Different Sierra Tube internal diameters!

Has anyone else noticed that the internal tube diameter are slightly smaller on the high end Sierra, Gatsby & Sirroco Kits, compared to the cheap made in China Sierras? I haven’t ever seen this mentioned on any forums or social media groups, but I can’t be the only one who has noticed this am I?

Never believe the pen kit industry will standardise or stop copying each other with their own derivations and names,now you have an inkling of just how frustrating it can be as a sparky working at midnight on Airport lighting etc trying to find the right sizing,threading.

There is however a chance on the IAP there is a chart that gives details of so many penkits you could define for sizes. Let your calipers be your best friend in the meantime and check before you mix and try to match.I have bought job lots of so called Sierras and right now as we speak I am experiencing your pain.If buying new stick to current Sierras and keep contents together. I used to buy bulk Slimlines and keep tips ,tops, brasses etc separate. I made a simple brass rod to hold Slimline brasses while I nruffed them up with sandpaper for grip when glued. It fast became my go no go test for brasses. When I started I bought three hundred brasses to enable mass making of blanks as a sort of assembly line process.

We all experience frustration leading to split precious blanks etc caused by brass variations etc. No such thing as certain,why else did Timberbits initially contract with Chinese manufacturers and much later Phil the owner of this forum who took it a stage further in refill quality ,quantity of ink etc extending it to nibs and so forth. To eliminate your problem he dreams up names to define his kits. If you want engineering quality the Stainless kits made in the UK and sponsored by Phil came about from a desire to provide some certainty in this delicate choice between quality and quantity. Why else do car manufacturers have Warranty.

I remember my earliest car was an A Model Ford when I married, then miriad others as my family grew from us two in steps to us eight servicing used to be every thousand miles or every month with my vehicles at least twenty to thirty grease nipples to contend with. Mileages reached these days my Daewoo Leganza was serviced under warranty every 15000 kms,ie oil change etc.

Good luck in trying to differentiate with so called Sierras.

Peter.

Different manufactures, different diameter just to frustrate you.

I found that I had mixed the sierra and scirocco tubes and had to glue some in as they were too slack.

woodhacker said:

I found that I had mixed the sierra and scirocco tubes and had to glue some in as they were too slack.

Click to expand...

I had the same problem, but I thought they where supposed to be the same tubes!!

Another one you can add to the list is the Rollester V Lester. Exactly the same looking kit but the tube of the Lester is a fraction bigger.

I am now convinced glueing is sometimes the answer or go crazy matching . Well worth persevering. Going through that right now.

Peter.

Just to confuse the matter further, just add all the different Sierra knockoff from seppo land.

Many hundreds Of 7mm brass tubes besides the many hundreds in kits I have. I bought a hundred every now and then as extras to avoid the dreaded under and over sized brass.

Hundreds of mixed kit Separate purchases of other kits brasses I picked up in batches from sales.

When David from Timberbits kicked on in the business he visited China both on the Mainland and Taiwan. One of the largest employed staff filling small baggies with masses of tips.tops, brasses, bodies for kits, nibs etc. using different materials such as chrome, gold Gold fittings were normal plating or then termed hang gold in that the fittings were mounted on a sort of tree, now called up grade gold.Everything came in from outsourcing. One pic he showed was of a brass tube maker in a street simply extruding,cutting brasses.Also in this photo essay showing how few real employees and the number of firms who had businesses on the Mainland and Taiwan.

Yes I understand the reasons but balance that with cost. Few firms in China at that time had English speaking staff to receive phone calls.

Now David had an advantage he speaks the language.

As a mug with other languages, dependant on dealers I understand the original cry shown in this Different Sierra brass,some caused by tired dies in machines ,many from manufacturers sources, not easy to take,my sympathy Paul.

Peter.

Changing tube and component ID,OD and Length is a way to avoid trademark/Copyright when cloning a
manufactures original design.
The clones of the original Sierra and Elegant Beauty is a classic example.

Les