first time turning DIW

[sorcerertd]

So, I finally turned some DIW. This is a blank that I bought from @Ironwood Bill. I like it. It turns nicely, though it's definitely hard and dense. I did have a very slight chip-out. It was more like a little scratch that I filled with CA. The clip covered it pretty easily. Other than the finial, I kept it pretty simple. This blank didn't need any help looking good. This is a Diamond Knurl rollerball kit in antique brass. I sanded to 600, used the 3 lower grit zona papers (dry) to shine it up, then finished with pen's plus. For anyone interested, there is a pic showing the final part (pun not intended) of how I make the finials. I leave about that much "stem" on it, then cut it with a utility knife.

edit: for some reason, on the last couple I've posted, the site just picked a random pic for the thread preview instead of the first one.

 

[BULLWINKLE]

Great job !

 

[jttheclockman]

What is DIW?? ( Desert Iron Wood?)

 

[1080Wayne]

Beautiful piece of wood !

 

[Alan Morrison]

Excellent.

 

[rherrell]

My favorite wood, I like to make the body from DIW and the cap from antler, a real man's pen!

 

[KenB259]

Gorgeous wood for sure.

 

[Hippie3180]

Amazing piece of wood and I like that knurled detail. Beautiful pen.

 

[derekdd]

Beautiful pen. Well done.

I just turned a couple of the Diamond Knurl kits and really like them.

 

[sorcerertd]

What is DIW?? ( Desert Iron Wood?)

Yes. I probably should have spelled that out at least once in the post. Apparently it's a member of the legume family. That's one beautiful beanstalk!

My favorite wood, I like to make the body from DIW and the cap from antler, a real man's pen!

I've not worked with antler yet, but never really thought to use it as an accent. That's intriguing.

 

[egnald]

It is one of my top favorite woods. Gorgeous pen. I really like the cabochon. Dave

 

[Todd in PA]

Great pen!
I'm quickly becoming a wood snob. DIW and cocobolo are some of my favorites. I guess I'll add Lignum Vitae, even though I've only turned one pen. Super hard. Cuts so easily. Polishes right up.

 

[Todd in PA]

I do my finials the same way. Bonus tip: you can also use that stem to polish the button…

Custom Finial Question

Hi! 🙂 I’ve made custom finials before. Just a few. I just take the extra cutoff, hot glue it to a 1” dowel, and get to work. In order to avoid having end grain at the top of my pen, I turn it 90 degrees to glue it. But this pen, desert ironwood, would splinter when the carbide touched the end...

www.penturners.org

 

[Stephanie]

So, I finally turned some DIW. This is a blank that I bought from @Ironwood Bill. I like it. It turns nicely, though it's definitely hard and dense. I did have a very slight chip-out. It was more like a little scratch that I filled with CA. The clip covered it pretty easily. Other than the finial, I kept it pretty simple. This blank didn't need any help looking good. This is a Diamond Knurl rollerball kit in antique brass. I sanded to 600, used the 3 lower grit zona papers (dry) to shine it up, then finished with pen's plus. For anyone interested, there is a pic showing the final part (pun not intended) of how I make the finials. I leave about that much "stem" on it, then cut it with a utility knife.

edit: for some reason, on the last couple I've posted, the site just picked a random pic for the thread preview instead of the first one.

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Beautiful!