Corn Cob blanks

[The Falcons Quill]

Helped a family member clear a field of corn at the end of last year. He uses if for heating fuel.

I saved a 5 gallon bucket of the dried corn cobs to try stabilizing. These are smaller 5-6 inch cobs, no more that .75" to 1.0" in diameter.

I have never tried to make own blanks like this, what is the best way to stabilize them? Should I try using cactus juice like in burls? I feel like it would be a waste as they would soak up a lot.

Just looking for a step in the right direction for expanse of knowledge here.

 

[lyonsacc]

They do use a lot of juice. Cut them to size first. Cut each and square - you will get a look at the core of the cob, see if it has a gap in it. Some have holes/gaps in the center, you may want to toss those.

 

[Mr Vic]

I take my cob from the dining table to the shop. Let them dry a couple of weeks. When ready to use them I cut to length, drill and drizzle thin CA down the hole before gluing in the tube. If good with a skew go ahead and turn on the lathe or take them down to near size with a disk sander. I use UHMW Plastic cones and drizzle thin on the outside, turn down as necessary and apply more thin as necessary (when you have dry corn cob) then you can do a CA finish

 

[jttheclockman]

http://content.penturners.org/library/pen_blanks/corncobpen.pdf