First 3 Cigars - 3 Tragedies - 3 Giveaways (NOT 56K Friendly)

[RSidetrack]

Okay, so I made my first 3 Big Ben Cigar pens ever. Unfortunately at the same time I ran into huge CA finish problems. Not sure if it is temp/humidity, old CA, or what but needless to say these 3 pens took about 3 weeks and not one is perfect But hey - so it goes, I know 3 people that will love these pens despite their imperfections.

So here goes - first one - AR Cedar. This pen went through 3 blanks because every time I messed up the CA I sanded down and it got skinner and skinner and skinner - to the point of starting over. You will notice the end pieces have imperfections on the edges. For this pen the reason is I had no way to barrel trim properly. I do not own a belt sander unfortunately. So first Big Ben and first Giveaway #1 on a Gun Metal/Gold Big Ben kit:

This is the second one I made - it is Russian Olive. You will notice that there are many issues on this one, especially the separation on the CA. I got made, and just assembled it - should not have but oh well. This one is the worst. It is on a Big Ben chrome/gold kit.

This is my favorite, and actually I didn't notice the issue around the center bad until I took the photos Otherwise it would have been perfect - I must have separated from the bushings bad and hadn't noticed to fix before assembly. If only I had a disassemble tool. It is black walnut.

 

[Bree]

I have seen much worse and for a first crack at it you did quite well. I would suggest the following to improve the next batch.

1) Find a CA method you like and follow it religiously until you can get it right. Practice on some plain old turned wood until you can apply it without any issues. I now use a simple thin CA method which I posted somewhere. Not sure of where I found it but it doesn't matter. So all help one another here.

Make sure that you wax your bushings to help keep the CA from sticking to the bushings.

2) Cigar pems that go straight across are easy to turn but don't look as good as those with a little more body which means taper... fatter in the middle tapering down at boths ends. Usually the taper on these is offset from the center so the fullest part is NOT at the very center of each of the tubes. Looks through some PIX here and you will see what I mean. The tapered ones take longer but they feel good in the hand and they look real good. People like them a lot.

3) Practice practice practice. We are all learning all the time.

Good luck!
:wink::wink::wink:

 

[yomanyouahippie]

Look at some of yoyospins cigar pens, he or she has a great shape to the pens.

 

[HoratioHornblower]

For my 2 cents, I would suggest turning between centers. It will save you *tons* of ruined pens, frustration, etc. If you stick with your mandrel, I would go with the suggestion that Bree gave about waxing. That worked fairly well for me. Good luck! (dead centers are cheap)

David

 

[RSidetrack]

Thanks everyone for their input. Believe it or not these pens did at one time have shape but resanding the finish several times resulted in a straighter pen. I had another post on here about my ca finish issues but it is something I had never run into where it kept grabbing fibers from my paper towels.

Turning between centers has been something I have considered previously but I have a hard time getting the sizes right without bushings. I do have a micrometer but it is something I just need to practice more.

Then pens are great looking except the imperfections. I hope to have a perfect batch next time. I have new ca glue coming so I can use it instead of my glue that is a year old.

I agree we are always learning. Keep on turning