Pen # 2, Kingwood & Tulipwood Comfortgrip

[BigRob777]

Well, I got my barrel trimmer in, so my 2nd pen doesn't have the CB gap issue. I like this pen, but wasn't totally happy with the straightness of the barrels (I like more contour). I bought bushings for the cigar pens I am trying next, so that shouldn't be such an issue. Some day, I'll do my own CB. I have tons of ebony and holly. I'd love to try a pine cone core for a CB sometime. I see a lot of things that are wrong with this pen, but I'm still happy with how it looks for my # 2.

I took Jim's advice and left off the comfort grip, especially since my wife wanted it off. I tried to do the finger rest thing from memory, though I never paid much attention to them. I should look some up, to see how to do them. Then again, I do kind of like this. I never liked them on other people's pens, but I knew the pen would slip right out of my wife's fingers if I didn't do one. This is her "advertisement pen" for work. I'm already getting people asking for a card or something.

Edit: Just a note, the background is curly redwood. I doubt if it would be much good for pens, but I'm going to make some projects out of it.

 

[alamocdc]

Looks like you did a fine job on it, Rob. It sounded like you weren't fishing for comments and I can respect that. Concerning the finger rest, there are more styles than there are pens just about. It's really a matter of finding one that works for you and your customer base. You'll know when you get comfortable with one. Keep up the good work, Big Guy. []

 

[JimGo]

Congratulations Rob, that's a big improvement! Not that the first one was bad, but you can see a lot of nice changes. I like the grip end; I think you did just fine. I bet Claudia will be very pleased with it! Congratulations!

 

[BigRob777]

Thanks Billy and Jim,
I reworded the original post, to encourage comments. Lou has helped me immeasurably, as have many others, who have given me tips. Claudia loved the pen. Neither of us have ever had a nice pen and she feels like she's royalty. Wow, if that's all it takes, I should have taken up pen turning years ago.

I think I'm going to try a Yellow Cedar Burl Cigar pen next. That stuff turns so nicely, and is not open grained. It has gorgeous birdseyes in it. I love mixing woods and am champing at the bit to try some inlay or veneer, but I have to bide my time. I reused the tubes from my blow-out for this one. Thanks, whoever gave me that tip (I just can't remember).

 

[ctEaglesc]

Interesting combination of woods.
As far as teh curly redwood, Asusual Ifrom what I am looking at, there is a lot of "rays" in it and it appears as though a cut other than straight grain would make an interesting pen.

 

[BigRob777]

Eagle,
I'll try it out. I will eventually be cutting peg blanks from it, so I'll take a chunk and use it for pens. The growth rings are so tight on this wood. I just knew that the curl is way too big for pens. I find it interesting that one of my childhood memories is the redwood with the tunnel carved out of its middle. That was so amazing. I'm getting some more redwood burl in, but not enough to sell.

I do like the contrast in these two rosewoods. They also share a similar base color of violet. Besides, my wife picked both woods and couldn't make up her mind which she wanted, so I used them both. I might just try that laminated blank I told you about. It isn't anything like yours, by any stretch of the imagination, more like thick non-uniform stratawood, with multiple woods, instead of dye.

 

[Dario]

Rob,

That is a nice pen.

I too just started experimenting with "finger rest". It really helped hold the pen and feels good to use...though I personally don't like how it looks (on my pens atleast). []

 

[BigRob777]

Dario,
I know what you mean about the look. I don't like them either, but I have to have something, as my fingers produce almost no oil.
Thanks for your compliment.

 

[Deere41h]

Rob........Your in trouble now. Second pen complete and it turned out real nice and now the wife is selecting the wood for you!! Both big areas of concern. Looking forward to seeing the next.

 

[BigRob777]

John,
I figured it was the least I could do, after all, she has to put up with me. She keeps staring at it and turning it around in her fingers. Besides, I always figured to get someone interested in your interests, you just have to get them invested in it. I want to start trying all kinds of things. MDWine has me looking at cruddy old antiques, that are beyond repair, for wood. I have a carving made by a kid in Africa, that a friend gave me (he was a missionary there), because it broke in two. It is made from iroko. That will make a few pens too. It reminds me of partridgewood in its mechanical properties. Hmmm, that mouse is looking pretty interesting[:0] Edit: (computer mouse)

 

[mick]

Great looking pen Rob! You're on the road now, and got Claudia riding along selecting woods and stuff...lol. Do me a favor tho...don't get so caught up in pen turning that you don't have time to cut blanks...[]

 

[DCBluesman]

This is an excellent second pen. The improvement in the fit is quite obvious and the sanding/finishing is noticeably better than your first. I hope you continue to find things "wrong" with your pens. That's true motivation to keep at it!

 

[BigRob777]

Lou,
Thanks coach. That means a lot to me. This seems to be the only part of my life in which being a perfectionist comes in handy.[]

Mike,
Since you mentioned it....http://www.penturners.org/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=9044