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timberbits.com

malcolm1309

Apprentice Member
Joined
Jun 3, 2014
Posts
2
Location
Darwen, Lancashire
First Name
Malcolm
Check out Pen Kits, Pen blanks, Clock Kits and wood turning accessories. it's an Australian site but the prices are so good that even with postage I find them cheaper than UK suppliers. The site has a wealth of kits in a multitude of plating finishes and a full range of accessories. The proprietor is extremely helpful and has posted "How to" videos for most of his products as well as instruction sheets

It's worth checking it out even if you don't buy anything.
 

bellringer

The Young one
Registered
Joined
Feb 27, 2013
Posts
5,187
Location
Surrey
First Name
Alex
Check out Pen Kits, Pen blanks, Clock Kits and wood turning accessories. it's an Australian site but the prices are so good that even with postage I find them cheaper than UK suppliers. The site has a wealth of kits in a multitude of plating finishes and a full range of accessories. The proprietor is extremely helpful and has posted "How to" videos for most of his products as well as instruction sheets

It's worth checking it out even if you don't buy anything.

think you might need to look round the site a bit it the most recommended site one here
 

Grump

Grand Master
Joined
Aug 17, 2013
Posts
10,504
Location
Stevenage
First Name
Brian
Welcome to the forums Malcolm. You are obviously new and haven't read much of these forums init?

How's that for restraint?
 

silver

General dogsbody
Executive Member
Joined
Jun 29, 2013
Posts
6,301
Location
Somewhere in Staffordshire,
First Name
Eamonn.
Hi Malcolm, welcome to the forum.

Introduce your self and let us know who you are, what you do and what other hobbies you have.

As per Alex said, might be worth having a look around on the site as timberbits have sponsored the main prizes for our competitions this year..
 

Kardav

the PENsioner
Fellow
Joined
Jan 26, 2014
Posts
1,983
Location
Nottingham north
First Name
Dave
Welcome Malcolm, as the others have said, take your time and have a poke about on the forum, you'll soon realise we already know about TB and indeed most of us use them. You talk about postage, did you know if you spend 80 Aussie dollars, postage is in fact free. Even more of a bargain.
 

Paul

Fellow
Joined
Oct 22, 2013
Posts
1,053
Location
Kent
Welcome. Thanks for the heads up, it's a sharing forum this one, so that kind of help is absolutely spot on. I have literally saved hundreds asking the chaps here for suppliers. I think Jim ( he's the mod here ) should have a sub forum. " compare the wood . Com ".
 

Neil

Fellow
Joined
May 21, 2013
Posts
3,132
Location
Hitchin, Hertfordshire
First Name
Neil
Took me a while to realise that all TB reference s meant timber bits lol
In other peeps experience how long does it usually take for orders to arrive on their free shipping service?

Postage from singapore takes anything from 10 to 20 days. TNT will take 3 days if you exceed the $200 threshold and you will normally get a nice thank you gist in the form of a letter some one or two months later stating that you owe them a fortune because they have so graciously paid the customs on your behalf and now have the privilidge of overcharging you for he use of their deferment account.
 

paulm

grave manibus faciendum
Registered
Joined
Oct 7, 2013
Posts
12,046
Location
Sandford
First Name
Paul
Welcome to the best pen turning web site ever... probably. Thanks for pointing out about TB, its refreshing for someone to join and start with a bit of helpful news. Having said that its the heaven on earth of suppliers although Dan is trying hard and may just very well succeed in the future.
 

Neil

Fellow
Joined
May 21, 2013
Posts
3,132
Location
Hitchin, Hertfordshire
First Name
Neil
Welcome to the best pen turning web site ever... probably. Thanks for pointing out about TB, its refreshing for someone to join and start with a bit of helpful news. Having said that its the heaven on earth of suppliers although Dan is trying hard and may just very well succeed in the future.

