pen turning kits

Lenny - it looks like a call to CS is in order for a couple of reasons. First, the "Essentials" kit says you get blanks to turn, but the "Basic" (even though more expensive) doesn't.

A couple of comments on what you are seeing. The "Hot Stuff" glue is great. No two ways about it. The other product packaged with the Essentials kit may be good as well, I haven't used it. I have used a lot of Hot Stuff, from water thin to near gel. It isn't cheap, either.

As far as the double mandrel business goes, I think it is the same mandrel in both kits. They are usually called double mandrels since it is long enough to turn both (a double amount) of the barrel pieces at the same time. A quick call should clear that up.

You should also check on what exactly comes in the way of a deburring tool. The Essentials kit seems to come with other barrel trimmer guides, but the Basic only comes with one. You will appreciate NOT having to buy the other sizes of barrel trimmers when/if you decide to buy pens that have larger fit up pieces.

It is also important to note what they say about their mandrels, and you should take to heart with their bushings as well. CS madrels and bushings probably won't be compatible with other kits or pieces from other vendors. A loose bushing is worse than one that doesn't work at all as you will turn out a poorly fitting product with a poorly fitting bushing.

So if you like the CS pen lines, you are in luck. All those things together in their kits save you some money and give you a chance to get started.

As far as CS goes, I have been buying kits, fit ups and supplies of all types from them for years and never had a problem they didn't correct.

Robert

Thanks Robert, that was very helpful.

I decided to go for the "Essential kit" for the extra barrel trimmers.(I hadn't picked up on that 'till you pointed it out) They both include wood blanks although I anticipate that will be the least of my needs as we generate a fair amount of cut offs that will suffice to get started at least. I have plenty of CA on hand as well although I have never tried the "Hot Stuff" ... I'll keep that in mind when it's time to re-order. I also picked up an extra set of pencil kits... Hope to make a few for some of the guys at work ... some on our trim crew like to use them.

Now if the weather would just warm up enough to make heating up the shop practical, I'll be in business.

Thanks aga>Lenny - it looks like a call to CS is in order for a couple of

My pleasure, glad to be of some assistance.

But you should be careful with what you are about to start. Turning pens can be like sitting down with a large plate of warm oatmeal cookies.

When I started turning them several years ago it took at least a couple of hundred before I got the pen bug out of my system. I carefully set aside any little interesting looking scrap for a pen blank, and really looked forward to making those little projects.

Everyone I knew got pens for birthdays, retirement, congratulations on promotions, Christmas, and on an on. The good news is that the recipients loved them.

Have fun and let us know how you are doing.

Robert

wrote: (clip) we generate a fair amount of cut offs that will suffice

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ When you choose wood for pen turning, pay close attention to the grain. A fine grain with lots of contrast produces good results. A broader grain pattern, which looks good in a board, may be disappointing when you narrow it down to the diameter of a pen.

Boy was that tough to learn.

Then factor in how many blanks looked very plain because I turned off the very feature that made the wood interesting, and you would have quite a nice pile of kindling.

Robert

Yes, but not a difficult thing to acquire. You should look for pieces that seem gnarly or have some kind of grain design you like that go all the way through, not just visible on the surface of the blank.

Absolutely. I have crushed a few tubes in my time, and had some pieces of wood get to a certain diameter, then come apart.

Instead of affixing the tube to the blank with CA, I started using 5 minute epoxy. A little dab was all that was needed, I always had plenty of open time, and it held great on oily or porous woods. Sometimes CA will have a problem with those woods.

Remember, always clean those tubes before adhering in a blank. I always used 220 to get them bright and shiny, then cleaned them off with some kind of handy solvent and a paper towel.

The bonus in using epoxy was that the epoxy provided a great lubricant to get the tube in the blank. Any excess was easily trimmed away with the barrel trimmer/reamer combination.

Robert