Hello, I’m John Hubbard, of Huntsville, Alabama. My first engineering job was on the design of the Saturn V Moon Rocket that launched all the Apollo lunar missions. In 2019, we reached the 50th anniversary of the first landing by Apollo 11, with Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin. Five more landings followed, with the last in December, 1972. I decided to create something to commemorate those missions, something that is emblematic, yet functional, using state-of-the-art tools and techniques.
I collect vintage fountain pens, so it was only natural that I chose to make a commemorative pen.
My second engineering job was working on one of the very earliest Computer Aided Design (CAD) systems. Naturally, my pen simply had to be designed using computer modeling. That led to the use of 3D printing to produce the actual object. It required a team of young folks with the right skills to make this happen, plus extensive research and experimentation with 3D printing, especially the materials.
Technology delivered the Apollo astronauts to and from the Moon, but it still required the human skills of the pilots to land safely. Likewise, computer modeling, digitial sculpting, and 3D printing produced a pen, but the finishing touches are applied by artists who hand-paint the features for a more authentic appearance. Two years later, The Moonwalk Pen is the result.
The team who contribute to the design and production of the pen includes:
- Caleb Counter – 3D modeling with SolidWorks – calebcounter@gmail.com Caleb modeled the cap, barrel, and section, including threads
- Kara Netterville – Digital sculpture with zBrush – karanetterville@gmail.com ArtStation: https://www.artstation.com/karanett Kara started with Caleb’s model and added the grainy texture, the Apollo footprint, and the text on the barrel
- Keely Counter – Digital sculpture with zBrush – Instagram: @keelygrace_art – keely.grace.counter@gmail.com Keely added the lunar craters on the cap
- Clay Williams – 3D printing and hand painting. Clay is the “Mastermind” of M3Studios, a commission studio and custom gaming supply shop, located in Huntsville, AL https://m3paints.com
- Lester Hughes – hand painting, also at M3Studios
- Robert Martin – factory trained and certified Cerakote applicator. You can contact Robert by calling Bullet & Barrel at (256) 384-4867
- Corian Moore – marketing video production – https://www.thegumbonetwork.com/ Corian created the video from start to finish, including gathering stock footage, shooting live video, and editing to produce the final result
- Jack Eshenour – friend and fraternity brother, who first suggested using 3D printing to bring the design to life. Throughout the process, Jack has constantly contributed to the success of the project.
Artcraft Pen Company 