In article ,
NoOne N Particular wrote:

About 3 months ago I purchased a Delta 14" lathe and have been turning
different
things to learn some of the tools and techniques. I have also turned a few
pens
and I have to admit that the first couple lacked a little bit in the fit
department, but I am getting better.

I have purchased a couple of different types of mandrels. One is the
"precision" one piece from Rockler, and the other is the "professional"
adjustable from Woodcraft. I have tried several different styles of pens
from
the slimline to an Atlas and a few in between.

Each type of pen requires it's own set of bushings, and sometimes these
bushings
don't fit on the mandrel shaft as well as they should. Some of the bushings
fit
nice and snug on the shaft and some don't. I have one set of bushings where
the
ID of the bushing is at least .006" larger than the mandrel shaft, and this
is
causing some concentricity (is that really a word???)issues . It is just
about
impossible to get the center ring to fit the pen cap on all sides.

I have been told that not all sources are -exactly- the same size. If
you buy your mandrel from one source, you should buy your pens and
bushings from the same source. BTW, there are only 4 (or 5?) actuall
sources in the USA, the others just sell the from them. But I don't
recall the list (see penturners.org)

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