that in order to really do it right you would have to have a really high end printer and that probably isn't cost effective in the long run. My husband has a cheap printer and discovered that he couldn't do fine details, even for something as simple as a shield-shaped cookie cutter (the curvature was too choppy and pixilated).

My understanding is that 3D printers are mostly being used for prototyping (Pittsburgh is one of the centers for 3D printer companies and research).

There was a guy on here who 3D printed a pen (or at least the cap) a while back that had the design of one of the carved heads from Easter Island.

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[El Gordo]

Search for Pjotr pens for something at a different level (including nibs, see also patent application EP3323627)

 

)

[sciumbasci]

Additive pens rode a nice wave of hype, some time ago. As for real fancy smancy inventions... I don't think there's anything anymore to be invented in this field.

[SoulSamurai]

Additive pens rode a nice wave of hype, some time ago. As for real fancy smancy inventions... I don't think there's anything anymore to be invented in this field.

I dunno, people have posted some interesting pens here (like that magnetic piston filler) and I've had a few ideas myself that I wish I had the means to try to bring to life. None of this is groundbreaking perhaps, but I believe there's still room to explore variations on the concept.

[alexwi]

I haven't kept up with 3d printing (don't have the space or the time it demands), but from the little I read about it every once in a blue moon, I really doubt that it's possible to 3d print a feed.

 

If you look at the repair forum, someone 3d printed a part for a Montblanc, if I'm not mistaken, but it was a piston knob (for the back of the barrel).

 

Alex

[billy1380]

One thing is for sure... 3d printing is great for prototyping... https://www.instagram.com/p/Blk9Yv7nC-Q/

 

You can print parts and iterate very quickly. Not sure about final products though.

[Ron Z]

If you look at the repair forum, someone 3d printed a part for a Montblanc, if I'm not mistaken, but it was a piston knob (for the back of the barrel).

 

...and IMO it looked pretty awful too. Not at all the quality of a machined and polished part. For your own pen, your own use, you can get away with it. It wasn't something that I would dare send out on a repaired pen.

 

There is a lot of variability in current 3D printed products. It depends on what resin is used, and the quality and resolution of the printer. I saw some things last week that showed potential, but parts made on the printer with that resin would still need finishing, and that means buffing. I don't know if that's possible yet. It certainly wouldn't have the hardness of Lucite or some of the acrylics we have today.

[Driften]

There are services that can print in titanium, bronze, Ceramic, and other materials. But home use printers are not really up to production of advanced designs or advanced materials. Jet engine parts are made on industrial 3D printers so pens can be made it's just a matter of cost and designs. I think other then Conid there have not been many advances in pen filling systems. I think 3d printing could be used for coming up with something new that could not be made by other means, but someone would need to design something....

[amk]

3D printing would also make it possible to create replacement parts for modern vintage pens - like those sections in Waterman master/super master etc that always start to corrode at the tip, and Pelikan 400 nib collars - quite easily.

[Hanoi]

Most pens made today are nothing more than ink containing vessels, so whether they are made using 3D, traditional CAD, or even a hand powered lathe, simply do not impress me. The fountain pen has also reached its limit in term of functionality. I am willing to believe that in the future there won´t be enough good quality paper for most inks used in fountain pens.

Edited August 16, 2018 by Hanoi

[Corona688]

I can't print a real Montblanc any more than I could print a real gun. But I've printed quite a few nib holders which I use every single day.

 

http://burningsmell.org/3d/oblique-pen/tripen.jpg

 

They won't win any prizes as finely-polished art pieces but there's nothing wrong with them either.

 

I think that in order to really do it right you would have to have a really high end printer and that probably isn't cost effective in the long run. My husband has a cheap printer and discovered that he couldn't do fine details, even for something as simple as a shield-shaped cookie cutter (the curvature was too choppy and pixelated).

Given a photo I can probably tell you what went wrong. It might have also just been someone else's terrible design. It must have been pretty faulty to not even be usable as a cookie cutter.

My understanding is that 3D printers are mostly being used for prototyping

They're used for prototyping, cases, mechanical parts, and art. Artists quickly discover it's not an "easy" button, and go to a great deal of trouble to tune their printers and finish their art pieces. Edited August 16, 2018 by Corona688

[Corona688]

Be very careful. This place crucified me for trying to draw a line between penmakers and handlemakers.

My ranting to them is that .. then do not try to emphasis that you are using 3D printing to say give us REALLY SOMETHING NEW in tech and pens ( their word , not mine ) Sorry guys but you are not using 3D Printing to produce pens, you are using the to produce pen parts ( again nothing wrong with that ) please sell the pen as it is for its own virtue ..

Yup. Kickstarters are always like that. The problem is, buzzwords sell. I saw someone raise thousands of dollars to invent a product which already exists - heat shrink tubing.

 

Unfortunately you can say the same of bigger companies. Name a fountain pen innovation in the last 20 years which weren't stupid gimmicks or revivals of ancient features.

[Newton Pens]

Yeah I think 3d printing is a legitimate way to make pens.

It's no different than any other way of making something in that, in the end, you have a pen that you can use.

The nib and feed used don't really matter do they? As long as they write well and function like they're supposed to does it matter if it's

Bock or Jowo or whatever?

 

You say they're not making pens, but pen parts, once you put those parts together you have a whole pen. Right? Maybe I'm not understanding you.

 

This is one on Kickstarter right now - looks pretty awesome.

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/2041658301/deluge-de-novo-designed-resin-fountain-pen-by-gene?ref=popular&ref=discovery

 

 

This is that Pjotr pen, and below it ones from Yoshi.

 

 

 

 

[sciumbasci]

This is one on Kickstarter right now - looks pretty awesome.

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/2041658301/deluge-de-novo-designed-resin-fountain-pen-by-gene?ref=popular&ref=discovery

 

 

 

Very nice pen.

Sadly, prices are through the roof, much like Additive Pens'.

[Newton Pens]

They're not too expensive. Depending on the resin prices look like they range from $100-150 US.

[Corona688]

Call it what it is -- resin is plastic.

 

$150 is crazy expensive for a plastic pen materials wise, especially a material less durable than your average disposable ballpoint.

 

What you're paying for is art, printing time, and surface finishing.

Edited August 17, 2018 by Corona688

[Newton Pens]

If you only look at the cost of materials, everything we get is crazy expensive.

Why do you think the plastic for these 3d printed pens is less durable than a disposable ballpoint?

[tmenyc]

I agree with Shawn...to me it's no different from the ink discussions: at $$ per oz, ink is also crazy dear if you compare it to Pepsi or Johnny Walker, but it's not drunk by the pint, either.

 

Yoshi's pens are beautiful and getting more so all the time. He is in our Big Apple Pen Club, and brings his creations in on a regular basis.

 

Tim