My next lesson was about materials. I know steel is not as good as brass or aluminum. Aluminum is easier than brass. But, my latest venture was worse. I needed a new idler bushing for the South Bend banjo (gearing). It turns out the only stuff I had with a 1.25" diameter was a bar of chromoly that was originally intended for a replacement spindle before I found mine was okay. So, I chucked it up and started to turn :
The lesson? If you can wait for better stuff, do it. The swarf was bad, I could only do about 0.002" removal at a time, and the cut-off of 1.25" was absolutely terrible. But, the pen is looking good :
The pen is a Jr. Gentlemen's Statesman pen kit from craft USA. Now I can focus again!
