RENDER K- A Custom Machined Pen

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1. Creator Jordan Muntz on December 9, 2012
  
  @KarasKustoms: I remember you said you were gonna put the clips on your site, but I don't see them on there. I'd like to buy one to put on another aluminum pen I bought that didn't come with a clip.
2. Creator KarasKustoms on October 2, 2012
  
  @Leonard D Schloff- Parker Ballpoint compatible refills will work, including the Fisher Space Pen refill. The Signo DX refill will fit with a little trimming of the back end as well.
3. Creator Leonard D Schloff on September 27, 2012
  
  What other refills besides HI-Tec-C will fit in this pen?
  Len Schloff
  len@schloff.com
4. Creator Eli Rogers on September 22, 2012
  
  @Theo: If you do want to sell one, I might be interested. Won't give you what you paid for it, but let me know what you're thinking.
  
  And I read on here you could use the pen as a stylus, but I can't get mine to on my Toshiba Thrive tablet.
  
  FANTASTIC pen so far. Don't see anything wrong with it aside from the cap not posting, but I've quickly learned to get used to it. Great job Karas Kustoms!!
5. Creator Experiencing life to the fullest on September 11, 2012
  
  Check out the latest update. Very nice pen!
6. Creator KarasKustoms on September 10, 2012
  
  @theo- We are sorry you don't like your pens. If you want to sell them, we are sure you could find a buyer.
7. Creator KarasKustoms on September 10, 2012
  
  @Shantanu Joshi- Everything was shipped out months ago. Send us a message through Kickstarter and we will help you get sorted.
8. Creator Shantanu Joshi on September 9, 2012
  
  Hey KarasKustoms,
  
  Still haven't received my pen. Has everything been shipped out?
9. Creator theo on September 8, 2012
  
  great looking pen, i got the alumium pen, but i just cannot get a good grip on the render k. no matter when, my fingers are slipping. only when i have sweaty hands can i get a grip. my two aluminium render k pens are here at home. not being used.
  
  kind of want to sell them.
10. Creator KarasKustoms on September 6, 2012
  
  @James- Thanks for the compliments. We plan on more projects here on Kickstarter, so keep your eyes peeled.
11. Creator JAMES CROW on September 6, 2012
  
  Still my favorite project on Kickstarter. Deadlines met, product is better than described, awesome people doing awesome things!!
  
  And no ink drying issues here ;)
12. Creator KarasKustoms on August 8, 2012
  
  Ee Kuang OOi- please send us a message through our RENDER K project so we can get this straightened out for you.
13. Creator Ee Kuang OOi on August 7, 2012
  
  I still haven't gotten anything.
14. Creator KarasKustoms on July 16, 2012
  
  @Sam Lam- Your pen must have been lost, we will resend it right away.
15. Creator Sam Lam on July 15, 2012
  
  Hi I still haven't got my brass pen???
  
  Please send it.
16. Creator KarasKustoms on July 10, 2012
  
  @ Ee Kuang OOi- Please send us a message so that we can confirm your shipping address. We want to get you your pens as soon as possible.
17. Creator Ee Kuang OOi on July 10, 2012
  
  @KarasKustoms excuse me, I have not received my pens.
18. Creator Jordan Muntz on July 9, 2012
  
  @ C.D. I didn't had any trouble with my pen drying out, until I tried the 0.25 Hi-Tec-C. It wouldn't flow nicely no matter what I did, I had to scribble like a madman every time I pulled the thing out. I switched back to my normal 0.4 size, and it flows evenly every time.
19. Creator Tobster on July 1, 2012
  
  @ C.D. I use my pen a lot and fortunately haven't experienced any drying out issues. I have just returned from a long weekend away where my pens were not used for 3 days and again experienced no drying out issues when starting to use them again.
20. Creator Kevin Myers on June 25, 2012
  
  Has anyone else noticed that the aluminum pen can be used as a stylus? Because it works great for me on my iPhone...
21. Creator C.D. on June 18, 2012
  
  Since the drying out issue seems to be happening to some others I will elaborate. I have been using the Hi-Tec-C in the cheap old plastic body and have never had one dry out on me. Unfortunately, the is a daily occurrence with the Render K.
  Also, regarding what I described as "chatter" earlier, I will clarify that I am not referring to the beautiful circumferential machining lines present on the body of the pen. Perhaps chatter is not the proper term, but the machining lines on both of my caps are notably more irregular as compared to the finish of the body.
22. Creator Brian May on June 18, 2012
  
  I use this pen everyday, it is my main pen now. I haven't had any instances of drying out and chances are good that it is due to frequency of use.
  
