Pen on the Lathe Pen Blanks Preparing Pen Blanks
Pen Making is interesting as you can make nice pens with what amounts to fine timber veneers. Using relatively small amounts of timber great results can be achieved. Typically a timber blank somewhere between 15mm square to 25mm square will suffice. It’s a great way to use up offcuts and scraps
The pen on the lathe picture shows a completed pen which has a celery top pine veneer Phyllocladus aspleniifolius. I also used some applewood which does look quite similar in colour. The last picture features some fish tail oak Neorites. This is a darker timber but proved a little troublesome when turning. I have tried to stabilise it with this superglue.
I usually glue the brass tubes which reside in the timber blanks with five minute two part epoxy. However this time I decided to use up some old regular epoxy , this usually cures in 24 hours. This time around a week later the glue had not set causing me quite bit of grief. I had to use superglue to to reinforce the two part epoxy. Even then when I was squaring up the ends some of the brass tubes worked loose.
A lesson learnt in penmaking dont use old two part epoxy. I have managed to get on and make the pens.