WTB Unbeautiful Parker 51

[tandaina]

I love the hand hammered caps.

[Jon Szanto]

I just had a thought: I should go out in the garage and try hammering up a Hero 616 cap...

[tandaina]

Why, yes, yes you should! Then report back.

[Jon Szanto]

I will. First, dinner. Do note that the cap will be produced under the influence of cheap red wine.

[Jon Szanto]

And to think, I stopped just one blow short of Rick. This has lost the magic of the challenge, I need to find another project...

[sloegin]

You forgot the mandrel.

[Laura N]

And to think, I stopped just one blow short of Rick. This has lost the magic of the challenge, I need to find another project...

That looks like a Special anyway.

[Jon Szanto]

You forgot the mandrel.

I fail to see how a colorful primate would have helped. Do they hold it steady while I aim the hammer?

[sloegin]

Technical adviser. Should too much wine at dinner--or the brand(ies)y afterwards--have impaired your technical judgement.

[Rick Krantz]

I think you hit it a bit too hard.....

there is a lot of prep work that goes into these before you sorta start banging on a cap.

believe it or not, you actually have to smooth all the dents out. I smooth the dents and dings, then sand the line pattern off, saving the engraving on the bottom, then I polish it to mirror smooth.

then the banging starts. You need to do it in a manner that you don't stretch the cap, and make it that the clutch doesn't fit, or worse mess up the top where the inner cap fits in and the clip fits over.

you also want to work it in what I developed as a upward spiral, in terms of hitting it.

[Jon Szanto]

Actually, Rick, all I wanted to do was beat the shit out of a cheap cap for laughs! I'll leave the true artistry to those who know what they are doing...

[Rick Krantz]

I hammered a lustraloy cap once...........

[Jon Szanto]

You would think, since my profession is beating on drums and whatnot, that I'd have this all out of my system by now.

[GING GING]

I want an aero because both of my grandparents had aeros, and I was allowed to help fill them sometimes as a child. Not write with them, but fill them. I was allowed one squeeze, and everytime I'd see one of them write with their pen, I would think "I'll get to squeeze it again soon in the ink bottle."

I can't think of anything that would trump that for me, honestly, but I'm enjoying learning a lot about this all the same.

That is too cool