My Latest Pen.....

[Corey Hallagan]

Hi All! The weekend is here!! Well when I got home I put on the second coat of TSW on my latest pen and assembled it. Here it is. It is a Thuya Burl, Brerea Cigar Kit in 24K, Finish is lacquer and TSW. The finish is my best yet I think and I like the shape I got on the blanks. Comments negative and postitive always welcome!

Thanks,
Corey

[Bob Noles]

Corey.....

Absolutely beautiful! What a wonderful job and I really like the looks of that one. Looks like you nailed the fit to perfection and that finish really stands out.

GREAT job!

[Barry Stratton]

From the pictures, it looks like you should send it to me so I can destroy the evidence......

Awesome job Corey, great fit, great finish, you are becoming the PEN MAN!

[Corey Hallagan]

Thanks for the kind words guys. Barry, I have so so much to learn!!

Corey

[Keith Burns]

Great pen Corey:) :) Well done !

[Bernie Weishapl]

Corey that is a awesome looking pen. I love the fit and especially the finish. Corey my friend you have got the pens down and the finish down.

[Keith Christopher]

Corey Looking AWESOME !!! Very nicely done and the finish is amazing !

[Stephen Hibbs]

what is this amazing tsw finish that you speak of? How many coats were needed? That is an amazing shine, I am envious

[Corey Hallagan]

Thanks guys, I appreciate it. Stephen, the biggest part of the shine comes from the lacquer really. This has 3 -4 coats of lacquer on it. The TSW (Trade Secret for Wood) however I am sold on. It is a neat little carnuba wax product and smells like a pinacoloda :). Comes in a little jar and you need only a little dab. It definitely puts the final shine on any pen but it also protects. 2 applications is all you need to do, 12-24 hours apart. You can really see the difference after you apply it. When it dulls if it does, simply take a lint free cloth and buff it and the shine comes back up. Very neat stuff and is owned by one of the pen makers at penturners.com. I like the stuff alot. Some guys use only TSW as their finish on oily woods like Cocobolo etc. I buy it at Arizona Silouhette, a little jar for 8.99. Alot of the big penturners were swearing by it so I gave it a try. Hope this helps. Aslo can be found at Pensofcolor.com, beartoothwoods.com
Stephen, if using lacquer bothers you, try enduro, a waterbased lacquer. You can get small trial size set at beartoothwoods.com. It is a sealer and lacquer set that many penturners use and apply in a similar manner to CA only without the burning of CA and the fumes of lacquer. I am going to get some to try eventually.

Corey

[Rich Stewart]

WHOOOEY! Dats a nice pen Corey.

[Bruce Shiverdecker]

Very nice, Corey.

Keep up the good work.

Bruce

[Chris Barton]

Great pen Corey! The cigar pen may be my favorite to make.

[Corey Hallagan]

Hi Chris and thanks! I agree, I like to make them and actually in my opinion they should recommend cigars for beginners and I think they are easier to make than a straight line pen.

Corey

[Chris Barton]

Hey Corey,

You know, you are dead on about the cigar as the perfect starter pen. I really don't think slimlines are very easy to get right. Plus, the cigar is a pen that always gets lots of compliments and I think is a more popular shape, especially with men.

[Christopher K. Hartley]

Cory, I don't know anything about pens yet but this sure looks nice. Good job!

[Ernie Nyvall]

That is a great looking finish Corey. Nice wood too.

Ernie

[Ed Scolforo]

Corey, first I'd like to say you did a magnificent job on that pen. The wood and finish are beautiful! One thing I can't understand, tho, is why you wouldn't want to go a step further and upgrade to the titanium finish as opposed to the 24K, which tarnishes and wears off relatively quickly. I checked Berea and the price difference was $2.50. I'm sure you would at least double that price difference and then some if you retail it. A pen that classy deserves a nice long lasting plating. Take this for what it's worth, but I personally won't make or sell a pen without at least a TN finish on it.
Keep up the nice work.
Ed

[Corey Hallagan]

Hi Ed and thank you. I understand exactly what you are saying. First I am a beginner so when I bought my firsts kits I bought a number of 24Kt kits to start with along with the Chrome kits. The Chrome finish pens kits I was told are very very durable. So far I have only sold a chrome finish pen for a lady at work. I am watching it will replace if it wears off but it looks much tougher than 24K. I still have a number of 24K gold slimilines and a few gold cigars which I will make as gifts.
Going forward, I will buy Titanium finish for gold and Chrome when avaiable or Platinum if not. I just recently bought a number of Flat Top American Twist and Screw Cap Roller balls. I bought 1 each in 24K gold to make the first pen and then got a number of Tit and Chrome. I made my son a chrome pen that he takes to work and it rolls around on the dash of his truck, in a clipboard or in stores and it has held up wondefully. So anyway, I am upgrading finishes as I go as frankly I like the way the TN gold looks and I like the way the Chrome looks as well.
Thanks Ed,
Corey

[Ed Scolforo]

Corey, I should explain that I also started with 24K kits and totally understand why anyone would. It's all part of the learning curve, and right now, your curve has turned into a straightaway! Still, there are many out there making pens with beautiful wood which is finished nicely and using nothing but 24K kits. I'm happy that you're kicking it up a notch!
Ed

[Jim Dunn]

Corey, nice enough for me to sign the back of my tax return with. Very nice pen indeed.