Open for suggestion on displaying Bog Oak

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Timber Ripper

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Dec 28, 2017
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I received the Bog Oak blanks from TWVAMAN (Ireland)
I'd hate to waste any of this ancient wood with expeirmentation. So I'm hoping someone here can share their experience with this wood. I'd appreciate anyone's suggestions, recommendations or ideas for kits and finish suited to best display these blanks.
They are beautiful, Dark, Dense, Heavy, Open grain 3/4"x6"

-Anthony
 

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greenacres2

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I don't have the pen here to photograph, but my favorite thus far is PSI's Celtic twist in antique pewter. I've used only oil and/or wax for a finish on this wood--just so the hand can come into contact with 65 centuries of wood. I've also done a Jr. George in antique silver that i liked a lot. Burnished and waxed only--was purchased on the day i finished it. I think the Jr. George in antique brass will be nearly as good.
earl
 

mark james

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Hi Anthony. To be honest, my carry pen the last three weeks has been a Stainless Steel Lazerlinz kit (single barrel) - probably 3+ yrs old. With an Irish Bog Oak blank.

I apparently used a satin finish, quite possibly in my "CA Era". It is still in good shape. Very open grain. The oak blank is satin/shiny, no scratches, and in my opinion very acceptable.

So, for recommendations... I prefer Chrome - goes well with most else. If you can snare any of the Stainless Steel kits, by all means do; they are worth the upgrade. I will encourage you to NOT fill the open grains, but to embrace them!

One of the nicest pens with bog oak I have witnessed is this: An IAP Collection Pen. It is course to the feel, open grains, and simply wonderful to handle.
 
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magpens

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I have done several pens in that bog oak from Twvaman and they have been warmly received by my Irish inlaws ! . I was surprised, when turning them, that although the wood is black, it is not nearly as messy to use as, say, African blackwood. . That means you can probably do some segmenting more easily, although I have not done that yet.

Because the blanks are 6" long, you can get two single-barrel pens from each one.

I like the Sierra click, in particular ... the black titanium plating or platinum is my pref.
 

jcm71

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I am with Mark, as far as type of components to use with bog oak. I sell several of the Lazerlinez brand of pens every year made from bog oak. The black and the stainless steel just go together. If you use CA to glue your tubes, make sure you give the glue extra time to set. For some chemical reason it takes CA longer to set on bog oak than it does on other woods. Also, probably for the same reason, I have had horrible luck using CA as a finish on BO. I've used Pens Plus and most recently Odies Oil with good success.
 

Timber Ripper

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Thank you all for sharing your experiences and suggestions. I'm going to check out some of the kits mentioned and place an order.
-Anthony
 

TonyL

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Bog Oak

I made 2: one with CA (high gloss finish) and the other with friction polish (Pen Plus)). The CA finish made it look like black acrylic (no grain showing). The fiction polish preserved the look of the grain and left a natural finish. One was a liberty, coincidently, and the other was a professor/exemplar. Here's the Liberty. I didn't photograph the professor.
 

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jcm71

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I made 2: one with CA (high gloss finish) and the other with friction polish (Pen Plus)). The CA finish made it look like black acrylic (no grain showing). The fiction polish preserved the look of the grain and left a natural finish. One was a liberty, coincidently, and the other was a professor/exemplar. Here's the Liberty. I didn't photograph the professor.

My experience exactly, Tony. Just not pleased at all with the end results using CA.
 

Timber Ripper

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I made 2: one with CA (high gloss finish) and the other with friction polish (Pen Plus)). The CA finish made it look like black acrylic (no grain showing). The fiction polish preserved the look of the grain and left a natural finish. One was a liberty, coincidently, and the other was a professor/exemplar. Here's the Liberty. I didn't photograph the professor.

Nice looking pen!

I like the idea of leaving the natural grain as is and using a friction polish though.
 

walshjp17

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My favorite component set for Irish Bog Oak (IBO) is the Celticus and Jr. Celticus from Jimmy Findlay at WoodPenPro.com. I use Pens Plus to finish as I want the look and feel of the bog oak to be front and center as opposed to the plastic look and feel of CA.

