Hello from Houston

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K

kalki

Member
Joined
Jun 27, 2020
Messages
4
Location
Houston
Just wanted to say hello and thank you for letting me join your group. I've decided I want to try my hand at pen turning. I haven't used a lathe or shop tools since I did woodworking in high school, so I am beyond rusty. I figured I would start with some books and videos and maybe sign up for some classes to see if I feel comfortable enough before buying equipment for my garage/workshop. I really love pens, so it seems right that maybe I can eventually make my own at some point. Wish me luck and I'll take all the suggestions I can get.
Ben
 
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Hi there, Ben !! . Welcome to IAP !! . 😀

If you are a pen lover, then you might be intending to make fountain pens.

And if that is the case, your love might be to make fully customized pens.

And then .... my suggestion would be to consider buying a metal-working lathe which offers some advantages over a wood-working lathe for that kind of activity. . You can always use a metal-working lathe to turn any kind of a pen. . A metal-working lathe might seem to you to be a somewhat daunting initiation on several fronts, but I can assure you that it is not at all difficult. . I started turning pens on a metal-working lathe more than 10 years ago and I would not change my course of experience in any way. . The initial price may be a little higher but the cost of the tooling is, in fact, lower. . You can get started with a metal-working lathe for around $600 - $700. . One of the nice advantages right from the get-go is in drilling the pen blanks .... you can do that with superior accuracy on a metal-working lathe and never have to buy a drill press.
Happy to offer any advice !
 
Welcome Ben. It is exciting making your own pen, and then for your friends and then more and then it gets overwhelming. :) IF we can help in any way, just ask.
 
magpens said:
Hi there, Ben !! . Welcome to IAP !! . 😀

If you are a pen lover, then you might be intending to make fountain pens.

And if that is the case, your love might be to make fully customized pens.

And then .... my suggestion would be to consider buying a metal-working lathe which offers some advantages over a wood-working lathe for that kind of activity. . You can always use a metal-working lathe to turn any kind of a pen. . A metal-working lathe might seem to you to be a somewhat daunting initiation on several fronts, but I can assure you that it is not at all difficult. . I started turning pens on a metal-working lathe more than 10 years ago and I would not change my course of experience in any way. . The initial price may be a little higher but the cost of the tooling is, in fact, lower. . You can get started with a metal-working lathe for around $600 - $700. . One of the nice advantages right from the get-go is in drilling the pen blanks .... you can do that with superior accuracy on a metal-working lathe and never have to buy a drill press.
Happy to offer any advice !
Click to expand...

I appreciate the advise and will look into this suggestion. It sounds sensible to me as I do in fact prefer fountain pens above all others and want to make ones made of both wood and other materials. If I can. One step at a time, I know.

Thanks to everybody for your responses!
Ben
 
Texas Taco said:
Welcome from the Conroe area.

Woodcraft @ 1960 has restarted their classes, not sure of the Southwest store.
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I looked at the SW location because it is closer. I'm high risk for Covid though, so I won't consider doing any classes for a while. I'll probably start with reading and watching instructional videos for the time being. Thanks.
 
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