Congratulations Scott and Alan and many thanks to everyone that participated and sponsored and voted in this event. Now, here is more than you wanted to know about my entry:
This is a Berea WCO-145-SRG-1, Cigar (Fat) Bright Copper kit which is dressed in a segmented blank made with SimStone Malachite (reconstituted stone), strips of 16 oz. (24 gauge) Copper, and Ironwood from the Sonoran Desert in Arizona all glued together with epoxy. The blanks were turned using the Improved Cigar Pen Kit Bushings (EKB-11A) designed by Ed Brown of Exotic Blanks. Compared to standard bushings, these make a subtle yet significant improvement in the fit between the lower blank and the center band.The pen was finished using a GluBoost CA (Cyanoacrylate) regimen followed by wet sanding and light buffing.
For more than 30 years, the Cigar style pen kit has been adapted by companies and sold under various names. The original design can be attributed to Gary G. Voorhies, (02/04/1942 - 06/10/2002), the founder of Woodcrafters of Oklahoma. His retail hobby business catered to hobbyists and wood crafters. Gary produced the Cigar kit in conjunction with Berea Hardwoods Co. Inc. sometime in the early 1990's and its WCO part number continues to be a reference to Woodcrafters of Oklahoma.
Sonoran Desert Ironwood (Olneya tesota) is endemic to the Sonoran Desert. The species was first described by botanist Asa Gray in 1854 as the sole species of the genus Olneya. It an ancient species that is believed to have evolved as the Sonoran Desert was formed about 15 million years ago. In addition to being an ancient species, the wood itself can be incredibly old as it is essentially non-biodegradable and can persist without decay for more than 15 centuries.
Malachite is a naturally occuring copper carbonate hydroxide based mineral. It is green, opaque, and often has darker visible bands running through it. Like the Ironwood, it too is found in the great Southwestern United States. In addition to it's obvious ornamental use, Malachite can be smelted as an ore to extract copper metal.
Copper is a metal that has a reddish color, is ductile, and is an outstanding conductor of electricity and heat. Copper is also a chemical element, Cu on the periodic table, that can be found in it's free metallic state in nature.
There are connections between all of these materials that inspired me bring this pen together starting with Sonoran Desert Ironwood which came the same region is where Malachite can be found. And Malachite is connected to Copper as it is a Copper bearing mineral which lead me to the Copper plated kit and of course the Cigar style is one of my favorite kits and is truly one of the venerable styles as it was one of the very early types of pen kits manufactured.
In addition to the relationships between the materials, I really liked how the banding in the Malachite seemed to line up with the grain in the Ironwood as you can see in this picture.
Best Regards,
Dave
