# Slimline Pro disassembly?



## KD5NRH (May 21, 2010)

Is there a way to take these apart without destroying them?  I've had two in a row with mechanism problems, and ended up cracking the first one trying to get it apart.  Wasting the kits over a cheap part is bad enough; wasting the inlace acrylester blank and the time spent turning it is really irritating.


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## ToddMR (May 21, 2010)

Even with my dis assembly punch taking apart slimlines is a HUGE pain when it comes to getting out the twist mechanism.  If you have the punch kit use the biggest rod possible and just takes work to finally get it out.  An alternative method would be to put a bolt or something up the bottom of the tip end, then drill a larger hole into a scrap piece that the twist mechanism can slide into.  Then use a bar clamp and press the bolt into the bottom which in turn should push the twist mechanism into the scrap wood where you drilled the hole.


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## Monty (May 21, 2010)

This is in the Library by non other than our own wdcav
http://content.penturners.org/articles/2009/A_SIMPLE_7MM_DISASSEMBLY_TOOL.pdf
Works quite well for me when I need to remove a slim tranny.


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## snyiper (May 21, 2010)

I have had luck and plenty of practice with slim dissassembly. I take a long piece of 1/8 brass rod about 24 in long slide through the trans and tap the rod on the floor until the nib pops off. The extra length seems to give more momentum than a short punch. Then the larger size that just fits in a tube is a home made punch (6 in brass with handel) I drill a tube size hole in a piece of wood and put the transmission end in there and drive it out with said punch....sometimes I drive the tube as well but have been lucky with blanks.


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## soligen (May 21, 2010)

Is it the click pen you are talking about?  I've used the punches on rwist slimlines, but I have also wondered about click pen dis-assembly, if anyone knows.


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## ldb2000 (May 21, 2010)

The slimline PRO is a click pen . It happens to be one of the very few good click pens made , however it was not meant to be taken apart . These pens because of the design are almost impossible to disassemble without breaking something . Skiprat made a tool for removing centerbands from cap pens and a too along those designs would work but you'll have to invent one . Search the forum for Skiprats tool .


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## Smitty37 (May 22, 2010)

*Disassembly....Good Luck*

I certainly wish you better luck than I've ever had trying that.  I usually just give up and chuck the pen.  Some of the other kits look like they'd be easier to disassemble but slims including slimline pros are tough.  

Why is it that I can find 25 cent click pens that always work and have such a hard time finding a decent click kit.


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## AXEMAN58 (Nov 22, 2018)

Like Joe, I have a similar problem. Except my blank is a double dyed spalted white oak (red and green Christmas theme) that my wife suggested I make. I thought the Slimline Pro would be perfect for that blank. Upon assembly however, the the POS clicker assembly simply will not function properly, well, mostly won’t function at all. 
With the dying, stabilization, turning, finishing, and assembly, I have way too many hours tied up in this pen to simply chunk it, but I can’t find a way to tear it down without trashing it.
Has anyone come up with a method of disassembly?
Thanks


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## Brian G (Nov 22, 2018)

I don't know whether this will work because I haven't tried it, but if the "POS clicker assembly" is indeed, a POS clicker assembly, then risking wreckage of the plastic parts of the POS clicker assembly shouldn't be a concern.

If I was to disassemble a Slimline Pro with a goal of avoiding damage to the barrels and as much of the hardware as possible, this is how I'd approach it:

No prying with a screwdriver or anything.  Prying will wreck it.

I'm assuming you have a transfer punch set, too.

1.  Have a component set in front of you for reference

2.  Unscrew the clicker button/finial from the plastic clicker

3.  Unscrew the nib and remove the inkfill.

4.  Stuff pea-sized pieces of wadded paper towel to fill up the inside of the outside plastic piece of the clicker assembly.  You'll know how big the pieces need to be by referencing the component set in front of you.

5.  Stuff and pack a few more pieces into the upper barrel.  Use the largest sized transfer punch that will pass through the nib coupler and attempt to tap out the clip assembly.  Steady firm taps are better than angry hard taps.  Think "Woody Woodpecker", not Paul Bunyan.

6.  Keep tapping.

7.  Seriously. . . keep tapping.

8.  Maybe the inner plastic pieces and the spring in the click mechanism will pop out, leaving the outer plastic piece inside.  Maybe that's not a bad thing, yet.

9.  If the clip assembly shows signs that it's coming apart from the barrel, keep tapping.  If the inner part of the click mechanism and spring pops out, fine. . . let it and the paper towel pieces come out.

10.  Whatever the case in #9 (hopefully, the clip assembly came out), screw the nib back onto the nib coupler.

11.  Insert the largest sized transfer punch that will pass through the upper barrel but not through the hole in the nib.

12.  Hold onto the upper barrel and begin tapping the transfer punch.  I don't know which parts will separate first.  It might be the upper barrel from the center band (ideal!), it might be the lower barrel from the center band, or it might be the nib and nib coupler from the lower barrel.  I sure hope it's the center band from the upper barrel, and not the center band from the lower barrel.

13.  If the upper barrel separates first, then grip the lower barrel and tap out the nib and coupler.

14.  After tapping out the nib and coupler, insert the largest transfer punch that will fit in the nib end of the lower barrel and tap out the center band.

15.  If the upper barrel didn't separate from the center band in #12, then you might be able to use something like a dental pick or fashion a small hook to pull the outer piece of the plastic mechanism from the upper barrel through the finial end.

16.  If you get the remaining piece of plastic out, then you should be able to tap out the center band from the upper barrel as in #14.

It's possible that you might be able to push out the two inner pieces of the click mechanism all the way down to the nib end, and push it out through the nib coupler.  If that is successful, then skip the wadded paper towel and start at #10.  If the upper barrel separates from the center band, then you should be able to extract the outer plastic piece of the click assembly and tap out the click mechanism . 

Again, I haven't tried this.  I'm going by what I'd try if I had to disassemble a Slimline Pro.  The wadded paper towel technique might end up destroying the plastic.  That's a risk you'll have to take.


Pffft. . . now I want to rummage through my completed Slimline Pros, find the ugliest or most dissatisfying one, and give this a try.


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## Terredax (Nov 22, 2018)

Removing the nib and using a drift or punch, the lower barrel can be separated with careful tapping. I also found that, if both barrels are gripped tightly with a rag wrapped around each, they can be separated by twisting. If you get lucky, it will separate at the upper barrel.
To remove the center band from the upper barrel, I made a pin chuck to insert in the band, and was able to twist it out as well. 
I found that the plastic part was hitting the center band before the finial was seated. This crushed the plastic slightly, and prevented the click mechanism from operating.

My solution was to sand approx. 1/32" off of the end of the center band that is inserted into the upper barrel, and it eliminated the issue.
Maybe give it a try?


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