Making pen boxes

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penbros

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i dont know i never tryed it. C'mon everyone help this guy out. i dont like it when people ignore topics. u look for an answer to your question but you look back and see that u never got helped. you get sort of a left out feeling[:(]
 

PenWorks

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Scottsdale, AZ
Well I never made a pen box,nor would I want to,for as cheap as I can buy them.
I have made a pen chest or two.
That being said, Peter has made some real nice boxes, check out his photo album
and drop him a note.

http://www.penturners.org/forum/photo_album_cat.asp?sqldtl=1456
 

Daniel

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Reno, NV, USA.
I've heard of the idea a couple of times, have even seen a few from time to time. I have never seen it really catch on though.
the method of hinging a wooden box seems to be a big problem.
my favorite out of the ones Ihave seen is simply a block of wood with a groove routed in it with a bull nose router bit. make two of those then sandwich them together to make the top and bottom of a box. looks to me like you could make a batch of those in fairly reasonable time. sorry I can't help more but as I said, the idea has been tossed around a few times but nothing really seems to catch on in a big way.
 

wood-of-1kind

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Toronto, ON, Canada
Mike and others,

making a nice pen case is not difficult but it can be time consuming. As Anthony has mentioned, relative to their low selling price it's not worth it for most to make their own. The only pen case that I've made a slight profit is my Emperor style case which I've been selling for $10. Most penturners cannot justify paying for that much for a custom made case unless it sells for a high price such as an Emperor pen. Difficult to justfy adding this much to the selling price of say a $30 to $40 cigar. I've seen some nice attractive cases in the $3 to $4 from Craft Supply, Arizona Silhoutte and others.

The reason why I insist on making my pen cases is to say that I've crafted a special case to house a personal pen creation JMO.

-Peter-[:)]
 

wood-of-1kind

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If you insist on trying your hand a making your own pen box, this may help. Cut to width your desired size (mine is 2" wide) and 3/4" thick. Rout a groove to hold your desired pens (remember some are thicker than others) in both upper/lower lid. I use a 3/4" CORE BOX BIT since this pretty well covers all pen sizes that I make. Cut two(2)end caps. The size of the end caps must match your desired width and height. Insert a pin (nail is OK) on each end of the caps. I find that pop rivets serve best as hinges. If using pop rivets, trim to appropriate hole depth. Tap a matching hole on both the left/right side of TOP lid (not the bottom). Do a dry run to ensure that your parts will mate with each other and will look pleasing. Once satisfied with your results,glue your end caps (L&R) to the BOTTOM portion of your lid. I repeat, BOTTOM only. The top lid must not be glued since the pop rivets must swing freely that are inserted in the top lid and the corner quadrant of the end caps. The pictorial should help to visualize the completed box. Enjoy building.
-Peter-
200673201350_makeabox1.jpg
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20067320149_makeabox2.jpg
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200673201423_P7030003.jpg
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JimGo

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Jan 24, 2005
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North Wales, PA
Very pretty box Peter; thanks for sharing your technique and experience!

What wood is that? Looks like Bubinga to me, but I'm not sure.
 

DWK5150

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Illinois, USA.
I have made a few of my own boxes. Not really all that tough if you have a router table. I make mine to match the wood of the pen. You manly only need a round nose core bit to route your slot for the pen but I dont go all the way through on the ends so then you dont need to fit any endcaps. Pretty simple. Hinges I get from woodcraft just drill small hole and your good to go.
 

vick

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Gilbert, AZ, USA.
Originally posted by JimGo
<br />Very pretty box Peter; thanks for sharing your technique and experience!

What wood is that? Looks like Bubinga to me, but I'm not sure.

Looks like we can start the guessing game. I guess Brazilian cherry and walnut.
By the way I love this design and have planned on trying it but just have not got time yet.
 

wood-of-1kind

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Originally posted by JimGo
<br />
What wood is that? Looks like Bubinga to me, but I'm not sure.

The wood used to craft the box is MAKORE (African wood). Glad that you like it. Here's a better looking pic of my latest makore box.
-Peter-
20067402038_P7030001.jpg
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