# Vertex Click Fix ideas...



## Sprung (Jun 28, 2016)

Well, it looks like I wasn't the only one working with Hickory Burl lately, but I like @manbuckwal 's better.

So, in Vertex clicks I've done, this is only the second one I've made this mistake on. Thankfully the first one was a pen my wife claimed, so she's ok with having a modified refill and making me modify a refill whenever the pen needs a new one.

I trim my barrels by sanding with a jig. Somehow I must not have been paying attention and sanded a little too much off the length and didn't realize it until after I had the pen assembled. I'm not inclined to try to disassemble the kit to try anything - previous attempts as disassembling these have left me with a trashed mechanism and having to replace the kit.

So, the refill sticks out just a little bit when retracted. If this was a common wood, I'd probably scrap it or use it for disassembly practice and see if I can disassemble a Vertex Click without destroying it. But, since it's made from Hickory Burl, I would like to fix this in some way without disassembling the pen. I have two initial thoughts on how to go about fixing this, but I am wondering if anyone has any ideas beyond the two I've thought of.

Probably the most common way people fix something like this is to modify the refill. However, the end user of the pen needs to be informed about this and the need to do this with each refill they put into it in the future. That's sloppy and shows little regard for the end user and making their pen easy to use and maintain, IMO, and I've only done that for one pen that's here at home where I have control over it.

My thought with this pen was to turn a trim ring that would go between the coupler and the nib section that unscrews, thus extending the pen enough so the refill doesn't stick out. Where it would go is marked with red arrows. I would probably do this with a black acrylic or something of that sort that won't stand out too much, but might look nice.

Anyone have any other thoughts? At this point I don't consider this a pen that I would like to sell, but I would like to be able to find it a good home and give it to someone. At least I've got a pretty decent track record with these... Of the several dozen of them that I've made, I've only made this mistake twice...

Reactions: Like 1


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## duncsuss (Jun 28, 2016)

I think you are on the right track with your idea to put a spacer at the screw-on nose cone. One of the variations of Smitty's LeRoi Elegant pen kits include a spacer washer that goes there, but I always ended up dropping them and losing them in the piles of shavings around my lathe. (Smitty was kind enough to send me a couple of replacements.)

I over-trimmed the lower barrels on a couple of Simplicity pens (from Aaron Lau), and ended up having to grind away the refill. Those kits didn't have a suitable place to insert a spacer because the nose cone is a press fit and the twist mechanism screws into the center band, which is a press fit into the other end of the lower barrel. It's a bummer, especially when it's high quality burl pen.

Reactions: Informative 2


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## duncsuss (Jun 28, 2016)

ps ... if you ever come across anyone selling just the click mechanism for a Vertex, please grab a handful for me too


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## Sprung (Jun 28, 2016)

Thanks, Duncan - good to know I wasn't off base with thinking about a trim ring. You'd think that after a few hundred pens I'd have made most of the mistakes that can be made, but I'm still finding new ways to mess up!  I should be back in the shop Thursday evening and Friday, so I'll give it a try and see what happens.



duncsuss said:


> ps ... if you ever come across anyone selling just the click mechanism for a Vertex, please grab a handful for me too



I will. Though I've also thought about contacting PSI about purchasing replacement parts and if I do, I'll see about some for you to save on PSI's overly expensive shipping. I have a couple useless Vertex kits laying around right now that need the mechanism end...

Reactions: Thank You! 1


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## Wildthings (Jun 28, 2016)

I can't remember which kit but thinking it was this one. I took a drill bit that fit into the tube from the tip end and used it to grind down/ream a very little of the plastic mechanism. This allowed the refill to fit farther in and not stick out.

Reactions: Informative 1


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## Sprung (Jun 28, 2016)

Wildthings said:


> I can't remember which kit but thinking it was this one. I took a drill bit that fit into the tube from the tip end and used it to grind down/ream a very little of the plastic mechanism. This allowed the refill to fit farther in and not stick out.



I could see that maybe working... I might have to consider trying that too.

Reactions: Like 1


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## duncsuss (Jun 28, 2016)

Wildthings said:


> I can't remember which kit but thinking it was this one. I took a drill bit that fit into the tube from the tip end and used it to grind down/ream a very little of the plastic mechanism. This allowed the refill to fit farther in and not stick out.


It's something I tried with the LauLau Simplicity -- I managed to completely upfluck the mechanism. Another one that sits on the shelf waiting for me to break a different part in the kit.

Reactions: Funny 1


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## duncsuss (Jun 28, 2016)

So I've been thinking about this. I reckon it should be possible to make a pair of tools that allow disassembly of the Vertex kit.

First we'd need a fancy piece of machining, perhaps 3 or 4 prongs that squeeze together to pass through the press-fit coupler at the nose cone, then spring out to grip the back lip. With a "drift" weight on the shaft, this could whack against a solid lump screwed onto the end of the prongy-shafty-thing and pull out the nose coupler.

Then we'd need a knockout rod that is turned down to be a smooth sliding fit inside the barrel of the pen. The business end would have to be drilled out, leaving just a ring around the edge that does the knocking out without destroying the click mechanism in the center of the end part.

