Turning Pens?

Have you seen mine at:

of your questions are answered there.

Russ Fairfield Post Falls, Idaho

I don't know what the official turners will say, because I'm only a turner-becoming. However, I'll bet someone will mention the JET mini sooner or later.

's the time to buy if you want to get one of these at a fantastic price,with free shipping to boot. They're coming out with a new variable-speedversion of this same machine, and getting rid of the old ones. I don't know the ins and outs of lathes, but I know a well-made machine when I see it, and this little beast is definitely a cut above every other machine in my shop. I just about drooled when I powered it up. Briefly, briefly, yes dear, yes dear, no dear, I'm not going to use it yet dear....

It was also the unanimous answer to my "best small lathe" query a bit ago. More unanimous than anything I've ever seen on the Wreck by far.

It's quiet over here, isn't it? :)

I looked at four midi lathes a few days ago and three mini lathes and I am a lover of the General lathe but the mini Gen. was not the one that I look at the second time it was the Delta. They all have there little perks good and bad. 1, How easy and fast can you change speeds. 2, Do you need a knock out tool to remove centers form the tail stock. 3, Is the tool rest one or two lever tighting/lose. 4, How easy is the tail stock and the tool rest to move on the bed. If you want all of these on one lathe then you will have to look at a Oneway or General and that is $$$. I would stick with the mini or midi General, Jet, Delta. Good luck. Dwight

Some of the stuff they don't tell you...

Get a pen mill. Otherwise you'll be ambarrased with the result.

Resin impregnated blanks look the best... BY FAR... but are also VERY VERY tricky to drill and turn without breakage.

Use only the sharpest drill bits, run them fast, but cut slow.

CA glue on the tubes will break and the tubes come out. Epoxy is more reliable

The high gloss finish that you put on the pen while on the lathe only stays glossy for a very little while. Same with wax. You want them to feel shiney and stay shiney? Spray em off the lathe then assemble.

Of all the kits I did this year (and I did alot) I have to say the cigar style kits were the best. It's the easiest to assemble correctly, no special cuts, no part defects and the result is very attractive to buyers.

I had this pen/pencil combo kit in mass quatities which was a B*TCH to do correctly. Pick your kits with this in mind as a possibility.

Avoid kits with plastic parts! They always break.

If you are thinking of turning a couple every now and then for gifts or fun... you should know the following...There's a learning curve per kit and... you quickly forget... Each year I have to RELEARN how to do them correctly. You really can't turn just one pen of one style/type and expect it to come out just right. It takes a bit of experience to get each pen kit down so that you can do them perfectly. Doing just one or two won't give you the chance to learn the ideosychasies of the kit... or the parameters within which you can do custom shaping. So... buy them in packs of 10 or more. Do the first one very slowly and get your lengths and diameters down just right... the bushings are NEVER spot on. Measure the parts yourself and use plenty of calipers(don't measure with the lathe on... calipers catch). Taking the time and doing them right really shows. My pens are way preferred when compared to a POS wooden pen made by a machine or even a jewelery store bought overpriced name brand.

First craft show for the year starts up tomorrow. The display is all setup. The response I'm hearing from the organizers is very favorable for a big sell off. Even the other exhibiters are talking about buying.

Interestingly, this is definitely a case of YMMV:

Agreed! Although a sanding disk does a pretty fair job, too.

Only blanks I've ever had break (except a couple of the resin-impregnated Dymondwood blanks) - and only when turning, not drilling were wood. All other plastics and other materials have turned like a dream. Can't overstate the importance of SHARP tools, though.

I was taught, run slow, cut slow, which supposedly minimizes friction/heat build-up and wandering. Maybe that's why I've never broken a drill bit while drilling. Don't know, they seem to wander most of the time anyhow.

Only bond I've ever had break was epoxy. Cured epoxy is a brittle material, as is normal CA. Personally, I swear by either Gorilla Glue or the flexible, or rubberized CA glue, both of which allow for differential expansion and contraction of unlike materials. I think Gorilla Glue is absolutely the best, though, but messy to work with.

Agreed, particularly the friction finishes. The exceptions to this are: CA glue finish, lacquer, sanding sealer, varnish.

Also agreed, although some waxes will last longer, like pure carnauba. And carnauba can be re-buffed by the owner several times before it is all worn off. Lots of folks around here prefer the natural wood over a plasticy-looking wood. Best thing to do with wood is to sand with the highest grit sandpaper you can find, even up in to the thousands, if you can find it. The shinier the wood, the shinier the finish. I don't even put a finish on cocobolo pens, other than a coat of Butcher's Bowling Alley Wax, and they maintain a nice, warm glow forever.

The above finishes, applied and buffed out on the lathe, seem to work pretty well, too.

In this area, I can barely give that size away. Most folks like the slimline, but made a little beefier, with some taper to the barrel, not straight cut, like they show in the models in the catalogs. But the cigar pens don't seem to be much of a hit.

"Location, location, location..."

-- Chuck *#:^) chaz3913(AT)yahoo(DOT)com Anti-spam sig: please remove "NO SPAM" from e-mail address to reply. <

September 11, 2001 - Never Forget

Duh...

That should say, "Maybe that's why I've never broken a pen blank while drilling."

-- Chuck *#:^) chaz3913(AT)yahoo(DOT)com Anti-spam sig: please remove "NO SPAM" from e-mail address to reply. <

September 11, 2001 - Never Forget

Hi: There are many lathes that you will hear about. I use a Nova 3000, but if I were going to start and turn pens and small items, I would get the Jet Mini that is now on sale.

The kits that I would start with and still use are the slimline kits from several suppliers. They are easy, inexpensive, forgiving as far as tolerances are concerned, and can be used for many variations.

The tools that you use are basically those that you are most comfortable with. I have used spindle gouges (one of the favorites of many people), skews. roughing gouges. The tool that I now use from start to finish is a 3/8 bowl gouge ground with a swept back grind.

You can get tools at Craft Supply, Packard, Woodcraft, and many others. The kits and mandrels and bushings are also sold by these companies as well as PSI and Berea Hardwoods. I'm sure there are some suppliers that I have missed.

Dive in and have fun.

Since I've been using StickFast Thick CA, I have not had any break, and that's with over a 1000 pens.