Dan has got a very good chance to succeed where the rest of the UK industry has failed because they are not penturners and/or dont listen to penturners. If you want to turn out half a dzen slimlines for christmans presents then your not going to be the most experienced critic of quality, most suppliers in this country have little idea, perhaps one exception being Vince but he is buying from the big 2 and is expensive beyond the quality.. Lets be honest, Fun e Turnz and penkitsUK are driven solely by price, push out the cheapest kits from the same supplier who cant cope with any mechanism more complicated than a slimline. Turners Retreat buy there kits from the big USA 2 and as such end up being a fortune again, Stiles and Bates have a few kits but are not a serious contender, and Axminster use three suppliers, the same as Fun e Turnz and PenkitsUK for some, PSI for others and an unknown source for the rest. Ax really have a bizarre range from the cheap and really tacky to the Majestic.

So there's a hole in the market Dan, quality kits straight from the manufacturer, and since the PSI and Berea haven't extended their patents over here in the beleive that there is no other landmass 10 miles beyond the shore of Florida, companies have realised, I think since the copying of the Bolt Action, that the world is their oyster. Or Lobster, prawn, turbot or whatever else floats your boat. Go for it Dan, quality kits and reasonable prices and you could win!
 

Paul

Fellow
Joined
Oct 22, 2013
Posts
1,053
Location
Kent
Dan has got a very good chance to succeed where the rest of the UK industry has failed because they are not penturners and/or dont listen to penturners. If you want to turn out half a dzen slimlines for christmans presents then your not going to be the most experienced critic of quality, most suppliers in this country have little idea, perhaps one exception being Vince but he is buying from the big 2 and is expensive beyond the quality.. Lets be honest, Fun e Turnz and penkitsUK are driven solely by price, push out the cheapest kits from the same supplier who cant cope with any mechanism more complicated than a slimline. Turners Retreat buy there kits from the big USA 2 and as such end up being a fortune again, Stiles and Bates have a few kits but are not a serious contender, and Axminster use three suppliers, the same as Fun e Turnz and PenkitsUK for some, PSI for others and an unknown source for the rest. Ax really have a bizarre range from the cheap and really tacky to the Majestic.

So there's a hole in the market Dan, quality kits straight from the manufacturer, and since the PSI and Berea haven't extended their patents over here in the beleive that there is no other landmass 10 miles beyond the shore of Florida, companies have realised, I think since the copying of the Bolt Action, that the world is their oyster. Or Lobster, prawn, turbot or whatever else floats your boat. Go for it Dan, quality kits and reasonable prices and you could win!

Thanks Neil a very handy oversight of the market. For quality to price ratio what kit from whom would you recommend someone checks out? I hope this isn't a commercially sensitive question as I do appreciate this is your profession and you have invested considerably to acquire this Information.
 

paulm

grave manibus faciendum
Registered
Joined
Oct 7, 2013
Posts
12,046
Location
Sandford
First Name
Paul
Dan has got a very good chance to succeed where the rest of the UK industry has failed because they are not penturners and/or dont listen to penturners. If you want to turn out half a dzen slimlines for christmans presents then your not going to be the most experienced critic of quality, most suppliers in this country have little idea, perhaps one exception being Vince but he is buying from the big 2 and is expensive beyond the quality.. Lets be honest, Fun e Turnz and penkitsUK are driven solely by price, push out the cheapest kits from the same supplier who cant cope with any mechanism more complicated than a slimline. Turners Retreat buy there kits from the big USA 2 and as such end up being a fortune again, Stiles and Bates have a few kits but are not a serious contender, and Axminster use three suppliers, the same as Fun e Turnz and PenkitsUK for some, PSI for others and an unknown source for the rest. Ax really have a bizarre range from the cheap and really tacky to the Majestic.

So there's a hole in the market Dan, quality kits straight from the manufacturer, and since the PSI and Berea haven't extended their patents over here in the beleive that there is no other landmass 10 miles beyond the shore of Florida, companies have realised, I think since the copying of the Bolt Action, that the world is their oyster. Or Lobster, prawn, turbot or whatever else floats your boat. Go for it Dan, quality kits and reasonable prices and you could win!

Well said Neil, I believe that Dan can succeed because he has a much better attitude to what penmakers want rather than what he thinks they want and ask the right questions on here. Quailty is and always has been the issue for me and get that right with price and its a winner.
 
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