5
Oct
Posted by uniquetreen in Alder, Available for Custom Order, Handmade, Pens, Pens - Ballpoint, Treen, Unique Gifts, Wood. Leave a comment
These two pens are made from
Alder (
Alnus rubr) harvested from a friend’s swamp he was trying to reclaim. I probably pulled close to three cords of it out of the mud and blackberries on his back forty. Although it’s technically a hardwood, Alder is very soft and surprisingly difficult to turn at the pen scale. However, it’s pleasant wood to work with, it smells nice and you can use the sawdust to smoke meat on your grill.
Mechanism: Cross style, and refills are readily available in most office supply stores.
Finish: The pens were sanded up to 400 grit, then burnished with 0000 steel wool to bring up a smooth surface. It was then finished with mineral oil, bee’s & carnauba wax and a final polish with paraffin wax.
Price: US$35 per pen
Item Ref No: ASP0023 (right) and ASP0024
Status: Gifted but similar pens may be available. Click here to inquire.
30
Aug
Posted by uniquetreen in Available for Custom Order, Locust Burl, Osage Orange, Pens, Pens - Rollerball, Sold, Treen, Unique Gifts, Wood. Leave a comment
Locust (Robinia pseudoacacia) is a very close grained wood, one of the heaviest woods in North America. It burns nearly as hot as coal when used for firewood. This pen is made from a burl which is sort of like a wart or cancer on the tree. The grain in a burl is typically very convoluted and this one is no different. Drilling the blanks was difficult, and turning the wood on the lathe was no easier. The wood likes to split and the little eyes in the grain readily pop out. Think Marty Feldman’s character Igor in Young Frankenstein. Fortunately a little patience and cyanoacrylate solved solve the challenges and the pen turned out beautifully.
Mechanism: 24-Carat gold plated classic 1920s classic Parker style pen design. If gel rollerball is preferred, inserts are available at most office supply stores.
Finish: The pen was sanded up to 400 grit, then burnished with 0000 steel wool to bring up a smooth surface. It was then finished with mineral oil, bee’s & carnauba wax and a final polish with paraffin wax.
Price: US$78
Item Ref No: LBPCRP0051
Status: Sold but a similar pen may be available. Click here to inquire.
This second rollerball pen is made with Osage Orange wood …
Osage Orange is a much easier to turn wood than Locust Burl. I like that it’s a very tough wood but takes to the lathe knife really well, peeling off fine curls of shavings as I go. Besides, it smells nice and takes a beautiful finish. This pen took less than half the time to make compared to the above Locust but a lot of that is simply climbing the learning curve for a new style of pen and a new wood to work with. If you like a rollerball that has a nice slim profile and gratifying weight, you’ll like these!
Price: US$78
Item Ref No: OOPCRP0052
Status: Gifted but a similar pen may be available. Click here to inquire.
18
Jul
Posted by uniquetreen in Ink Cartridge, Pens. Leave a comment
Replacing the ink cartridge in your Slimline Ballpoint pen is easy.
First, pull off the top barrel of the pen by pulling it straight back. You may need to rotate it a bit to free it as it has a tight friction fit. Once you have the top barrel off, you’ll be able to see the top of the cartridge which is generally a black knurled plastic cylinder. Rotate it counter-clockwise to unscrew it from the holder and pull it out. Put in the new cartridge in reverse order, i.e. insert it into the holder, screw it in clockwise until it stops and slide the top barrel back on. Your pen is ready for use again!
13
Jul
Posted by uniquetreen in Available for Custom Order, Osage Orange, Pens, Pens - 0.50 Caliber BMG, Pens - Ballpoint, Peruvian Walnut, Sold, Treen, Unique Gifts, Wood. 2 comments
These pens are made from once-fired .50 caliber BMG (Browning Machine Gun) shell casings. The turning of the pens is relatively straight forward but the assembly was less so and took some figuring out.
The
Peruvian Walnut (dark brown, left in top photo) has some nice grain to it and I’ve always liked turning this particular species. The
Osage Orange has some nice cathedral grain and I cut a faux cannelure groove into it to simulate a real bullet using an AP round that was given to me as a gift.
Mechanism: Cross style twist ballpoint mechanism.
Finish: The wood was sanded to 400 grit then polished up to 0000 steel wool. A wax & oil finish was then applied. The brass shell casing was sanded to 800 wet & dry, then up through 0000 steel wool, and finally polished with silver polish to a soft luster. Since these are once-fired brass, there are dings & scuffs from the firing, extraction and collecting processes.
Price: US$40
Item Ref No: OO-50BMGP0049 (Osage Orange) and PW-50BMGP0050 (Peruvian Walnut)
Status: Sold but similar pens may be available. Click here to inquire.
13
Jul
Posted by uniquetreen in African Blackwood, Available for Custom Order, Handmade, Mpingo, Osage Orange, Pens, Pens - Fountain, Sold, Treen, Unique Gifts, Wood. Leave a comment
Osage Orange (Maclura pomifera) is one of my best selling woods, and with good reason. It starts out as a bright orange color when freshly cut but mellows to a very nice dark orangy-brown with exposure to light and use. I try to make my pieces from wood that I find and this one is no different. My brothers and I split this tree for bow staves a few years ago and I now use the smaller pieces for turning on my lathe.
Mechanism: A classic Parker style nib and reservoir. The finish is 24 carat gold plate with an epoxy coating for a very durable surface that comes with a lifetime guarantee. This fountain pen has a postable insert, which means that the end can be inserted into the cap while you’re writing to keep it in place. There is room for an extra ink reservoir inside, so you don’t have to worry about running out, and it comes with a cleaning tool to flush the mechanism for maintenance.
Finish: Sanded to 400 grit, then 00 through 0000 steel wool for an extremely smooth surface. An oil and wax finish was then applied.
Price: US$78
Item Ref No: OOFP0045
Status: Sold but a similar pen may be available. Click here to inquire.
A second fountain pen (with similar mechanism) made out of Mpingo (Dalbergia melanoxylon) also known as African Blackwood …
I chose a piece of cut-off Mpingo that had such a variety of colors and grains, it cried out for a nice-looking pen.
Price: US$78
Item Ref No: MFP0048
Status: Sold but a similar pen may be available. Click here to inquire.
These two pens are made from Alder (Alnus rubr) harvested from a friend’s swamp he was trying to reclaim. I probably pulled close to three cords of it out of the mud and blackberries on his back forty. Although it’s technically a hardwood, Alder is very soft and surprisingly difficult to turn at the pen scale. However, it’s pleasant wood to work with, it smells nice and you can use the sawdust to smoke meat on your grill.
Unique Treen 