In this part I’m intending to finish the cigar pen I started last time. I’m going to add a bloodwood accent to the writing end of the pen.
To do this I took a bloodwood scrap and drilled the center. I then took a spare brass tube put it on the pen mill and squared one end to the hole. This allows the part to mate seamlessly to the piece on the tube.
Next is cut off a short piece to glue onto the tube. I am using a clamp to keep my fingers away. I probably could have cut this one a bit shorter.
Here is the cutoff.
Now I glue it back on with CA and then use the barrel trimmer to trim down to the tube and square the end. Then everything goes back on the lathe.
Next I carefully turn the piece back to round. I’m using a 3/8 spindle gouge and normally work fairly quickly until I’m close to the bushings.
Next you turn it down to to where it is slightly proud of the bushings. By slightly I mean that I allow enough material to be removed when I sand that the ends are flush with the bushing. Each bushing represents where the part will mate when you press it together. As you get close you also want to get as smooth a finish as possible. One day I will master the skew and not have to worry about it.
Below are some of the items I use for sanding and finishing. The sandpaper strips is available from most suppliers and has grits from 150 to 400. I’m using Mylands friction polish. I have the sanding sealer out but not using it on this pen. Also, is one of Don’s recommended turning items Shellawax finish. It is a wax with grit in it that is used prior to using the friction polish.
The next step is to sand the pen. This is done while the lathe is spinning. I start with 150 grit sandpaper and work to 320 on this pen. Then I switch to micro mesh and continue up to 3500 grit.
Then I coat the pen with Friction Polish and using a paper towel buff it until it gets hot in my fingers. This sets the polish. On this pen I used two coats.
There are a number of ways to press the parts of the pen together. You lay the parts out according to the instructions and press them together on by one. I’m using a pen press from Woodcraft, but there are many ways to do this that do not require a commercial tool. This includes a bench vice, clamps or your drill press.
Here is a closer view of the press in action.
And one of the pen in it’s case.
I encourage everyone who has a lathe to give this a try and those of you considering the purchase one more reason to consider it.
My intent with this pen was to see how the Texas Ebony looked and turned and not so much the pen itself. I really liked the way the wood looks and turns. When I turn pens with wood with intersting grain or figure I normally will use a larger model of pen. This way I can show off the wood. I’m planning to gets a few board feet next time BlueStingRayBoots mills some.
-- We must guard our enthusiasm as we would our life - James Krenov
16 comments so far
mot
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4839 posts in 488 days
posted 422 days ago
Wayne, this is just an awesome Howto for pen turning. I really appreciate the time that you went through to document your obvious skill in this task…or should I say, art form. The pen came out great.
When you are sanding how careful do you have to be sanding around the bushings? Can you affect the tolerances of later pens, or is it such fine grit sanded so lightly that it isn’t affecting that. Sorry for the stupid question, just wondering.
Tom
-- You can discover more about a person in an hour of play than in a year of conversation. (Plato)
WayneC
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5689 posts in 549 days
posted 422 days ago
Thanks Tom.
Good point. Over time you can sand the bushings down if your not careful. I replace my bushings periodically on pens that I turn a lot. Also, I should describe the sanding process. After you sand each grit, stop the lathe and sand along the length of the pen to remove any scratches before moving to the next grit.
-- We must guard our enthusiasm as we would our life - James Krenov
woodspar
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684 posts in 551 days
posted 422 days ago
Thanks Wayne. I do not have a lathe but thanks for spending the time to document this process. I appreciate it.
-- John
BlueStingrayBoots
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311 posts in 454 days
posted 422 days ago
Thankyou Wayne, I appreciate the lesson. Its not quite what I thought, now I’m clear on how to do it quikly, easily and correct.
gizmodyne
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1476 posts in 542 days
posted 421 days ago
Thanks Wayne… Great intro in the two blogs. I have always been curious about this.. Most of the arts and crafts stuff I like has zero turning in it so a lathe has not been on my list, but pens…. Mini-lathe hmm….
Question: Is pen blank wood somewhat green?
-- -John "Do I have to keep typing a smiley? Just assume it's a joke." www.flickr.com/photos/gizmodyne
WayneC
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5689 posts in 549 days
posted 421 days ago
Your welcome John. Keep your eyes open on CraigsList for a mini lathe.
Pen blank wood is normally dried and stable. Green wood tends to check.
-- We must guard our enthusiasm as we would our life - James Krenov
Bill
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2512 posts in 613 days
posted 421 days ago
Great blog Wayne! I bet we see pens popping up all over Lumberjocks site now.
-- Bill, Turlock California, http://www.brookswoodworks.com
WeeWilly
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16 posts in 519 days
posted 421 days ago
Great pen…and great hands-on visual of how to make this pen. Have you considered making a video of this process….it might sell very well. Thanks for the detailed instructions.
-- WeeWilly
WayneC
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5689 posts in 549 days
posted 421 days ago
Thanks Willy. I do not have a video camera yet. So, that kinds of limits me. I posted a couple of links to pen turning DVDs in the part 1. One of them is Free.
-- We must guard our enthusiasm as we would our life - James Krenov
Bill
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2512 posts in 613 days
posted 421 days ago
Well selling your a video would allow you to pay for that video camera. Several sites offer DVDs on pen turning and such, so why not LJ DVDs?
-- Bill, Turlock California, http://www.brookswoodworks.com
Douglas Bordner
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2468 posts in 516 days
posted 421 days ago
Several folks have mentioned that they like pen-turning because they can complete a project in the shop in one session. The other nice thing is, these projects can be sold to others (co-workers, etc.) without a huge marketing plan and at a value that is affordable to a wide audience. When I had the pen-turning fire going, I managed to sell enough to pay off the mini-lathe. Another reason to jump in!
-- "Bordnerizing" perfectly good lumber for over a decade.
WayneC
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5689 posts in 549 days
posted 421 days ago
Thanks Bill, I getting similar messages in PM.
Doug, you do some real high quality work. I bet they sell well.
-- We must guard our enthusiasm as we would our life - James Krenov
Douglas Bordner
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2468 posts in 516 days
posted 421 days ago
I kinda dropped off after I buttonholed everyone I knew, and went to a gallery to set up some sales. She wanted to do a 70-30 split. And she got the 70%. Now I mostly gift them. But they are an impressive gift. I often cringe about giving craft-y things (Oh, thanks so much for the appliqué T-shirt -yeeeyuh), but pens seem to be universally well received.
-- "Bordnerizing" perfectly good lumber for over a decade.
Jiri Parkman
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552 posts in 264 days
posted 204 days ago
Good lesson. Thanks.
-- Jiri
rikkor
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7202 posts in 326 days
posted 204 days ago
Thanks for the write-up. The pen looks great.
-- Maplewood, MN
Sawdust2
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830 posts in 539 days
posted 203 days ago
Duh! I could’ve had a V8.
I while back I started cutting my blanks a little long so they wouldn’t bust out when I was drilling them. Then I threw away the extra piece when I re-cut it to size. (Most blanks are long enough that the extra length is gong to be lost anyway, even if you are careful when you drill and can cut them close to finished length.)
This is a great way to use those cutoff pieces for contrast.
-- No piece is cut too short. It was meant for a smaller project.