How to turn a wooden pen on a lathe

Have you ever wondered how to make those awesome wooden pens? Well here is how you do it. At first the making of a American pen (that is this kind) will take you about a hour and a half but once you have made a bunch you can make them in 15 minutes.

Step 1 Supplies

For this Instructable you need these supplies. Most of these tools you can substitute for something else cheaper.
Lathe
Skew (the tool that you turn the wood with)
Wood ( i'm using yellow heart one of my favorites)
CA glue or Super Glue (thick and thin if possible)
Mandrel to hold the pen on with 3 bushings
Sand paper
Pen Kit or you could use pieces from a old pen that you don't use anymore
Paper towels
BLO (boiled linseed oil)
Drill press or equivalent
Clamp
Optional:
Micro mesh to get the super shine
Beall buffing system to put on a awesome finish
Pen press

Comments

[keaton4]

An actual "skew" chisel will likely leave as good a finish as you will get straight of a tool, as it cuts with a shearing action, where as a scraper, well it scrapes and tends to tear the fibers more than actually cut them. As well most turners regard the scraper as a tool for face work and not center work, such as pen turning. A properly ground and sharpened spindle gouge does very well also. But a skew is ideal, as it truly shines on spindles with either straight or gradually flowing lines and will produce a finer finish than most any other tool.

The Crown "Skewchigouge" is sort of a version of a skew, and it's easier to cut with and produces good results. It's very affordable too. I often will use just it to turn out a run of 20 or 30 pens, as it's just easy to use and cuts better than most anything except a true skew.

Also, you may want to try backing the speed down a bit. I find I have good results @ 800-1000rpm when initially rounding the blank, and 1500-1800rpm when shaping.

[Superninjacamper941]

Thanks for the feedback, I will definitely have to try out the "Skewchigouge"!

[Wi11]

Nice pens but that's not a skew, it's called a round-nose scraper. Still, it's name doesn't matter. All that matters is that this method works well for you (oh, and safety too, lol).

[z-man6233]

Dude just totally made a pen out of purple heart wood it rox thx for the ible

[sssssbooom]

I love turning pens I am a senior in high school and I have made many pens for my self, friends, and family and I have sold a couple too. I love to turn acrylic pens also they are fun to make really shiny. But when I make pens I never go past step 7. Putting CA on it is something I have never heard or thought of sound like it might make a tougher finish I will have to try it. here is a pic of some of mine from right to left red hart, ash, pink acrylic for my sister

[timd2]

About how much did you sell the pens for?

[qwerty987]

they are sold at Mt. Vernon for $95

[sssssbooom]

Man I wish I could get that much for mine. That would be a sweet job.

[qwerty987]

George Washington planted that tree.

[sssssbooom]

Well, I didn't sell those exact pens (they were for me and my family members.) but I have sold some acrylic pens for $30 before.

[Superninjacamper941]

Nice

[qwerty987]

I know someone who makes pens for Mt. Vernon for $95 that are from a tree George Washington planted.

[squirrelMLM]

 I have been wood turning pens since I was about 7 or 8 with a lathe that we have in our basement. So I've been doing this for a while, and it is great fun. I'd say the best pens I made were out of Corian, which is kind of like marble feeling, but it has many colors and of course a bit softer to turn. I also would recommend making pens out of bloodwood, which is a brilliant red, and cocobola wood, which is kinda, well, CocaCola colored. The bloodwood kind of smells bad and the cocobola is very hard to turn. The Cocobola broke a few times when I tried to use it, but it was awesome when it was done. 

BTW, good job with the instructable :D

[yyeessno]

Do you think that you would have more control/get a better finish using a gouge?

[chavhaha]

"a good way to test it is by running your finger on it". This is a very good way, it must be the best way I know to find sharp edges :D (from experience :D)

[thecookiemonster]

if you want a cool look get about 5mm ply wood and layer it gluing it with high quality wood glue so when you turn it on the lathe you will get a really cool banded effect also if you are looking for the hardware for a pen check out ebay!!! awseome project!!! cm

[Clayton H.]

I watched a movie on how to make one of these pens in woodshop (I think the guys name was Carmine , and his arms and hands were so hairy that you could only see his fingers! Thats how hairy they were) any way... I made my pen and I messed it up TWICE! because I went to thin and it broke but I fixed it and now my friends are jealous because I gots a sweets pens nows.

[Superninjacamper941]

Cool I have blown out (messed up went to thin) a few pens myself but you can put the messed up blanks in acetone and get the tubes from the wood.

[Clayton H.]

When i mesed up in woods class, i just took the BIGEST gouge i could find and just "lathe" it off.

[Superninjacamper941]

Cool

[Clayton H.]

Now, since I'm ahead of everybody in woods, my teacher is letting me make another pen. This one is going to be made out of walnut.

[hedgiehog]

cool, im already in the process of making a pen from paduak

[Superninjacamper941]

cool good luck!!

[turner22]

I'm 14 and I just started turning. i haven't done pens yet, but I made asweet throwing top out of firewood as the first piece I ever turned. it's real pretty.

[thecookiemonster]

do you own your own lathe or is it in school?

[turner22]

My grandpa gave it to me for Christmas, it's an old Craftsman, almost an antique.

[thecookiemonster]

nice!!!

[Superninjacamper941]

own it : )

[lucille08]

You've got my vote for the workshop of the future contest. Great job

[ihsuf]

cole is tha shznit hahahahha

[Bright Shadow]

...and I just saw this on How It's Made. Good job explaining!

[Superninjacamper941]

Thanks how its made does it differently with the finish

[ravebot]

odd timing i just made a ton of pens for Christmas presents, i made myself a purple heart fountain pen =)

[Superninjacamper941]

I gave most of them away as Christmas presents also.

[uguy]

Very well done ible. Great looking pens. Thanks for sharing.

[Ibanezfoo]

My wife and I also make these. I have a couple things I would add. If you are going to use a drill press, keep in mind the spindle stroke. The blanks for these types of pens are ~2.5" and most bench drill presses have a spindle stroke of less than 2" so that means you have to drill a little and then lift your table to drill the rest, which is sometimes easier said than done. The longer one piece pens are even more difficult to drill. I like your idea of drilling on the lathe and would like to see the jig you use to hold the blanks! Another method of finishing which makes a nice glossy and protective coating is a friction shellac like Mylands. Just sand to 600-800 grit and rub it on with the lathe off. Then start your lathe and use a cloth to polish and buff the finish. It hardens very quickly with the heat caused from the friction. A few coats with rubbing with steel wool in between gives a nice super glossy durable finish. If you haven't tried it yet, I recommend giving acrylics a shot! When you sand them down to 12000 grit or so they are really neat looking. Just make sure to use really high speed and really sharp tools or the acrylic explodes when you try to shape it. Other things I've made with this method are bottle stoppers, ceiling fan pulls, drawer knobs, ring holders, etc.

[Superninjacamper941]

My dad has tried doing acrylics and thanks for the tips. I did not know about the drill press thanks. I use a Super Nova chuck and drill accessory.

[Ibanezfoo]

Oh yeah! People love getting these as gifts, especially when they know you made them yourself. Even multiple times because of the vast variety of wood and exotic stuff, acrylic, and styles of pen kits. They wait to see what cool thing they will get next!

[canida]

Those are gorgeous! Beautiful work.

[mynameisjonas]

absolutely beautiful! I have to make one of those