hey pen turners

[Ned Bulken]

what are good sizes for blanks for pens etc? I'm looking to cut up some scrap for stock for when I get my lathe later this year so I have stuff 'ready' when I get around tuit.

[Tom Mullane]

Generally pen blanks are cut to 3/4x3/4xx5.5".... some pens are better done on 7/8x7/8".. but those are bigger fountain pens...

[Blake McCully]

Ditto what Tom says. You might want to add 5/8" X 5/8" by 5.5". These would be great for the smaller kits like slim lines and such and not too much stuff on the floor.

Just my two cents.

[Ned Bulken]

thanks guys,
having never turned a single piece, pardon the silly quesion, does QS White Oak turn ok?

[Mac McAtee]

thanks guys,
having never turned a single piece, pardon the silly quesion, does QS White Oak turn ok?

Sure most anything will turn OK. Even bowling balls. However, you will quickly find that not every piece of wood that looks great as a table top is suitable for pen blanks.

For pen blanks you want wood that has some very interesting grain patterns that are very compact. In a normal pen you end up with a piece of wood that is around 1/2" in diameter when the pen is finished. Some smaller some a little larger. It doesn't give you much room to show off the wood. Most oak has very plain grain. the quarter saw figure on a round surface that is 1/2" in diameter will get lost. Spend your time and money on burls, exotics, crotch grain, look over scrap piles of other woodworkers.

Cut one pen blank from that quarter sawn white oak and make a pen. See what you get before you cut up a whole bunch of it for pen blanks.

[Ned Bulken]

So... mahogany, cherry etc... gotcha. I have a BUNCH (right fred?) of QS oak scraps, all about the right length, which would be easy to rip into the right dimensions otherwise. All free, so no investment there.

[Tom Seaman]

Ned,

If your oak scraps (and the other 'non-figured' pieces you have) are wide enough, you might try cutting the blanks at an angle so the grain runs about 45 degrees across the blank instead of parallel along the length of the blank. This should result in an attractive grain pattern on the finished pen that might have a little more interest than the straight rip, which can be relatively plain when turned down to something as small as a pen.

Tom

[Chris Hare]

you might also want to combine wood types. I try to layer diffrent color woods to make a more interesting look. I have found that "plain" maple and Walnut make good contrast.