Quote Originally Posted by Shuli View Post
I love it. Super helpful considering I'd like to make a pen myself. Where did you source the acrylic and piston?
Thank you!

The acrylic is 20mm rod from kuststofshp.nl, they sell in 1 meter lengths. The piston is turned out of that same rod. The feeds and the 'flex' nibs come from FPR, fountainpenrevolution, the medium nibs are from the JinHao brand, I got them from eBay. A lot cheaper than the Indian ones!. FPR offers feeds in different sizes, and different cuts : the ones I got are cut generously, for flex nibs. It works quite well with a Brause Rose nib, I had great fun relearning my school script. But the back end of the Brause Rose nib, the bit that is between the feed and the section, starts rusting away as soon as it is in contact with ink, which, in a fountain pen, is always. I didn't get to use a quarter of the reservoir before I had to change out the nib, I could see rust accumulating in the section. The other two nibs, the FPR #35 flex and the JinHao #6 medium, write beautifully; I suspect the generous feed makes them feel more luxurious than they really are : they glide on a little cushion of ink.

I made the first pistons in one piece, but that made them very hard to turn without accidents : the outside has to be machined first, leaving very little material to bore into, making it almost impossible not to overheat. Now I make the bore in the full rod, then turn it to size, with the lip for the o-ring near the chuck. The knob is a separate piece, built as a stopper, which is then glued into the piston with cyanoacrylate superglue. Leaves an invisible join.

Hope that helps!