First allow me to say that There is absolutely nothing I Do that anyone on this site could not do with imagination ,curiosity, persistence and attention to detail.
I believe those traits are common in anyone who wishes to work with their hands to create something they can be proud of.
That being said.
Recently Gary G posted a pen made from a blank I made called woven wood.It has also been posted on other sites.
One reply on Woodnet by a poster named American and Proud disturbed me.
I called a couple of newsstands to see if they had the magazine and finally located one at a new woodworking store in Columbia.
After work I Drove over and shelled out my $7.00 for the magazine and took it home to read how someone else made the blanks I have been doing recently.
The $7.00 was a waste.
There were two articles about making blanks.
One was about the recently popular but misnamed Celtic cross.
I have been doing a variation of that design for over two years and chuckled at the convoluted method the author used to achieve the effect.If one wanted to find a way to make a patterned blank that left the most room for error he captured it.
The idea of singeing the purple heart was interesting though.
The second article about a blank with wavy stripes looks very much like a test blank I made three years ago to see if an idea I had would work.
Again the writer of the Article decided to use the most difficult approach leaving the most room for error in his method.
I am not saying these designs are not any good.
Because I have been working on patterned blanks for almost 2&1/2 years I had had the opportunity to have a lot of mistakes and learned a lot about alignment while gluing, working with, making and dyeing my own veneers.
I am making this post because I am sell pen blanks.
What I don't want is for someone to make a claim that a basic simple glue up pictured in a magazine is the same as a blank I make that is not even close to one pictured in an article.
For anyone who feels that $50.00 is too much to pay for a pen blank, that's O.K. by me.
Not only do I enjoy making the blanks I like to turn them into finished pens to sell.
I work hard and long to make some of my designs and do not wish to tell the world my methods.
Many have considered that selfish.Call it what you will.
The craft of making pens is a very popular one.Everyone who is able to glue a tube into a piece of material and turn it round is potential competition to me.It is only a matter of time until they decide they want to make a pen that doesn't look like it is stamped out like a cookie cutter version that can be made by someone else.
The cost of the materials I use is minimal in the blanks I make compared to my time.I use a multitude of materials(mostly organic) I opt to use aluminum rather than sterling silver sheet. I work a lot with what I call common woods,walnut, maple, cherry and mahogany but do also work with exotics.
I do not cast acrylics but do work with "base" acrylics and plexiglass in my designs.
In closing,
There are a couple of sites I cannot post on.I consider it their loss not mine.
From what I have seen on them there is very little information for me to glean and no avenue for me to offer.
Not because I know it all, but because what I want to make is that which hasn't already been done.
Contrary to popular belief I do believe there is indeed something new to be found under the sun.
I believe those traits are common in anyone who wishes to work with their hands to create something they can be proud of.
That being said.
Recently Gary G posted a pen made from a blank I made called woven wood.It has also been posted on other sites.
One reply on Woodnet by a poster named American and Proud disturbed me.
I was curious as to what type of blanks American and proud was referring to."I can see why , at that price better off making your own.
Sure it takes some time, I guess if I wanted those I'd rather invest my time and use my cash elsewhere.
55 of those would buy a PM 3520B, less if you count the pen kit too.
He does not have too explain,
there are Many tutorials on the web to make those, all free. As I said Woodturning Design Mag. has 5 pen articles alone this issue.
There nice looking blanks, thats for sure, just not worth the cost to me at
least. "
I called a couple of newsstands to see if they had the magazine and finally located one at a new woodworking store in Columbia.
After work I Drove over and shelled out my $7.00 for the magazine and took it home to read how someone else made the blanks I have been doing recently.
The $7.00 was a waste.
There were two articles about making blanks.
One was about the recently popular but misnamed Celtic cross.
I have been doing a variation of that design for over two years and chuckled at the convoluted method the author used to achieve the effect.If one wanted to find a way to make a patterned blank that left the most room for error he captured it.
The idea of singeing the purple heart was interesting though.
The second article about a blank with wavy stripes looks very much like a test blank I made three years ago to see if an idea I had would work.
Again the writer of the Article decided to use the most difficult approach leaving the most room for error in his method.
I am not saying these designs are not any good.
Because I have been working on patterned blanks for almost 2&1/2 years I had had the opportunity to have a lot of mistakes and learned a lot about alignment while gluing, working with, making and dyeing my own veneers.
I am making this post because I am sell pen blanks.
What I don't want is for someone to make a claim that a basic simple glue up pictured in a magazine is the same as a blank I make that is not even close to one pictured in an article.
For anyone who feels that $50.00 is too much to pay for a pen blank, that's O.K. by me.
Not only do I enjoy making the blanks I like to turn them into finished pens to sell.
I work hard and long to make some of my designs and do not wish to tell the world my methods.
Many have considered that selfish.Call it what you will.
The craft of making pens is a very popular one.Everyone who is able to glue a tube into a piece of material and turn it round is potential competition to me.It is only a matter of time until they decide they want to make a pen that doesn't look like it is stamped out like a cookie cutter version that can be made by someone else.
The cost of the materials I use is minimal in the blanks I make compared to my time.I use a multitude of materials(mostly organic) I opt to use aluminum rather than sterling silver sheet. I work a lot with what I call common woods,walnut, maple, cherry and mahogany but do also work with exotics.
I do not cast acrylics but do work with "base" acrylics and plexiglass in my designs.
In closing,
There are a couple of sites I cannot post on.I consider it their loss not mine.
From what I have seen on them there is very little information for me to glean and no avenue for me to offer.
Not because I know it all, but because what I want to make is that which hasn't already been done.
Contrary to popular belief I do believe there is indeed something new to be found under the sun.
