New pens + value?

[Joash Boyton]

Hi, I got a nice big shipment of these pen kits. European rollerball kits I think...
The one with extra add-on on the end--whats it called?? is Spalted Wattle, and is slightly bulged. The perfectly straight one, is Marri... The purpose of this thread, is to make sure they are made correct, and.....

I know how much slim-lines are worth, but these I don't. They will be sold at FORM (http://www.FORM.net.au), it is one of the most biggest major art galleries in Australia, in-other-words, very expensive, and these pens will most likely end up in Sweden or Europe (like my other work)....FORM will take 50% of the price....how much do you think these should sell for? What are they worth?...I am talking about the value of each finished pen, not the price of these both together....

If you can be of a help, that will be much appreciated,

And before I forget. They are sanded to 1000g, and finished with shellawax cream. These are only like my 4th pens that I've made of these kits....

Thanks,

Joash

[John Hart]

I'm clueless on pen prices. I've sold similar styles for $50 US....but I don't know why. My personal preference is for the slightly bulged look. Nice pens!:)

[John Miliunas]

Joash, I'm with John H. on my preference being the one with the more "bulged" look. On pens like that, you want to emphasize the wood as much as possible and give it some good heft. The target buyer will most likely be the executives of the world and size matters! :D

I think John's pricing is spot on but, only if selling directly to a consumer. Having taken a peek at what type of product FORMS sells, I'd say closer to $70.00 or $80.00 USD would be closer to the truth. Simply, it looks like high-end product and, people shopping there expect high-end product at a high-end price. Heck, I wouldn't be surprised if $80.00 may actually be a bargain at a place like that! :)

One criticism, if I may: When making and assembling the pens, be sure to mark both halves, so that the continuous grain remains continuous completely through the process, including assembly. By that I mean, once the pens are complete, assembled and in their "closed" state, the grain should match up from the top to the lower part. Particularly on the one I like better, it almost appears that the upper and lower parts could've come from two different pieces of wood. You really want to make it look like a single piece, with only a break for the center band.:)

Let us know how you make out on that! It will be interesting to see what the Euro market commands for items like that. Best of luck to you with it.:) :cool:

[Bernie Weishapl]

Joash I like the one with the bugle. Even on my slimlines I put a slight bugle on them and they seem to sell better. Nice job.

[Tom Kluck]

Joash I like the one with the bugle. Even on my slimlines I put a slight bugle on them and they seem to sell better. Nice job.

I guess I'm not alone. I find my slimlines "look right" with a very slight bulge at the tip and a very, very slight waist at the band.

I've given away dozens of pens as gifts but never tried to sell the things. Can you realy get back more than the cost of your materials? How?

I briefly sold hand made fishing rods on consignment in an up scale sporting goods store and netted less than $2 an hour.

[Curt Fuller]

I've given away dozens of pens as gifts but never tried to sell the things. Can you realy get back more than the cost of your materials? How?


Like Tom, I've made quite a few pens and given them as gifts. In my own opinion though, if I were buying a pen that was in the high dollar range ($80-$100 and up) I would expect more than just a pretty piece of wood. I would want one of the high end pen kits with some gold or engraving, something like the Statesman Limited Edition pens from CraftSupplies or something similar. And as John said the wood would need to match perfectly and have something unique about it to bring the value of the pen closer to the price.

[Joash Boyton]

Thanks for all the help, will keep it in mind.

The pens are European rollerball pen kits, and are gold plated with 24K Gold. I have made the pens, so that the grain lines up. I did'nt line them up in the photo. The wattle does'nt perfectly line up, as it has bulges, and their is so much grain in the wattle that it does not line up....am I understood? The Marri one lines up perfectly. I have been turning for 4 years, so I know how to get a perfect finish with zero scratch marks, so I can say that these pens are top knotch...

Does the burl in the background detract from the photos? Overtake? I usually use my photo studio, but thought a nice burl as a background would look nice too..... It is a flooded gum burl, 40" wide, by 5" thick. Huuuuuge. It will be entered into the 2007 Australian Working with wood show.....;) :D
As for the bulges, I quite agree, I think it is very nice for pens to have them, I personally make every single one of my slim-lines like that, see photos below. Pens are Lace Sheoak, and Padduk(spelt right:confused:)

And I am making some videos of my turning, still doing adjustments etc:

<<<sample photos below>>>

Thanks for all the comments,

Joash