Finally - Some Good Pens

[Aaron Hamilton]

I'm happy with these. The vortex continues to suck me in. I've got 5 bowl blanks waiting (I'm scared to start them), countless pen blanks and 10 wine stoppers on order.

This is spalted maple, cocobola & dyed lam (from PSI). The spalted maple is a cigar pen kit, the coc. is a polaris and the other is a funline.

Finish is sanded to 600, steel wool, EE - ultra shine abrasive cream - shellawax, then EE again, then shellawax again. I'm very pleased with the finish.

Enjoy!

[Aaron Hamilton]

critique away...

[John Terefenko]

Aaron

Very well done. You are being sucked in my friend. As far as critiquing goes this is a matter of taste so these are not huge items. Take a look at the top designers in pens and you will see the use of bulges and knobs are rarely if ever used. On the cigar the top portion I feel would look better if it were more thinner or less of a bulge. The same goes for the slimline. I think clean lines is more appealing. As far as the finish goes that is a good biginners finish and most people including me started with it but quickly found out it doesn't stand up to the rigors of everyday use. At some point you will want to try other finishes such as a CA finish or lacquers or polyurethanes. These will be more or less the finishes that will stand up.

But like I said these are personal things so you have done a great job and keep them coming and welcome to the world of pen making.

[Billy Tallant]

Aaron, very nice looking pens. As John said in earlier post, pen making design is strictly personal choice. Different people like different designs. My best pen so far has been a blue dyed box elder on a Wall Street II kit. I put 5 coats of handrubbed polyuethane on this pen. Great glossy finish. My brother looked at it and hated it. Thought it looked too commercial, like something you bought off of the shelf.

I personally like a wax finish. But as John said, it will not hold up. The pen will over time start to wear & gather the natural oils from your hand. This will cause your pen to discolor with time from the original finish. I teach school so I use a pen daily. I'm experimenting right now with a HUT friction wax finish on a pen. I've been using the pen daily for about 3 months now. I can tell the pen is getting darker. Still looks good but the finish is darkening. I sell most of the pens that I make, so I make sure that I tell them about the type of finish on each pen. That way I can make sure they know what to expect.

Keep up the good work, & keep us posted with pics of your turnings...