Simple enough (for somebody who knows what they are doing )

Reactions: Agree 1


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## Sprung (Jun 28, 2016)

duncsuss said:


> So I've been thinking about this. I reckon it should be possible to make a pair of tools that allow disassembly of the Vertex kit.
> 
> First we'd need a fancy piece of machining, perhaps 3 or 4 prongs that squeeze together to pass through the press-fit coupler at the nose cone, then spring out to grip the back lip. With a "drift" weight on the shaft, this could whack against a solid lump screwed onto the end of the prongy-shafty-thing and pull out the nose coupler.
> 
> ...



I'm sure Greg (woodtick) could easily whip up such tools, or a machinist friend of mine. Such a set of tools would probably work quite well.

But I also imagine the cost of having such tooling made being able to pay for all the Vertex kits I'll probably ever do this to and then some.

Reactions: Funny 1


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## Schroedc (Jun 28, 2016)

Let me check, I think I have some trim rings that would fit that coupler so you wouldn't have to turn anything. I'll be in the shop on Friday (heading out for a couple days)

Reactions: Thank You! 1 | Great Post 1


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## Sprung (Jun 28, 2016)

Schroedc said:


> Let me check, I think I have some trim rings that would fit that coupler so you wouldn't have to turn anything. I'll be in the shop on Friday (heading out for a couple days)



Thanks, Colin! I'll wait and see what you might have before I do anything drastic and ruin the whole thing. I really like this kit and have made quite a few of them, but it's one of the few kits I make that is particular on not losing any tube length, which I've managed to do only a couple times.


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## Schroedc (Jun 28, 2016)

Sprung said:


> Thanks, Colin! I'll wait and see what you might have before I do anything drastic and ruin the whole thing. I really like this kit and have made quite a few of them, but it's one of the few kits I make that is particular on not losing any tube length, which I've managed to do only a couple times.



I've done it on the Status click myself once or twice.


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## rdabpenman (Jun 29, 2016)

Trim enough off the plastic click mechanism with small drill bit.

Les

Reactions: Agree 1


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## duncsuss (Jun 29, 2016)

rdabpenman said:


> Trim enough off the plastic click mechanism with small drill bit.
> 
> Les


Do you take any special precautions or use a special type of drill bit to do this? The times I've tried it, the drill bit got a nasty catch and destroyed the mechanism.


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## Sprung (Jul 2, 2016)

Schroedc said:


> Let me check, I think I have some trim rings that would fit that coupler so you wouldn't have to turn anything. I'll be in the shop on Friday (heading out for a couple days)



Colin, any luck on those trim rings?


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## Schroedc (Jul 3, 2016)

Sprung said:


> Colin, any luck on those trim rings?



Sorry for the delay, I dug through my bins, did find a couple in gold, I'll keep looking as I'll be sorting misc parts later today and hopefully can find something in black or chrome.

Reactions: Thank You! 1


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## Sprung (Jul 27, 2016)

Well, I done did it again. This time on a Gunmetal kit with a real nice looking purple/green acrylic blank. At least I didn't mess up anything in the order that has to be out the door in the morning. 

Going to make a couple trim rings after we return from vacation.


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## Schroedc (Jul 27, 2016)

Sprung said:


> Well, I done did it again. This time on a Gunmetal kit with a real nice looking purple/green acrylic blank. At least I didn't mess up anything in the order that has to be out the door in the morning.
> 
> Going to make a couple trim rings after we return from vacation.



@Sprung Can you remove the plastic parts for the click mechanism without disassembling the pen? IIRC there are a few that when you unscrewed the button the plastic parts would come out the bottom. If that was the case, drop the plunger out, trim it back with a razor blade or sandpaper and then reinsert it in the pen and put the button back on?


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## Sprung (Jul 27, 2016)

Schroedc said:


> @Sprung Can you remove the plastic parts for the click mechanism without disassembling the pen? IIRC there are a few that when you unscrewed the button the plastic parts would come out the bottom. If that was the case, drop the plunger out, trim it back with a razor blade or sandpaper and then reinsert it in the pen and put the button back on?



Nope, the plastic parts don't come apart with the pen assembled. After I read your post I started playing around with a broken click mechanism I have and the plastic parts can be disassembled, but the pen can't be assembled to unscrew the plastic piece in the click mechanism.

I'm thinking now that I am going to press this broken mech into a spare tube and try the suggestion above to get a drill bit down in there to take a little off the plastic plunger. Would allow me to see how drilling it might work before I go and try it on an assembled pen. But, if that doesn't work, it wouldn't take me too long to mount up a piece of black acrylic and make a couple trim rings.


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## Bean_counter (Aug 4, 2016)

@Sprung 

Matt I just read on IAP that the pencil conversion kits will work on vertex and spartan kits that have been over trimmed. Just an idea

Reactions: Thank You! 1


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## Sprung (Aug 4, 2016)

Bean_counter said:


> @Sprung
> 
> Matt I just read on IAP that the pencil conversion kits will work on vertex and spartan kits that have been over trimmed. Just an idea



Ooooh, hadn't seen that. Thanks! Been wanting to give the pencil conversion kits a try - and this is more catalyst to do so.


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