Print PDF
Favorite
Email
I have been part of my university woodturning club and have specialized somewhat in penturning. I like to use exotic wood and some nontraditional media (like corn cobs, banksia pods, etc.) and figured I'd try to make a pen out of leather. In this Instructable, we'll (quite literally) be turning leather belts into a pen.
In all, the project took approximately 5 hours and cost about 10 bucks (considering the belts were free, so the only cost was the pen kit and adhesives).
Materials required:
Leather (from belts, shoes, or anything, really.
Contact cement
Cyanoacrylate - NOTE: Cyanoacrylate (CA) is dangerous not just because it bonds skin, but it also reacts violently with cotton (ie bursts into flames). Do not let it touch your skin, clothes, paper towels, etc.
Pen kit (available at specialty woodturning/woodworking stores and catalogs - I used a 7mm twist mechanism kit)
Linseed oil - resin finishing mixture
Tools:
Scalpel or razor
Saw
Vice
Power drill/drill press with appropriate size bit and pen mill/reamer
Mandrel and bushings of appropriate size
Lathe
Woodturning tools (I used a 1/2 inch spindle gouge and a 1 inch rounded skew)
Sandpaper (150-220) and nylon sanding pads
Mallet and spare bushings (potentially)
In all, the project took approximately 5 hours and cost about 10 bucks (considering the belts were free, so the only cost was the pen kit and adhesives).
Materials required:
Leather (from belts, shoes, or anything, really.
Contact cement
Cyanoacrylate - NOTE: Cyanoacrylate (CA) is dangerous not just because it bonds skin, but it also reacts violently with cotton (ie bursts into flames). Do not let it touch your skin, clothes, paper towels, etc.
Pen kit (available at specialty woodturning/woodworking stores and catalogs - I used a 7mm twist mechanism kit)
Linseed oil - resin finishing mixture
Tools:
Scalpel or razor
Saw
Vice
Power drill/drill press with appropriate size bit and pen mill/reamer
Mandrel and bushings of appropriate size
Lathe
Woodturning tools (I used a 1/2 inch spindle gouge and a 1 inch rounded skew)
Sandpaper (150-220) and nylon sanding pads
Mallet and spare bushings (potentially)
Remove these ads by
Signing UpStep 1Preparing the belt leather
We first need to acquire enough leather. I sent a request over my dorm email list asking for old, unwanted belts - thank you to BG and PC for their donations (photo 1).
Use a scalpel to cut the ends off the belts to remove the buckle and the part of the belt with holes. These can be discarded. Cut the rest of the belt into six inch strips (photo 2). NOTE: I tried cutting the belt with a saw and a rotary cutting blade - they did not work nearly as well as my scalpel, so use a sharp blade.
A typical leather belt (such as these) is two strips of leather glued and sewn together. The belts I had were both black sewn over brown (photo 3). One belt is enough leather to make a pen, provided you use both sides of the belt. I wanted a black pen, so I needed two belts.
Separate the two halves by cutting off the seam and ripping the leather apart. It may be easier to cut the seam off one face and then off the other (photos 4-6). Do this for both belts.
Discard the brown pieces (if you want). The quarter is for scale (photo 7).
Congratulations, you now have enough leather strips for the pen! Make the pen blank after the jump.
Use a scalpel to cut the ends off the belts to remove the buckle and the part of the belt with holes. These can be discarded. Cut the rest of the belt into six inch strips (photo 2). NOTE: I tried cutting the belt with a saw and a rotary cutting blade - they did not work nearly as well as my scalpel, so use a sharp blade.
A typical leather belt (such as these) is two strips of leather glued and sewn together. The belts I had were both black sewn over brown (photo 3). One belt is enough leather to make a pen, provided you use both sides of the belt. I wanted a black pen, so I needed two belts.
Separate the two halves by cutting off the seam and ripping the leather apart. It may be easier to cut the seam off one face and then off the other (photos 4-6). Do this for both belts.
Discard the brown pieces (if you want). The quarter is for scale (photo 7).
Congratulations, you now have enough leather strips for the pen! Make the pen blank after the jump.
| « Previous Step | Download PDFView All Steps | Next Step » |
Definitely an interesting reuse project. Some of the things I see turned into pens on Rockler and the like never cease to amaze me (antlers, snakeskin, etc.). I hope the leather lasts you a while.
