Peppermill Blanks

[Peter Meacham]

Does anyone have a source for cylindrical shaped peppermill blanks please?

I have seen them in shops with some laser engraving and also on-line but they are already engraved. They are about 14” high or so. I think they would make a nice Christmas or other occasion gift but I would like to get some blank ones for engraving. Thanks, Pete

[Jerry Allen]

Peter,
I just posted this on the Turners forum:

"I went to Costco yesterday and picked up a giant peppermill for $22.
Kind of disheartening after spending almost that much on wood and parts for the ones I made myself, which of course does not include my labor.
It's pretty nice for the price. Made of what looks to be hevea or rubber wood. It's 21" tall by ~3.25" max. Item # 207413.
(I'd post a picture but the upload server is down. Will post later.)"

It's pretty big, so it probably won't fit a rotary. You can still engrave specific curved areas by limiting the engraving to a a couple of inches wide or making the designs more or less linear parallel to the height.

Also includes 2.5 oz. of pepper corns.

[Peter Meacham]

Thanks Jerry, I am going there today and will check it out. I should get a lathe and turn my own. Would I be able to get maple blanks of the size necessory for a peppermill or would I need to glue up some stock. Pete

[Jerry Allen]

There are stores online that sell blanks. They are usually laminated as the wood needs to be ~2.5-3" sq. Sometimes the same blanks are sold for mills or rolling pins. Blanks are about $20 and more that I've seen. You can certainly do better than that.

There are some in this link that I did. Scroll to the bottom for the engraved ones. http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=67921