Pocket Pen Baseball Bat Prototypes

[Tea Clipper]

Unfortunately, getting the good baseball bat pen kits from England is often an exercise in futility. As an alternative, I experimented with the pocket pen from CSUSA. While not as good as the UK kits for this purpose, they don’t look half bad either. I know bats are made from ash and maple, but I didn’t have these on hand so I used cocobolo for the top two and fiddleback eucalyptus for the bottom two. The top ones are 6.75†and made from two blanks, the bottom one is 4.75†long. Since these are prototypes, I made them in alternating configurations. Which config do you like best?

Thanks for looking,

 

[Bob A]

Nice job on all of them, but I like the top config. the best.

 

[vick]

2nd one down is my favorite.

 

[Draken]

How balanced are the top ones to write with? That may determine the better method of the two.

Cheers,
Draken

 

[CameronPotter]

The ones with the handle know would annoy me if they were on the writing part (I am guessing). Also, I suppose that they might feel too short in the hand?

Thus, I would say you should house the pen in the long end of the bat with the handle as the cap.

Nice pens though!

Cam

 

[Randy_]

Originally posted by Bob A
<br />Nice job on all of them, but I like the top config. the best.

Me too!!

I'll bet Don is going to like those when he sees them!!!

 

[Tea Clipper]

The bottom pen I think visually looks the best, but it is too small to be practical.
The top pen is top heavy as expected, but not enough to be consider a problem, imho.
The middle pens are compromises. I think the configs with the handle as the cap are
'backwards' but seem to be the most practical.

 

[Jim in Oakville]

Originally posted by vick
<br />2nd one down is my favorite.

Same here!

 

[its_virgil]

How'd you know I would like these, Randy?[] Actually I like the top two and the bottom one. I think a hybrid of the top and bottom will look the best....long bat and shorter handle. Having made a few bat pens (but not from the pocket pen kit) I found getting the correct porportions to be the most difficult. They must look good and they must be comfortable when used. Nice job Ron, and you will get the proportions worked out and the pen will be great looking. You may even find some maple and ash somewhere soon...watch for the wood fairy.[8D]

Someone posted a bat pen from these pocket pen kits 6 or 8 months back. Ron and I have both searched to find the post and neither of us had any luck. Anyone want to offer any help?

do a good turn daily!
Don

 

[DCBluesman]

Try this one. http://www.penturners.org/forum/topic.asp?ARCHIVE=true&TOPIC_ID=1854

 

[its_virgil]

Thanks Lou. But, that's not the one I'm thinking of, I don't think. We shall keep looking. Maybe the poster of the pen will lead us in the right direction. It was not long after the pocket pens came on the scene, I think! Now I'm confused, I think.[]
Do a good turn daily!
Don

Originally posted by DCBluesman
<br />Try this one. http://www.penturners.org/forum/topic.asp?ARCHIVE=true&TOPIC_ID=1854

 

[Tea Clipper]

Lou,
I've seen that post from Anthony several times and I've always seen bullets. Just now I noticed that there is indeed two bat pens hidden in there! Well I'll be... but they aren't quite the same as mine. Perhaps Don, these are the one's after all?

 

[Spike]

I like the second one down from the top. i like the whole idea, but i agree with Don that they are out of proption. keep at it you doing a great job.
also I have lots of maple and ash if you are interrested.( i have way more than i need.)

 

[its_virgil]

Could be, but I don't think so. I don't remember them being posted by Anthony...I do now remember Anthony's bullet and bat pens. But the one I'm thinking of is like yours and, as I remember, looked very proportional. Oh, well, you're on the right track and your proportion problem mayn be solved soon....remember, the wood fairy may pay you a visit and I hear the bat fairy travels with him.
do a good good turn daily!
Don

Originally posted by Tea Clipper
<br />Lou,
Perhaps Don, these are the one's after all?

 

[GBusardo]

Nice idea! Is there anyway you can make the split nearer the top of the barrel? Maybe it will look like a trademark on a real bat, this way you can make the barrel thicker and have a longer actual writing pen, with out increasing the length. Brings back memories of an old softball bad I had. Very thin handle that ballooned to a very thick barrel almost immediately. the barrel was straight across, which woul dwork out great for a pen. Good luck!
Gary

 

[Tea Clipper]

Thanks everyone for your comments. Spike, thanks for the wood offer but the wood fairy is already helping me out.[]
Since the longer ones require two blanks, what if I used african blackwood for the handle; would it look like a taped grip?

 

[Spike]

ok.
i say leave it all solid one color.