Say what you will … love a bit of Polaris

[KDM]

I can't knock the one-piece pen. To be honest, I'm getting more enjoyment out of filleting, slicing, and dicing. Turning the pen is an almost secondary thing, which takes only a fraction of the time of preparing the blank.

 

[sorcerertd]

Those look great. You've definitely invested some time in the blanks and it shows.

 

[mark james]

I couldn't agree more on the turning time.

I am doing some simple segmenting pens - nothing extraordinary. Maybe 20 min invested in the blanks, but turning is about 4-5 minutes, sanding 4-5 min. Don't ask about my finishing process... (I do a Wipe On Poly over 1-2 days...) Any increased time for segmenting will not alter the actual turning time, just the blank construction time. It's good that I have no social life and my wife sighs in relief when I waddle downstairs to the shop.

 

[KenB259]

Totally agree, making the blank is way more enjoyable and fulfilling than turning the pen.

 

[TDahl]

Very nice work.

 

[1080Wayne]

Hi Ken . Delighted to see that you still like one piece pens , and having fun in making them more complicated . Decided to make some Luxor pens before Christmas and one of the blanks I chose was one of your N Ireland castings . Before I got it drilled the cat decided it would look better on the concrete floor , where it broke . (The cat got more air time than the blank did before reaching the floor !) My repair attempts didn`t look great on the finished Micromeshed barrel , so I turned it off . Still have a couple more of yours , so will probably try again .

 

[KDM]

Hi Ken . Delighted to see that you still like one piece pens , and having fun in making them more complicated . Decided to make some Luxor pens before Christmas and one of the blanks I chose was one of your N Ireland castings . Before I got it drilled the cat decided it would look better on the concrete floor , where it broke . (The cat got more air time than the blank did before reaching the floor !) My repair attempts didn`t look great on the finished Micromeshed barrel , so I turned it off . Still have a couple more of yours , so will probably try again .

Wow. Can I get a good closeup photo of the broken edges, please? I'd be keen to see if it's become brittle with age. If those are my polyesters, I probably cast them about 10 years ago. I have no idea how long the material should last!

 

[KDM]

Maybe 20 min invested in the blanks, but turning is about 4-5 minutes, sanding 4-5 min.

Some of these blanks took 2 or 3 hours to make. ... and discard ... and remake ... I probably spend 20 or 30 minutes turning.

Don't ask about my finishing process...

These are all slightly different.1 and 2 are oiled and waxed. 3's a friction polish, 4's thick CA and many grades of sanding, 5 friction, 6 CA, 7 oiled and waxed.

I do like the glossy CA finish, but it doesn't "feel" like wood!