A couple of Jr. Celticus pens:
 

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TonyL

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I should get it out of the car and photograph it. It is easy enough the imagine. I also like idea of making contact with something thousands of years old.
 

Dehn0045

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I have used one piece of bog oak, so am by no means an expert. The piece that I had was almost like charcoal, rather brittle but very black. It turned good, but I tried not to get too aggressive. As others have suggested, I chose the celtic twist for one pen and then did a simple segmented rollester with the leftover. For the rollester I chose to pair it with a green colored piece of blue mahoe -- I figured the Irish folks would appreciate the green. I did CA finish on both. If you use CA then be prepared to do a little extra work to get the pores filled, but I think that it has a nice depth when finished to high gloss.

Sorry for the bad photo quality, I have since improved my photography skills slightly...
 

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Dalecamino

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Plastic look and feel of CA

I guess it just depends on who is receiving the pen. Some people prefer the plastic/lacquer look and feel but most go for the natural feel.

Absolutely a personal preference! I was just offering what I have made with Bog Oak, while funnin' around. I would have used different finishes if I had more than one blank. :biggrin:
 

Timber Ripper

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Plastic look and feel of CA

I guess it just depends on who is receiving the pen. Some people prefer the plastic/lacquer look and feel but most go for the natural feel.

Absolutely a personal preference! I was just offering what I have made with Bog Oak, while funnin' around. I would have used different finishes if I had more than one blank. :biggrin:

Thanks for sharing. I appreciate it. But for some reason I couldn't expand the thumbnail that you included. From what i can see, it looks like a nice pen.
 

Dalecamino

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Plastic look and feel of CA

I guess it just depends on who is receiving the pen. Some people prefer the plastic/lacquer look and feel but most go for the natural feel.

Absolutely a personal preference! I was just offering what I have made with Bog Oak, while funnin' around. I would have used different finishes if I had more than one blank. :biggrin:

Thanks for sharing. I appreciate it. But for some reason I couldn't expand the thumbnail that you included. From what i can see, it looks like a nice pen.
Ahhh! I copied that from my photo album. It's an oldie! Try this link
IAP Home - Photos - Curved Metal Segment
 

Timber Ripper

Member
Joined
Dec 28, 2017
Messages
374
Location
Burlington, NJ
Plastic look and feel of CA

I guess it just depends on who is receiving the pen. Some people prefer the plastic/lacquer look and feel but most go for the natural feel.

Absolutely a personal preference! I was just offering what I have made with Bog Oak, while funnin' around. I would have used different finishes if I had more than one blank. :biggrin:

Thanks for sharing. I appreciate it. But for some reason I couldn't expand the thumbnail that you included. From what i can see, it looks like a nice pen.
Ahhh! I copied that from my photo album. It's an oldie! Try this link
IAP Home - Photos - Curved Metal Segment

Wow! Outstanding!
I could not see how beautiful that turned out from the thumbnail.
Maybe I WILL try a CA or a poly dip.
Bravo Bravo:biggrin:
 

Dalecamino

Local Chapter Leader
Joined
Jan 2, 2008
Messages
14,568
Location
Indianapolis, In.
Plastic look and feel of CA

I guess it just depends on who is receiving the pen. Some people prefer the plastic/lacquer look and feel but most go for the natural feel.

Absolutely a personal preference! I was just offering what I have made with Bog Oak, while funnin' around. I would have used different finishes if I had more than one blank. :biggrin:

Thanks for sharing. I appreciate it. But for some reason I couldn't expand the thumbnail that you included. From what i can see, it looks like a nice pen.
Ahhh! I copied that from my photo album. It's an oldie! Try this link
IAP Home - Photos - Curved Metal Segment

Wow! Outstanding!
I could not see how beautiful that turned out from the thumbnail.
Maybe I WILL try a CA or a poly dip.
Bravo Bravo:biggrin:
LOL! :biggrin: I wasn't looking for that. But thanks. I just wanted to show you another possibilty. Good luck!
 

Twvaman

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Feb 1, 2017
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Ireland
These are nice looking pens. If anyone is selling, I'm might be interested in buying a few. Pm me with pictures and price.
 
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