Sea Shell Pen blank

[edicehouse]

Pen Blank: Sea Shell Pen blank
Vender: N/A
Cost: .....


I got this blank off an auction of Facebook. I notice a couple venders sell them.


The good: When I got these 2 blanks I was excited to turn it, and decided a Rhodium Cigar pen. My favorite pen is probably a Cigar. It was a very cool looking blank with lots of shells. The resin penetrated and bonded to the shells very well.

The bad: The first thing, when I cut the blank on the band saw, there were sparks, so that told me right away this blank was going to be tough turning.

I noticed a lot of voids due to the voids in the shells. The resin was bonded to the shells well, so it is not a case of "air bubbles".

It was rough on my carbide tip. The shells dulled the tip very quickly.

Turning the shells stinks, literally, it smelt about the same as turning antler.


Any questions please let me know.

I would not recommend these blanks, because of the cost, the wearing out of different tools, and the voids that need to be filled with CA. This is far from a beginner blank to try and turn. I did slow, light cuts at high speed. Don't get me wrong I have seen pictures of finished pens, but the risk vs reward (IMO) is not not worth it.



*This is not an advertisement for any vender or blank. The above are my personal opinions, where I got the blank, and the cost. If any feel I am bashing or talking to negative, please understand what I am trying to do is offer a true opinion. My photos are not the greatest, and the pre-turned blank was taken from a web site.

 

[TonyL]

Hi Ed,

I don't see any photos/attachments.

 

[edicehouse]

Hi Ed,

I don't see any photos/attachments.

I didn't include any this time Tony, because I didn't even finish one of the barrels. It was getting to where I was getting close to the ends and didn't want to spray activator on CA where I was filling voids.

 

[Skie_M]

Seashells naturally include bits of rock and sand as they grow ... impurities get inside the shell of the animal and are cemented to the walls by the animals secretions ... these impurities are irritants to the animal. Pearls are created in much the same way, except that the irritant is sitting on top of the animal's internal organs, out of contact with the shell.

These things can include tiny bits of rock and sand that are quartz based. This causes the sparking that you saw. I get the same when working with abalone shell. I have found that the easiest way to shape my shells is with sandpaper or abranet, while turning at moderately high speed. As water won't noticeably degrade the shell's integrity or cause it to swell, you can use water while you sand (don't forget to protect your lathe bed) to reduce heat buildup and protect the bonding resin.

Make certain to seal all the voids after a very good and thorough cleaning, and polish it all the way up to 12,000 micromesh, followed by a good quality polishing compound. Buffing it at that point should have some stunning results!

 

[tonylumps]

The first time I bought 3 blanks.The first one Came out perfect.The next 2 blew off the lathe .I said no more sea shells.Oh and of course the band saw blade was trashed on the first blank.My wife took the pen for herself.She works down the airport so everybody wants one.Bought 2 more.Used a cut off wheel to cut the blank to size.that worked. Then I used an angled air grinder with 60 Grit SP on the lathe at 800 RPM to bring the blank close to the bushings and finished the rest by hand.Came out great.But I will not do that again until the weather breaks and I could open up the garage door with my 30" fan blowing outside.I have Vac at the lathe,Box fan with filter and and Air Filtration hanging from ceiling.The dust was just to much for what I had. Here is a shot of the second pen.