These pens are huge

[Ernie Nyvall]

A classmate of '72 ordered these Statesman pens and I had not turned any before. I had no idea they were so big... heavy too. I like-'em.

This is also the first time I've used these burls. I forget the names... I think one is thuya and the other amboyna, but when I got finished sanding and burnishing, they were pretty shiny, so I just buffed them. The wood seemed real oily, so I wasn't sure a finish would last long anyway and I figure they'll have a smoother transition to that natural patina from usage. If I'm totally off on this, please let me know.

Ernie

[Dick Parr]

Great looking pens Ernie. I have never turned any of those. Nice job.

[Brad Schmid]

lookin' good Ernie!

[Keith Christopher]

WOW Ernie ! Awesome looking pens !

[Jim Ketron]

Nice pen Ernie!

[Bill Stevener]

Great looking pen Bernie. Don't do pens, I do like the wood.

Bill.>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>:)

[Bernie Weishapl]

Pens look great Ernie. Great work.

[Jim Dunn]

Very nice Ernie. Course those must statesmen of yesteryear. These limp wristed so called elected
(wait gota stop here as this may turn in to a political thread, don't want that ).

Jim

[Andy Hoyt]

Real nice Ernie.

They are big! Wonder if you could put a spell checker in there somewhere.

[Cecil Arnold]

really good looking pens Ernie.

[Ernie Nyvall]

Real nice Ernie.

They are big! Wonder if you could put a spell checker in there somewhere.


Okay, Th...U...ya.

Thanks everyone for your kind words.

Ernie

[Bill Pealer]

Great looking pens. I have turned several and really like the size and weight. The statesman is very elegant. The burls really make this pen stand out.

[Keith Burns]

Great pen Ernie !!:)

[Jeff Sudmeier]

Ernie, that looks like a wonderf pen. I am sure your classmate will be proud to use it!

[George Conklin]

Very nice, Ernie. Did the burl pose any problem while turning? I thought I had heard somewhere that burls needed to be stableized before turning. Yours turned (pun):rolleyes: out great.

George

[John Hart]

Very handsome pens you got there Mr. Nyvall. They have "Class" written all over 'em. ;) :)

[Dave Dionne]

Where did you get the kits? I like the looks of them.
I just turned acouple of Ambonya burl pens last week, The do take a nice gleam to them when sanded down to a fine grit.
I am sure your old classmate will love them.

Dave

[Mike Vickery]

Those are beautiful great work.
As far as pen finishing you will find alot of different opinions on that. If you want look at http://www.penturners.org/forum/forum.asp?FORUM_ID=27 for some ideas. But beware you will find arguements over the best type of paper towel to apply CA with.
Currently CA glue and Deft seem to be the 2 most popular. I personally usually use CA but some find it to shiny or plastic looking. Your method should develop a beautiful Patina just like you said and keep the "wood" look,but will not offer much protection against abuse.

[Bob Noles]

Ernie,

Great job on the pen. LOML has been after me to make her one of these styles for her calligraphy. I may have to show her yours as a model to pattern her's by. I really like it.

[Ernie Nyvall]

Very nice, Ernie. Did the burl pose any problem while turning? I thought I had heard somewhere that burls needed to be stableized before turning. Yours turned (pun):rolleyes: out great.

George

George, I used a skew after I got the blank round and kept it very sharp. I took maybe 1/128" off with each pass. With this kind of burl though, I still left it a little thick and sanded it down. Very sharp tools and I'm still learning the right one for the job helps out a bunch.

Ernie

[Ernie Nyvall]

Where did you get the kits? I like the looks of them.
I just turned acouple of Ambonya burl pens last week, The do take a nice gleam to them when sanded down to a fine grit.
I am sure your old classmate will love them.

Dave

Dave, the kits are from woodturnerscatalog.com. The kit is called Statesman.

Bob, I was surprised that the kits are straight forward and as easy to turn as the slimlines... no special cuts as in some of the Americanas. Assembly was nice too in that the parts that pressed into the tubes are long and seat well. I wouldn't turn anything but a straight barrel for this particular pen.

Thanks again everyone.

Ernie

[Blake McCully]

Ernie,
Great looking pens. The only thing I don't like about the statesman pen is the cost of the kit. The gentlemen's pens are basically the same size but a lot more reasonable in cost. I figured I'd have to charge so much for the satesman that I don't think my market could take it.

Did you get your burls from Bill BaumbecK? He's got great stuff.

[Ernie Nyvall]

Ernie,
Great looking pens. The only thing I don't like about the statesman pen is the cost of the kit. The gentlemen's pens are basically the same size but a lot more reasonable in cost. I figured I'd have to charge so much for the satesman that I don't think my market could take it.

Did you get your burls from Bill BaumbecK? He's got great stuff.


Blake, I know what you mean and I don't have these lying around waiting to be made. Someone saw them in the Woodturners catalog and ordered them. They didn't blink at the price and they could have ordered any one of the styles. That works for me.

Hey, where do I find Bill Baumbeck?

Ernie

[Corey Hallagan]

Very nice looking pens. I have a piece of Amboyna I am saving for when I can do a nice pen! Great looking Pens and finish. I will be interested in how your natural finish comes out and if it get more and more polished from natural use. From what I have heard, you would have to seal the wood if that oily prior to putting any finish on. Then you could lacquer it or whatever you want to do. Or so I have read :) Bill B is the owner of Arizona Silhouette, a pen and turning supplier:
http://www.arizonasilhouette.com/

Corey