My Thoughts on Freedom Pens

Hi All,

First, I just want to say this is a wonderful project. I, like many others, really appreciate our troops and veterans, and never take our freedoms for granted. During the first Gulf War, I sent several care packages addressed to "Any Service Person". I was quite disapponted to learn that dueto security reasons, packages must be addressed to specific service people now. This is a way for us to show our appreciation for their sacrifices, and maybe brighten their day a little. Now, to my thoughts.

Quality vs. Quantity - I know that if I use less expensive kits, I can send more pens. However, I think I would prefer to use higher quality kits. I want to send pens that look good and that I know will last. I'm leaning towards American style kits, because of their name and the fact that they're my favorite style. And with so many people getting involved, I think we'll be able to easily meet the goal of 100,000 pens. This in no way is meant to detract from those who choose to use less expensive kits, it's just my own opinion. I know that ALL pens will be appreciated, whether a slimline or a sterling silver flat top.

American Hardwoods - I kind of agree that using American hardwoods would be nice. However, unless you use burl, most American hardwoods are pretty bland looking. I do like quarter sawn oak, though, that has lots of "rays" in it. I've also seen some pretty nice local olivewood. Maybe I'll expirament with staining some otherwise uninteresting blanks, and see how they look.

Our Allies - What do you think about including our allies in this project, such as the British troops? I would like to include all that are fighting on the side of freedom. And the British especially, have really stuck by us.

Return Address - I'm going to include my mailing address with each pen. I know that when I receive a gift I really like, I want to tell the giver how much I appreciate it. Some soldiers might want to do that too, and it would be nice to hear from some of them. Then there's always the chance that a pen will get to a service person who doesn't have much in the way of family or friends to write to.

These are just some of my thoughts, and I certainly welcome any comments or criticisms.

Jim Lane

Jim,

I certainly agree with you on the quality issue. The last thing I want to do is have a pen fail or the finish rub off shortly after one of our troops recieves it. I always consider the most costly part of any pen to be my time. A cheap finish pen takes just as long as one with a high quality finish. The cost of the blank, finishing materials, lathe and tools are all the same. I plan to use chrome and titanium finish kits.

Another thing to consider is the basic size of the pen. Slimline kits are the least expensive in general. However, most of the soldiers we'll be shipping to are males. I suspect many of our soldiers, regardless of sex, will prefer pens with a little more thickness and heft. I'm plannig to focus on the Berea Streamlined 7mm pen in chrome because it is a good quality pen with a medium size and weight. It is also a reasonable price, easy to assemble and operates smoothly. The Flat Top American double twist titanium gold is the other pen I plan to make for those folks who prefer a little more heft. This isn't to say that every pen we send won't be appreciated, I'm sure they will. I just want to focus on these based on my personal preferences and desire to contribute a high quality product.

BTW, I have no affiliation with Berea but I do like their products.