A couple from today

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I started both of these yesterday and finished them up today. First time for both kits and I was happy with how they turned out.
The first one is the Berea Hardwoods Hymark in 24kt Gold. Interesting kit and I had some issues with the assembly which I'll discuss below.
The wood is Koa and though there is some Curly in it the photo doesn't really do it justice. This pen holder was made for my daughter in law who has MS and uses sharpie markers to write with. The pen holder is big, it takes a 14 and 15mm drill bit for the blanks. There was a discussion about this kit a while back so I'll give my opinion on it, BUT, it's just my opinion and I respect the opinions of others.
1. Build instructions- 4 pages of a lot that doesn't need to be put in the instructions.
2. The lower barrel parts don't need a press (at least on mine). They have to be glued in place with CA whereas the upper blank requires a press.
3. You'll probably need an offset jig to square the tubes and a set of transfer punches.
4. I use a specific type of drill bit and they are very expensive ($83.00 for both) but there is absolutely no drift and the entire bit is HSS and they are made in the USA.
Total cost for the pen was $167.00 and some change (that includes the Rick Herrell off set jig at $45.00). That's a lot more than I expected and would normally spend, but it is my daughter in law :) .

bereamarker.jpg

Pen two is a PSI David Broadwell Art Deco Fountain pen. This is for my son. The wood on it is Cherry with a special story behind it that I won't bore you with. I will say that I did struggle with this kit, but not in the turning and assembly. I really wanted this pen to POP in a big way. I tried imitation Ivory, not good. I tried Mango with Bronze built into the blanks, again a no hitter. I tried Brass and Bronze together and it didn't work either. So I just ended up with a special piece of Cherry that I know my son will love. It is a very nice kit I will admit.


artdeco2.jpgartdeco1.jpg
 

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magpens

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Gorgeous pens !! . Gorgeous story !! . Tell us the rest of it !!

And also please tell us more about the drill bits ... are they "parabolic" by any chance ?
 

MPVic

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Dec 23, 2011
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613
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Hamilton, ON, Canada
I started both of these yesterday and finished them up today. First time for both kits and I was happy with how they turned out.
The first one is the Berea Hardwoods Hymark in 24kt Gold. Interesting kit and I had some issues with the assembly which I'll discuss below.
The wood is Koa and though there is some Curly in it the photo doesn't really do it justice. This pen holder was made for my daughter in law who has MS and uses sharpie markers to write with. The pen holder is big, it takes a 14 and 15mm drill bit for the blanks. There was a discussion about this kit a while back so I'll give my opinion on it, BUT, it's just my opinion and I respect the opinions of others.
1. Build instructions- 4 pages of a lot that doesn't need to be put in the instructions.
2. The lower barrel parts don't need a press (at least on mine). They have to be glued in place with CA whereas the upper blank requires a press.
3. You'll probably need an offset jig to square the tubes and a set of transfer punches.
4. I use a specific type of drill bit and they are very expensive ($83.00 for both) but there is absolutely no drift and the entire bit is HSS and they are made in the USA.
Total cost for the pen was $167.00 and some change (that includes the Rick Herrell off set jig at $45.00). That's a lot more than I expected and would normally spend, but it is my daughter in law :) .

View attachment 236396

Pen two is a PSI David Broadwell Art Deco Fountain pen. This is for my son. The wood on it is Cherry with a special story behind it that I won't bore you with. I will say that I did struggle with this kit, but not in the turning and assembly. I really wanted this pen to POP in a big way. I tried imitation Ivory, not good. I tried Mango with Bronze built into the blanks, again a no hitter. I tried Brass and Bronze together and it didn't work either. So I just ended up with a special piece of Cherry that I know my son will love. It is a very nice kit I will admit.


View attachment 236397View attachment 236398
What's your finish, Tom?
 
Joined
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Gorgeous pens !! . Gorgeous story !! . Tell us the rest of it !!

And also please tell us more about the drill bits ... are they "parabolic" by any chance ?

Mal, I get my drill bits from a small store in Great Falls "The Tool Box". The drill bits come from a company called ICS out of Wisconsin. I tried to find the page on their catalog website but couldn't find them. These are HSS and the bevel is 135 degrees. I've tried all kinds of drill bits in the past with not great results. What I had to do was oversize my blanks to allow for drift. With these drill bits I don't do that anymore as there is absolutely zero drift. Plus if you have a drill doctor you can resharpen them as the entire length of the bit is HSS.

Very nice, both of them. I don't know about others, but I, for one, would love to hear the story about the cherry.

Jim and Mal
I'll keep the story about the Cherry brief. My son had no respect for any of his teachers during his 1-12 grades, except for one, his wood shop teacher. My son is extremely intelligent (gets it from his mom) but never applied himself in school and was never challenged. So he did just what he needed to do to pass his classes especially in high school. His shop teacher wasn't that way and pushed him, and he loved the challenge. When his shop teacher retired he opened up a sawmill business and that's where I met him although I didn't put the two together. The Cherry tree was given to me and Warren, the sawyer, milled the lumber for me. A few years later I was talking to Warren and mentioned that my son was going in the Navy, Warren was a Navy Vet also. He had a wall with all his customers names who were on active duty. He asked for my son's name so I told him. He got a smile on his face and asked me "So how's the punk doing". He remembered my son and was highly complimentary of him. Warren passed in 2015 so when I told my son about the story the Cherry meant much more to him than just a piece of wood.
 
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What's your finish, Tom?

It's really easy Mark. I just went back to what I knew from the past. It's 4 coats of Wipe on Poly that I put on with a blue shop towel, let sit overnight. Sanded down with 00 steel wool and one last very light coat of WOP, let it sit overnight. Last step, put some Minwax floor wax on the blanks and buff on the buffing wheel.
 

howsitwork

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Might try that finish Tom as it looks good.

Its the history that makes some things special and I know your som will treasure that momento from you , and his teacher
 
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I have been eyeballing that Broadwell Art Deco Kit but haven't bought one yet. Thanks for sharing.

It's a nice pen for sure. I asked my son what he wanted for Christmas and after much deliberation this is what he wanted. Little late getting it to him but I'm sure he'll like it. I will say I bought it from PSI and it was 30% off so I was really happy about that.
 
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Might try that finish Tom as it looks good.

Its the history that makes some things special and I know your som will treasure that momento from you , and his teacher
It's a real easy finish Ian. Back in my furniture days I used a gel WOP and I always had good success. I can't find it anymore. This is all done on the lathe and I use the WOP as a friction finish. And a $10.00 investment goes a very long way. I'm still using the same Minwax floor wax that I got 30 years ago. I think it's regenerating in the can. šŸ˜‚
 
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