  As for the "chatter" that C.D. mentioned, the cap doesn't have chatter, those are machining lines from the fine point tooling they used. An absolutely smooth pen would likely feel awkward in terms of it being "slippy" in your hands.
  Chatter, for everyones edification, would be vertical lines between the fine lines the tooling has left. Years ago when I worked part time in a machine shop during high school I had to qc bolts making sure there wasn't chatter.
23. Creator d freymann on June 18, 2012
  
  I am noticing the 'drying out' issue as well. I associate it with the loose fit of the cap (which, until I improvised a fix, kept unscrewing and falling off). I'm willing to consider that the Hi-Tec-C is at 'fault', but would prefer seeing some sort of real evidence for this before I start trying to figure out how to retrofit a seal into the cap. I only use the 'best quality' fountain pen-friendly Rhodia paper :-)
24. Creator KarasKustoms on June 18, 2012
  
  @ Ee Kuang OOi- Some of the international orders are taking considerably longer than others. We have been informed by the USPS to wait a little longer before considering the packages "lost".
25. Creator Mike on June 17, 2012
  
  I've had mine dry out more than a few times, but it's not a 100% of the time problem. I wouldn't hesitate to call them on it if I felt it were KK's fault, but I honestly thing it's just the Pilot refill being incredibly fickle, as I've known them to be even in their plastic bodies.
26. Creator Peter on June 16, 2012
  
  The 'drying out' issue affects some people with ALL hi-tec-c pens, including the official plastic bodies. You might be able to reduce it by using better quality paper. It also seems to happen more the finer the tip is, so try the 0.4 or 0.5 if you're using the 0.3.
  If not, it's not ridiculously inconvenient, you just have to scribble a bit to get the pen going if you havent used it for a while.
27. Creator Eli Rogers on June 16, 2012
  
  I don't understand how the pen can dry out with the way the pen is designed. Mine's working fine. I wonder if anyone else is having those problems.
28. Creator C.D. on June 15, 2012
  
  I wanted to leave a short review and ask a question about a problem. First, I would like to say that the weight and feel of the pen when writing is great. And the overall look of the pen is beautiful. However, both of my pens have a clear difference between the quality of the finish on the body versus the cap. My caps don't have a smooth finish and look like the cutting tool had some "chatter".
  Now for my problem and this is not unique to the Render K, but is a problem I have with another Kickstarter pen project. The problem is that the pen tip dries out when the cap is on and I have to find something to scribble on every time I use the pen in order to get the ink flowing. This is a major design flaw in my opinion and more than a little annoying. In fact, I might stop using it because of my inability to just use the pen without constant maintenance.
29. Creator Ee Kuang OOi on June 15, 2012
  
  @KarasKustoms Still waiting for my pens =(
30. Creator Mike on June 15, 2012
  
  I love how the "The Story" section of the website makes it sound like he made them.
31. Creator Teri Timar on June 15, 2012
  
  I Love my aluminum pens. Just ordered another on the web site.
32. Creator Peter on June 14, 2012
  
  That site is ridiculous.
  I also love how he describes the aluminium iPhone case as a 'Silver Hand Cut Aluminum iPhone Case' and the brass one as a 'Brass Hand Cut Aluminum iPhone Case'.
  1. Brass isn't aluminium (duh)
  2. They're aluminium, not silver. At those prices, you might expect it to be, silver, though.
  3. None of them are 'hand cut'.
  Dodgy stuff.
33. Creator Johnny on June 12, 2012
  
  @Adrian - Wow, talk about markup
34. Creator Adrian M. on June 12, 2012
  
  Haha, OK, I guess if he can find willing buyers for a $250+ markup, more power to him.
35. Creator KarasKustoms on June 12, 2012
  
  @Adrian- No worries, he is legitimate. In fact, he had to wait for all the Kickstarter rewards to ship before he received his order. He was just as antsy as everyone else waiting for his pens.
36. Creator Adrian M. on June 12, 2012
  
  I got an interesting email today, showing these products:
  http://www.ahalife.com/product/2581/hand-cut-aluminum-pen/
  http://www.ahalife.com/product/2596/hand-cut-aluminum-pen-2596/
  
  They look, shall we say, suspiciously familiar (though about an order of magnitude more expensive).
  
