Although there is much more involved with penturning, here are the basic steps to get you started.
Preparing the Pen Blank- First you will need to get the pen blank ready. Begin by checking the plans from the kit and cutting the blank to the correct length. Usually you will be cutting the blank in half, or at least fairly close to the same size for each half. Next you need to drill the blanks. Try to get the hole as close to the center as possible and drill slowly in increments to prevent tearout. It is possible to do this by hand, but a drill press will make this A LOT easier and more accurate. After the blank is drilled you need to glue in the pen tubes (CA glue or Epoxy), but they need cleaned first. Quickly rough up the tubes with a bit of sandpaper, and then put glue all along the tubes. Then put the tubes into the drilled pen blanks. After it dries carefully sand the blank down to the edge of the tube so it is perfectly square. Although there are special tools to make this even easier, you do not require anything extra to do it. A belt sander of some sort can make this quicker, and the most popular way is to use a pen mill, which basically drills around the hole in the tube, making the blank perfectly even.
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Getting the Lathe Ready- Place the pen blanks and the bushings on the mandrel. Next put the mandrel onto the lathe. Tighten it, but be careful not to overtighten it, as this could force a bend that would mess up all your hard work.
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Turning the Blanks- Now for the fun part. Use your tools to turn the wood down to size. It is easy to know exactly when to stop because the blanks should line up with the bushings. Keep turning the blanks until they are just slightly thicker than the bushings.
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Final Sanding- To make the blanks smooth and line up with the bushing perfectly you will need to do some finish sanding. Turn the lathe to a setting of around 500 RPM and begin with 120 grit sandpaper. Slide the sandpaper along the blanks while the lathe is running. Next you need to turn off the lathe and sand along the grain. Repeat this process with progressively finer grits of sandpaper and finish with around 400 grit.
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Finishing the Blanks- There are many different products to choose when it comes to finishing. Mixing CA glue and boiled linseed oil can make a glossy finish. Friction polishes are easy to apply for beginners and you can get a fairly durable finish. To help achieve a ultra glossy, smooth finish then I recommend MicroMesh sandpaper. These pads have grits up to 12000 and will help make a perfect finish. Also, you will find that different materials require different finishing techniques. Oil products may work well for wooden blanks, but acrylics don't need it. If you are using a plastic blank, you can usually just keep sanding up to a high grit to give it a high polish.
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Assembly- After the blanks are completed, carefully take them off the lathe. Follow the kit's instructions and assemble the kit. As long as you can force the pieces into place you will not need to buy any special assembly equipment. You can use a clamp or vise to hold the pen in place and apply pressure from both ends. Now the hard work is done and you can admire your art!
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Although it was fairly brief and you will learn more as you go along, hopefully this tutorial on pen making has been helpful to you. However, if you are like me and learn faster by watching rather than reading, then here is a Youtube video that might help. It speeds over some of the repetitive steps, but it shows details and they make a complete pen in less than ten minutes.
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