As for the pens, I've had a couple for 3 years plus that barely have a scratch on them. How are you finishing yours? My finish is a combination of oil and resin, and the resin really helps protect the pens. Burls in general are more prone to cracks, but you might want to look into some stronger finishes if they're falling apart on you.
I remember seeing the snakeskin pen blanks in the woodworking catalog before but can't find it now. This site has them but they're quite pricey. I've wanted to try using them but haven't turned with acrylic before and didn't want to make my first (and probably worst) one out of something so expensive.
Most friction polishes are shellac based - in my experience, shellac seems to be the "weakling" of the resin finishes. I'd try finding a combination linseed oil - tree resin finish. Wet sand the pen from 220 grit on up, and when you're done sanding, friction finish with a polishing rag - the concept is the same as with a standard friction polish, but using a tree resin will probably give a more durable finish. Hope this helps!
It seems like a huge waste of Time/Effort for a bloody pen..
I did it because it was fun, interesting, and now I have a pen made out of leather - which, in what I can tell, is relatively unique.
I probably won't do it again because it was a lot more time and effort than making one out of wood, but it's a high quality pen in a new medium that I had the satisfaction of making myself. If that's not reason enough, I don't what is.
I find this most disturbing what's next? Will my glass cleaner kill me with fumes they have not told me about? I just can't get over the fact that this is NEW INFORMATION to me. Various CA suppliers have RISKED THE LIVES OF MY CHILDREN for no reason! How DARE they not disclose IN LARGE PRINT this DEADLY possibility?!??
I have stored this stuff in my field box which also contained COTTON rags for cleaning glue spills AND HIGH POWER SOLID ROCKET MOTORS. Once again a BIG lawsuit if there had been any problems because I WAS NOT TOLD!
I am REALLY pissed! I don't like being kept ignorant of such important safety issues!
Besides a single little tube CAN start a small fire and all a small fire needs to become a HUGE CONFLAGRATION is a VERY short period of time.
Load of gibberish to say that the ammount of glue makes any difference. One single match can start the worlds largest fire.
A comment and a question:
First, the comment:
I never heard of the fire hazard with CA glue and cotton before. Been using the stuff for 20 years on model airplanes and anything else that breaks in my house with no such reaction. Are you sure you're not thinking of something else?
Now the question:
What is the finishing formula you're using? I have to make my own as where I live (Japan), no one has heard of it. I could import a ready-made finishing polish but it is ridiculously expensive.
The finishing oil I use is supplied by my university (so I don't have the brand name, sorry). From what I can tell, it's a generic wood finishing oil - combination of organic oils and resins. It gives a nice finish that's lasted for years on my pieces. Sorry I can't be more specific!
Thanks for the great idea and writeup!
Care to say how? I've never had a problem with it. Could you be thinking of nitrocellulose lacquer?
CA is a polymerizable ester - upon touching a nucleophile (such as water, alcohol, etc.), CA monomers "cure" and polymerize in an exothermic reaction. Compounds like paper and cotton contain a high concentration of starch-bound hydroxyl groups, which act as nucleophiles. CA will polymerize rapidly when in contact with such compounds, and the resultant can ignite the medium.
From personal experience, I accidentally dropped a bottle of CA and wiped it up with a paper towel. I threw it in the sink when it started smoking and it caught alight just before I turned the faucet on.
Reaction with cotton:
Applying cyanoacrylate to materials made of cotton or wool (such as cotton swabs, cotton balls, and certain yarns or fabrics) results in a powerful, rapid exothermic reaction. The heat released may cause minor burns, and if enough cyanoacrylate is used, the reaction is capable of igniting the cotton product, as well as releasing irritating vapor in the form of white smoke.[11]
Material Safety Data Sheets for cyanoacrylate instruct users not to wear cotton or wool clothing, especially cotton gloves, when applying or handling cyanoacrylates.[12]
It starts out smoldering, with a little smoke and takes a while.
Yah, I don't believe your story either-mostly because so few women with extensions run screaming down the street with their head on fire.
I still have doubts-for instance, if CA will ignite paper, why is cardbord used in it's packaging?