Soda Can Pen Holder

Make a pen holder from an empty soda can. Its easy to make, cheap and can hold a yearly calendar as well. My first entry. Also, I don't have a digital camera so I took the pictures from a mobile cam. Hope they're good enough.

Materials required:
Empty soda can
Knife
Some playdoh (or any suitable replacement)
Pliers (optional)

Step 1 Cutting up the can

Take an empty soda can. Rinse it out with water so that it removes any traces of soda left in it. Cut off the top off the can using a utility knife. Cut at a plane a little above the upper rim (i.e. the point where the cylinder starts). Also please be careful not to cut yourself while doing this. The easiest way to do it is to push the knife vertically in the top so as to make a hole. Then using the point where the knife meets the can as a lever, twist the knife so that it keeps on cutting more. Kind of how a can opener works.

As you can see in the picture, I had already started cutting the top of the can.

Now you have an empty can and its top. Dispose of the can top.

Comments

[everyday im shuffling, except fridays, i got to get down on friday]

for a perfect smooth edge on the top you can sand the circle top part of the can until you see a cut all the way around, then get a screwdriver and put it into the hole you drink out of, pop off the inner part of the circle and sand the edges for about 5 minutes, takes longer but is just perfect for a pen holder and works great as a cup

hows that for a fast instructable

[pizazz]

 Use a can-opener instead of a knife. works like a charm. I make disposable 'glasses' that way.

[AlfredoSG]

Plus when you use the can opener you are left with no rough edges.

[Salsa766]

What didi you use to stick it on?

[inthefade425]

you can just use like.. double sidded tape.

[fishermanfo]

cant cut through my stupid can

[threecheersfornick]

Using the playdoh as a weight is a great idea... but I still like my method for removing the top; I think it's a bit easier and definitely safer...

http://www.instructables.com/id/The-Crazy-Cool-Can-Cup-Aka%3b-how-to-turn-a-pop-can/?ALLSTEPS

[Punkguyta]

YAY! A hand guilloteen for my desk. Great instructable lol..

[chenkerchops]

good times! I made this badboy but used blu-tack instead of playdoh! xoox

[robonut625]

I've made a lot of these, but in a slightly different (and potentially safer) way. Yoy can take a regular file in your shop and simply file around the top lip of the can until you file it through. Then the top of the can comes off and you're done. This avoids having to risk cutting yourself on the sharp edges and the can looks just like it does when it's full! (I hope all this makes sense to everyone!) Anyway... good idea and good instructable, cafeboy!

[!Andrew_Modder!]

Very creatable! That is cool, easy, and CHEAP! :-D

[jtobako]

you may want to put the playdough on the inside of the can (with something on top to protect your pen tips). after a while, the playdough dries out and is no longer sticky so it falls off. at that point you could glue it back on, but not a lot of glues stick well to smoth metal.

[cafeboy]

yup. that's an idea. I thought about the playdough falling off when it dries up. But I think glue would work, even on metal. I'll try it out though.

[jtobako]

rubber cement, epoxy or a non-drying clay (oil base clays-sculpy/ect will dry out) will work.

[Hoopajoo]

Several Asian markets and oriental restaurants near me do something similar to this but they fill it with uncooked sticky-rice. The rice is too fat to enter the pen tips and offers resistance to the pens and pencils so they don't have to rest on the bottom. It also doesn't spoil since it is dried, but once it is used for this purpose it can't be used for eating...at least not safely. Also, thanks for the PDF. I'm thinking of making one with the conversion tables for various weights and measures.

[nerfster]

How this has to retain to pop can writing utenciles, I don't know. What in god's green earth do I do to get those ADS FROM GOOGLE POPUPS out of the corner of my screen? I'll be serching for internet legos or sumthin and that popup wil try to get me to buy a vending machine or an alein anial probe. It also gets in the way of pictures or buttons. PLEASE!!!!! Help me get rid of them!!

[Spencer]

i have done this but used a can opener... much easier

[bruc33ef]

I like this idea very much as a way to recycle soda cans! The Play-dough on the bottom also is a good idea, and we have an Instructables on how to make Play-dough:

http://www.instructables.com/id/EXL98NOVJLEUN32NYY/

[cafeboy]

Cool. This is probably cheaper than buying playdoh which is anyway not available readily where I live.