  This iPhone case looks familiar, too:
  http://www.ahalife.com/product/2580/hand-cut-aluminum-iphone-case/
  
  Is "MPower Design" ripping you off? I notice they say they're founded in 2012, almost definitely after this Kickstarter got funded.
37. Creator Jeff Czapla-Myers on June 12, 2012
  
  @KarasKustoms. Thanks for the update. :)
38. Creator KarasKustoms on June 12, 2012
  
  @Jeff- Your brass pen does NOT contain lead. Many metals will leave a mark on paper when they are uncoated/untreated. We would still recommend washing your hands before eating, though, because its gross otherwise (sorry for the bad joke).
39. Creator Jeff Czapla-Myers on June 12, 2012
  
  I have a question regarding the brass pens. I've noticed that when I rub a corner of it on paper, it actually leaves a dull grey mark. Does this brass contain lead? If so, I'm just wondering what the percentage is.
  
  Since I'm handling the pen a lot throughout the day, I want to make sure I'm being safe with regards to washing hands before eating, etc.
40. Creator Matthias Kraus on June 11, 2012
  
  My pen (40$ level) got here to Germany at last but I had to pay customs again, as with my Pen Type-A.
  Next time I will argue with them as it was correctly labeled as a gift... Maybe the one after that as it will be hard to push for the Pebble being a gift....
  I am using my Render-K with a Pilot BLS-G1-10 refill, btw. Needs ti be shortened to the length of the Hi-Tec-C but otherwise fits just great and writes smooothly!
41. Creator Eli Rogers on June 7, 2012
  
  To any who are interested, I'm going to be posting a review of my Render K Aluminum pen body on July 17th over at my blog DadToLibbs.com. So you won't forget, just go now and subscribe or just add it to your favorites. Here's the link: http://www.dadtolibbs.com
  
  I hope to see some new comments soon. And I hope everyone else is enjoying their pens!!
42. Creator Peter on June 6, 2012
  
  Added bonus of the Render K: because it's made out of metal, it makes a decent stylus for capacitive touchscreens.
  Just make sure you have a screen protector if you're terrified of scratches.
43. Creator Colonel Fubar on June 6, 2012
  
  I'm a $30 level backer and still haven't got mine. :(
  
  Am I alone in this case ?
44. Creator El Drijver on June 6, 2012
  
  160-level pledge just arrived in Holland! The pens look awesome and the weight of the Brass pen is insane! :D Love it!
45. Creator Brian May on June 5, 2012
  
  @Tobster
  LOL I have 1400+ to go before mine ships :D
  
  But its not a terrible shame, I have my Render K and this has become my work pen so I don't mind at all.
46. Creator Tobster on June 4, 2012
  
  Received the Combo (1 x Aluminium & 1 x Brass) in South Korea yesterday. They look great. Have yet to open the Brass but using the Aluminium for 2 days. Originally I thought I would have preferred a pull/push cap instead of the screw cap but that disappeared pretty quickly. Overall the Pen looks and feels great, the weigh is perfect. Great Job Guys. Would certainly be Interested in future projects related to Pens.
  Still waiting for my Pen Type A.........
47. Creator Mike on June 3, 2012
  
  Yeah, especially a problem with the copper and, for some reason, the SS versions.
48. Creator Gianmarc Coppola on June 2, 2012
  
  I'm sure T6061 Al can handle quite a bit of torque. Just give it a good 10 ft-lbs and you're good. :P. Flared out?
49. Creator Mike on June 2, 2012
  
  I thought about greasing it, but my grip sits right where the grease would be, so that's a no go. And I've too many flared out Embassy Pen caps to over tighten it. :)
50. Creator Gianmarc Coppola on June 2, 2012
  
  Just tighten it more. They can be torqued quite hard.