1st turned pen

[dkasprzyk]

Hey All!! I just turned my first pen tonight, and I had to holler WOO HOO! Boy was that fun! I used a pre drilled padauk blank from PSI, and a slimline pen kit. Sanded to 800 grit, then used shellawax for a finish.
I think I am hooked! My wife said she wants me to make a bunch for christmas gifts. Any suggestions on where to get the best deal on penkits? Thanks again for the good stuff on this site!
Dave

 

[JimGo]

PSI's slimlines aren't a bad deal; just make sure you go with the better platings. And that advice carries over to all manufacturers, and to all pen styles. Check out http://www.woodturningz.com for good prices on PSI's kits, and other PSI stuff. Try http://www.arizonasilhouette.com or http://www.woodturnerscatalog.com for other kits and pricing too (both of them make slimlines). Arizona Silhouette resells Berea's kits, and you can buy direct from them as well at http://www.bereahardwoods.com OK, is that enough to get you started? []

 

[Dario]

What Jim said. My favorites are CSUSA and ArizonaSilhouette (for Berea kits).

Another source to check is Beartoothwoods.

 

[Dario]

By the way....check the "Group Buys" that are being sponsored here. You can save as much as 25% that way [^] (well a bit less) but handsome savings never the less.

 

[loglugger]

another is pens of color wwww.pocwoodworking.com
Bob

 

[ctEaglesc]

How about a picture of that first pen?
I wouldn't put much money into your first kits.
Keep making inexpensive ones experimenting with your finishes/different woods,shapes ect.
After a few more pens(20 or so) think about the better platings, more expensive kits.
As far as the sheallawax finsh if it were all that great everyone would be using it.
Take a look at Russ Faifields site and read everything about making and finishing a pen that will be enough to get you started
http://www.woodturner-russ.com/Pen10.html
Snoop around his site there's a lot of great information pertaining to a number of finishes.

 

[GBusardo]

Dave, I think your best bet is checking out www.woodturningz.com as Jim suggested. Try out the "fancy" kits. The fancy centerband is a little more forgiving. Don't be afraid to try some of the other kits also, as your budget allows. For the most part, they are no more difficult to turn than the slims. No one mentioned Micro Mesh yet. The ten or twelve bucks or so you spend on this, might be the your best purchase.
Have fun and try and post some pictures. []

 

[ctEaglesc]

Tangboy has the best deal on MM and he posts here and other sites.
http://www.woodchipshome.com/

 

[Dario]

Originally posted by ctEaglesc
<br />How about a picture of that first pen?
<b>I wouldn't put much money into your first kits.
Keep making inexpensive ones experimenting with your finishes/different woods,shapes ect.
After a few more pens(20 or so) think about the better platings, more expensive kits.</b>
As far as the sheallawax finsh if it were all that great everyone would be using it.
Take a look at Russ Faifields site and read everything about making and finishing a pen that will be enough to get you started
http://www.woodturner-russ.com/Pen10.html
Snoop around his site there's a lot of great information pertaining to a number of finishes.

I agree 100% [^]

 

[kent4Him]

Originally posted by Dario
<br />By the way....check the "Group Buys" that are being sponsored here. You can save as much as 25% that way [^] (well a bit less) but handsome savings never the less.

I've got a group buy that is closing in the next few days. I like the look, quality and customer service that CSUSA provides. <b>www.woodturnerscatalog.com</b> I wouldn't go too cheap on the kits. The 24k kits are worthless. The finish will be off in a month or less. I recommend the Europeans, Americana, or Father Sing in 10k or satin nickel. They range from $3.68-$4.38 per kit plus shipping from my group buy. I believe that I am the only one crazy enough to do a CSUSA group buy for the lower end kits.

 

[ctEaglesc]

Originally posted by kent4Him
<br />

Originally posted by Dario
<br />By the way....check the "Group Buys" that are being sponsored here. You can save as much as 25% that way [^] (well a bit less) but handsome savings never the less.

I've got a group buy that is closing in the next few days. I like the look, quality and customer service that CSUSA provides. <b>www.woodturnerscatalog.com</b> I wouldn't go too cheap on the kits. The 24k kits are worthless. The finish will be off in a month or less. I recommend the Europeans, Americana, or Father Sing in 10k or satin nickel. They range from $3.68-$4.38 per kit plus shipping from my group buy. I believe that I am the only one crazy enough to do a CSUSA group buy for the lower end kits.

He's made one pen and yet to find the finish will be less than it is right after he made it.
Why "experiment on $3.00 (and up) kits when he can "experiment" on kits less than $2.00?