Holy Wood

[Todd in PA]

I received a wood blank that simply said "maple". It's not any maple I'm familiar with. It is very light wight, but was difficult to cut (very hard). I glued it up and turned it down to rough size and then discovered three voids in it. What's the plan?

I was thinking that I could dust some black Mika into the holes and fill them with resin. Perhaps those with experience here will have more attractive solutions.

 

[wolf creek knives]

Crushed Opal would look really nice. Just one of many solutions I've used. You can also use sanding residue too.

 

[KLJ]

I use sanding dust when I want to try and let it not be as noticable. Coffee grinds works good for a darker look .

 

[Dale Lynch]

Looks like 2 of the voids go all the way in.my idea would be to take a piece of tape,line up the edge to the 2 holes and spiral it around the rest of the blank.Then take a dremel or drill get a bit large enough to round out the holes and create some additional ones using the tape edge as a guide.Then fill it with a colorful mica,pearlex,crushed stone,metalpowder,etc,Create a neat little dotted spiral out of it.Don't know how easy it would be ,but it's an idea.

 

[Joebobber]

I would use sanding dust as well.

 

[magpens]

Where do you buy those accessories ...... colorful mica, pearlex, crushed stone, metalpowder, etc. ?

 

[Dale Lynch]

Mica powder and pearlex can be gotten from Mica Powders – The Epoxy Resin Store

Crushed stone and metal powder can be gotten from Natural Stone, Glass And Crystal Inlays For Decorating Woodturnings | Craft Supplies USA

I'm sure there are other places as well.

 

[jttheclockman]

It is a maple burl. Burls are harder.

 

[Todd in PA]

Thanks for the advice, boys. I really went back and forth deciding whether to blend in the voids with sawdust or accentuate them with mica/pearl/color. I ultimately chose the former.

Did I make the right call?

 

[Dale Lynch]

Can't even tell they were there,good job.

 

[Joebobber]

Good job. Very nice pen for sure! What guage aluminum did you use?

 

[Todd in PA]

Good job. Very nice pen for sure! What guage aluminum did you use?

It was from a can of Red Bull. Calipers say it's 0.1 mm.

 

[RunnerVince]

It was from a can of Red Bull. Calipers say it's 0.1 mm.

I can't believe I never thought of using aluminum cans as a source material. Finally something to do with all those Cherry Coke cans!

 

[Todd in PA]

I can't believe I never thought of using aluminum cans as a source material. Finally something to do with all those Cherry Coke cans!

It was pointed out to me that when you sand aluminum and other soft metals, the metal dust will get into the grain, ruining your beautiful clean wood. Therefore, if you add aluminum, don't sand the barrel.
I used a sharp skew as a scraper to get this pen smooth and went straight to CA finish. Once it's sealed, I did use micro mesh on the finish.

 

[Ironwood]

Bit late for my reply, looks like you did a great job with the repairs, it's not obvious that it's been repaired, so that's a success.
A lot of the woods I use, that have the voids that need filling, seem to have a black, or very dark edge on the void. I usually use sanding dust from Ebony or another dark wood, or if the void is large, coffee grounds work well. I use CA to bind it all together.