1st Older Pens: update

[wudnhed]

Ray, who is on this list also but is the strong, silent, turning type, and I jumped head first into turning pens. Wanted to make X-Mas gifts for family and friends. Well, it turned into an addictive obsessive monster, which I'm sure you all know, that we love. We thought our pens were pretty nice until we joined here and LEARNED SO MUCH from all of you. Now they look pretty crappy to us!!! They are only sealed with Shellawax. My question is, should we try to refinish them or thro the in the back of my closet which has a bottomless pit

Ray and I went thru some 60 pens and took apart about 20 of them. They didn't feel good due to too much sanding, the tip & wood not joining smoothly. I also had "fixed" some blow outs and, to my eyes, you could tell. Mostly you guys are right, we sanded them enough in the beginning so the Shellawax finish doesn't look all that bad. I got invited to sell my pens at a very small craft show this weekend, it will be my first. Nervous and excited![]

 

[JimGo]

IMHO, it's ALWAYS worth refinishing if you think they're special.

 

[ed4copies]

What pen styles are they?

This dramatically effects how hard they are to take apart and refinish.

Cigars are easy, anything with a tenon is nigh impossible.

 

[jjenk02]

If you can take them apart, why not redo them? Sand the old finish off and put a new one on[]

 

[ed4copies]

James in Florida,

You don't see that real often, we posted at the same SECOND!!!

 

[jjenk02]

I thought I was the first one till I hit the submit button. Everybody is just too fast.

 

[wudnhed]

They are all slimlines about 60 of them

 

[ed4copies]

They come apart easily, but if they are 24kt gold, you can replace the "guts" for less than $2.

Depends on the woods - great burls: ABSOLUTELY, Domestic woods with no figure: not worth the effort (IMO)

 

[DocStram]

What ed said ....plus two cents more. If they're exotics, sentimental, or some other value .... disassemble and refinish.

However, as my 80 year old neighbor would say, "throw them in the trash and look the other way". (Not about my pens ... but old stuff I can't bear to part with) Better yet, give them to a principal at a local school. They might make some kids a nice Xmas present.

 

[samuel07]

They are all slimlines about 60 of them

That's a lot of refinishing!

 

[DCBluesman]

Great suggestions above. I offer one more. Do not refinish or toss your first. There will never be another first. I still have mine and it's priceless.

 

[woodbutcher]

What Lou said,
Jim

 

[ed4copies]

Yeah, I'm with Lou, too!!

 

[Rojo22]

My fist pen has no finish on it whatsoever, kind of a tradition of all my woodworking pieces, the first one gets no finish, and my wife gets to keep the first of anything. Dont throw those away, there will be a day where you will want to go back and look at them, and realize just how far you have come......

 

[Paul in OKC]

I made the mistake of giving away my first pen and pencil set. But I kept my first 'non-standard' blank pen I turned. Picked up a tree branch while helping my son rake leaves a few years ago. It was a gold kit. Carry it quite regularly.

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Couple of good knots. Probably go tht emost comments from this pen than most any other when I first started.

 

[RussFairfield]

Whatever you do, DO NOT sell them at a discount. Doing that will establish a new price point for your pens that will take years for people to forget.

 

[broitblat]

If the pens were well sanded/smooth/etc. they will still be attractive even after the Shellawax "wears off". I still have my first pen that was done with friction polish. Although it is not brilliantly shiny, it is still (in my biased opinion) an attractive pen that I'm happy to use and show off.

I'm sure the gifts will be appreciated with or without refinishing in any case, so I say: go ahead and give them as they are.

 

[ashaw]

I still have my first pen that I made at Woodcraft. It stays in my collector's display. It allows me to reflect what I learned and continue to learn. Do not sell it. And I agree with Russ do not discount.

 

[Scott]

Being the perverse individual I am, I of course take a different view of all this! [8D]

No, don't refinish those pens! There are lots of people in this world, and many of those people enjoy things you don't. I guarantee you that your pens with just a Shellawax finish will be just the greatest thing to some people! There are many people who don't like a wooden pen unless they can "feel" the wood. There are enough people like this that even when you perfect the CA finish, you may still want to do a few with a friction polish just for these customers. I have taken to not putting any finish at all on my pens made from Cocobolo, and they turn out beautifully!

Second, sometimes things are well enough, and should be done. I find this a lot in writing, but it works for pens too! Don't keep second-guessing yourself (editing), just finish it and move on to the next one. Yes, you will make mistakes, but you can improve on the future ones. You could go back and refinish those pens, but you would do yourself a favor if you just turned new ones using your new-found techniques.

Have fun!

Scott.

 

[bob393]

I would not refinish my first pens, I might give them a new one, especially if they were family, but I wouldn't refinish them.
My two cents[]

 

[loglugger]

Put a coat or two of wax then buff and they will look like new.
Bob