# Sierra Fountain Pen ??



## Rangertrek (Sep 14, 2010)

I have a customer that wants a Sierra style ballpoint made into a fountain pen.  Anyone done anything like this?  I certainly dont have the background in mods to attempt this.  Any ideas?


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## BigguyZ (Sep 14, 2010)

I don't think that would work- as a fountain pen needs a cap.  Without a cap, the pen would dry out.  So you'd have a Sierra Fountain pen with a cap....  doesn't sound anything like a sierra anymore...


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## witz1976 (Sep 14, 2010)

Not necessarily... I remember about 6 months ago, Butch ( ldb2000) I think mentioned about a fountain pen that operated like a click pen.  It had a flap o the nib the closed to help prevent the ink from drying.  It was a challenge to make... Hopefully Butch will make a comment about this.


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## jskeen (Sep 14, 2010)

Or perhaps a fountain pen where the cap looked like a sierra from the clip up, and the body was whatever?  I'm thinking that if it was clipped into a pocket, it would look like a matched pair, but the fp unscrewed?  I could possibly see hollowing out a sierra cap so that it would slip over the top of a tube from a euro or flattop fp, and the centerband would be hidden in a pocket?  I can see some issues with the idea, but nothing that looks insurmountable from here.


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## ldb2000 (Sep 14, 2010)

The fountain pen with a retractable nib is made by Pilot/Nakami and is called a Vanishing Point . To make a Sierra looking pen would be quite difficult . The mechanics needed to seal the nib to keep it from drying out is kinda complex . I've played with the concept and while it can be done it would not be cost effective to make and when done it would look nothing like a Sierra . On the VP the nib comes out the clip end so that when it is in a pocket the nib is facing up . On the VP that I tried the clip gets in the way when trying to write and I had to hold the pen in an uncomfortable position . I had a Patent office image of the design but the link no longer works , it showed the trap door and retracting mechanism , not an easy thing to reproduce .


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## Rangertrek (Sep 14, 2010)

Thanks for all the replies to this question.  I was just wondering if anyone had tried something like this.  I will direct my client to another style pen.


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## tim self (Sep 14, 2010)

If it's a matter of size, you might consider the Havana from AS.


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## workinforwood (Sep 14, 2010)

I still think you can do it without changing the style too much.  You will have to ditch the kit nib section and make a new one with threads and build a cap of course, but the main pen section itself can basically still be a sierra, even with the clip on the pen section is fine.  You can rebuild the back of the pen to accept the cap being postable or just have a non post cap.  What I don't like about the whole idea is the tapered styling of the sierra, which makes for a slippery grip if it was to be a fountain pen.  I have people that complain about jr gent style grips because even though those are relatively straight, they are still a bit slippery, unlike the Churchill style grip.


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## mrcook4570 (Sep 14, 2010)

Here is a version of a sierra fp that I made a few years ago
http://www.penturners.org/forum/showthread.php?t=27087


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## DurocShark (Sep 16, 2010)

mrcook4570 said:


> Here is a version of a sierra fp that I made a few years ago
> http://www.penturners.org/forum/showthread.php?t=27087



That's cool!


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