Prickly Pear Cactus Duro EDC set

[mark james]

I finished these last night and just assembled a few hours ago. The yellow back-painted one I chatted about previously. I had just enough of the blank left for another EDC pen as long as I used the "modified" dimensions as others have described (discard the white extender atop the refill and shorten the tube by about 1/2").

For both blanks, I painted the inside of the blanks after drilling and painted the tubes, let dry overnight. Tinted my epoxy with the same color and let set overnight. After turning, I finished with Glu boost, 3 coats of each, then applied some Mcguire's Plastic Polish.

Yellow Testor's Enamel. Red, yellow and Blue Testor's Enamel mix to get a dark ugly color.

 

[DrD]

Really nice job Mark!

 

[MRDucks2]

I like them both.


Sent from my iPhone using Penturners.org mobile app

 

[Dalecamino]

I think they both look great too!

 

[EBorraga]

Very Nice. Those are some LOOKERS!!

 

[Alan Morrison]

Never come accross prickly pear cactus in my neck of the woods but they certainly make a unique looking pen, and bound to be a talking point next time you pull one out at a board meeting. I like different and thse pens fit the bill. Great job, Mark

 

[John Eldeen]

I think I like the yellow one even more now that it is together. Not a fan of the dark one though. The prickly pear does make an interesting blank for sure.

 

[Sly Dog]

I like em both but prefer the dark - I like the contrast and depth it brings out! Beauties!

 

[bsshog40]

Those are awesome Mark! That black one looks 3D! Sweeeet!

 

[KLJ]

Both are very nice I like the dark one the best.

 

[mark james]

Never come accross prickly pear cactus in my neck of the woods but they certainly make a unique looking pen, and bound to be a talking point next time you pull one out at a board meeting. I like different and thse pens fit the bill. Great job, Mark

G'Day Alan. I bought these several years ago (I still have a second blank) from a famous gent in Texas - MesquiteMan. I do not know if he makes these blanks anymore. They were not cheap, but for what he needed to do to clean/prep the cactus carcass, it was not overpriced (I've made 1 or 2 custom blanks... I understand the time commitment). These were perfectly cast and turned nicely. I have been wanting to use them for a special order, and my brother wanted 10-15 of the Duro EDC's, so I dug one out. I prefer the dark background, but as we have read - the consensus is split between the Yellow and blackish backpaint.

 

[budnder]

I vote for the dark one. I like the clear cast with the colored background. Makes me want to try a cholla that way.

 

[Dieseldoc]

Mark:
Great work with both , however in my court the dark one is king.

 

[TattooedTurner]

Both are very cool looking Mark. I give the edge to the dark one because I like black, but I'd be happy carrying either one. Really nice job on these unique pens, and a great example of how backpainting can completely change the look of a blank.

 

[mark james]

I vote for the dark one. I like the clear cast with the colored background. Makes me want to try a cholla that way.

I turned 2-3 cholla a few years back and they were just not my cup of tea. I have a friend that resides close to Tucson, and while we hiked 2 years ago I got to see dead prickly pear cactus. I have a hard time imagining what Curtis (and others) need to do to prep these blanks. I could see the dead cactus, with stones, dirt clumps, bits of material in between each layer. The matrix is wonderfully detailed. Very refined as compared to cholla. A very unusual blank to be sure. Time to appreciate what nature presents us, either alive or dead.

And I also favor the darker background.

 

[johncrane]

Very nice pens Mark!