David,
I believe there was an article in Woodturning Design a year or two ago. I will see if I can find it and let you know.
As far as turning a corn cob pen, it is not as bad as it might seem. Go to Tractor Supply and buy a bag of feed corn. A 10 lb. bag costs less than $5.00. Break off all the kernals and do with them as you please. Cut and drill the cob just like any other blank, then glue in the tube. Thick CA or Gorilla Glue, both work just fine.
On the lathe, turn the fuzz off of the blank. Soak it with Thin CA. Make sure you have a <b>FULL FACE SHIELD</b> on. DAMHIKT!!![B)]
You can hit it with a little accelerator, but I did not.
Turn it down some and hit it again with Thin CA.
Continue this process until you get to the shape you want. BTW, I like Cigar Pens best for corn cob.
I also use a little Yellow aneline dye on a Q-tip after sanding before any finish. I use CA for a finish on my corn cob pens.
Good luck!!