Pen Turning Equipment Questions

[GENEREED]

I have been reading a lot of the posts about pens and turning and I am interested in starting up. I admire the pens I have seen here and I believe it would be a very rewarding pursuit. Before I go out and spend the money though, I would like to get some advice on equipment as well as any guidance on the subject which would be appropriate for a newbie such as myself. Any help will be highly valued.

Lathe: Is a single speed sufficient or is variable speed the way to go?
I have been looking at the Jet Mini and the Rikon.

Turning Tools: I would like a good set and need some suggestions

Book Recommendations?

Misc startup tools required? There seems to be a lot for sale and I would like to narrow the field to those which are required, and those which are nice to have.

Entry (easy) pen kit recommendations

Any help is appreciated.

Thanks

Gene

[MikeH]

Originally Posted by GENEREED

Lathe: Is a single speed sufficient or is variable speed the way to go?
I have been looking at the Jet Mini and the Rikon. Gene

I've used the Jet and I just recently bought a Rikon Mini. They are both great lathes and I would say a single speed lathe would be extremely limiting. If you are like me you will get hooked very quickly and you'll want to turn other things. The recommended speed for turning a pen and turning a bowl are different. Get one that you can change the speed. One other thing to think about is length of bed and swing. Length of bed is obvious. Swing is essentially the diameter of the largest thing you can turn. The jet has a 10" swing and Rikon has a 12".

Originally Posted by GENEREED

Turning Tools: I would like a good set and need some suggestions Gene

I just started turning myself so I don't know much about the good ones. I have the harbor freight set of 8 chisels and they sell for $39.95 (or something very close to that). I think they are a decent set of chisels as long as you keep them sharp.

Originally Posted by GENEREED

Book Recommendations? Gene

Don't have any YET.

Originally Posted by GENEREED

Misc startup tools required? There seems to be a lot for sale and I would like to narrow the field to those which are required, and those which are nice to have. Gene

I would say the required tools would be a pen mandrel (used to secure the pen blank on the lathe), 7mm drill bit (used to drill out the pen blank), CA glue to glue the pen tube in the blank and a pen mill kit (used to square the end of the pen to the hole in the blank.

I consider the rest of the tools "nice to have" at this stage in my pen turning career. As I progess I will eventually get the pen press (used to put the pen together) or I will build my own. At this point I use a hand clamp and carefully assemble it that way.

Originally Posted by GENEREED

Entry (easy) pen kit recommendations Gene

Slimline is one of the most popular types of pen and they are very easy. The 7mm bit is for the slimlines and pen mandrel sold at Woodcraft include the bushing needed to turn a slimline pen.



Any help is appreciated.

Thanks

Gene[/quote]

HTH,

[taandctran]

I have a delta midi lathe... I would say any lathe this size would work....
My lathe came with a set of smaller tools... I would recommend the smaller ones for making pens... I then bought a mandrel off of Ebay for around $12 (shipping included) I don't know if you can buy them that cheap anymore or not... And I went to www.woodnwhimsies.com and bought a set of bushings and 10 pens kits.... 10 pen kits will get you started. the first couple will not turn out how you want them... As for the glue I use Gorilla glue for gluing the sleves in the wood and the cheap "CA" glue they sell at Wal-Mart for $1 for 4 small tubes. I find that this glue works just as good as the stuff that you will pay $7 or $8 for other places... I hope this helps...

[MikeH]

Originally Posted by taandctran

I have a delta midi lathe... I would say any lathe this size would work....
My lathe came with a set of smaller tools... I would recommend the smaller ones for making pens... I then bought a mandrel off of Ebay for around $12 (shipping included) I don't know if you can buy them that cheap anymore or not... And I went to www.woodnwhimsies.com and bought a set of bushings and 10 pens kits.... 10 pen kits will get you started. the first couple will not turn out how you want them... As for the glue I use Gorilla glue for gluing the sleves in the wood and the cheap "CA" glue they sell at Wal-Mart for $1 for 4 small tubes. I find that this glue works just as good as the stuff that you will pay $7 or $8 for other places... I hope this helps...

FWIW, Woodcraft sells mandrels for $9.99. They come with bushings also.

[Wildwood]

There are several books you can buy on the subject of making pens. Would recommend you get a few catalogs from suppliers before buying a book.

Also visit:

http://www.penturner.org


Of course you can always stop by your local WoodCraft store and take a class and buy what you need there as well. They carry both Jet Mini and Rikon wood lathes.

http://www.packardwoodworks.com


1-800-683-8876 more or less a one stop place to buy everything you need to turn wood.

http://www.pennstateind.com


1-800-377-7297

http://www.woodturningz.com


1-888-736-5487 WoodturningZ, has the best prices for PSI kits and supplies, they sell everything in the Penn State catalog, but little cheaper.

http://www.bereahardwoods.com


1-877-736-5487

http://www.woodturnerscatalog.com


1-800-551-8876, again one stop place to buy everything you need to turn wood.

The three main suppliers of pen kits are PSI, which has many resellers that sell for less: Bereahardwoods, also several resellers, have shop em all for bargains, and Craft supplies USA (woodturners catalog) no resellers.

[Eaglesc]

JUst dive in and get your feet wet.It will take some getting used to the different things you will need,some can be made like sleeves for a pen mill.
COntray to another post in this thread CA glue from wall mart is the most expensive way to buy CA and you have no idea how old it is.
Rather than starting wih slimines peruse a catologue and select a style you would consider starting out with and then ask the degree of difficulty.
Slim lines are great pens but eventually you will tire of them and want to"improve them with the tell tale "I am bored with this shape" corset waist pens.
Multiple speed lathe is the best way to go.
If the Jet VS withthe indexer is still on sale for $300.00 at WC I would say jump on it other waise look at a the manual Jet mini and the Rikon.
I have both.
For ease of changing speeds manually I would select the Rikon for ease.
It was a larger swing and bigger capacity than the original Jet mini.
There are a lot of great suppliers on line but you are going to have a lot of questions.
I would start asking them when you go topurchase the lathe.
Both Klingspoor and Woodcraft have lathes and salespeople who turn pens.
Unlike me they will be willing to share their secrets.
Eventually you will realize to be patient and order online things like micrmesh and CA along with kits rather than paying high prices at brick and mortar stores.
For entry level kits(and others) I reccomend WoodturninZ.(Tell them Eagle sent you.
YOu will want to experiment with different finishes.Everyone tries Krystal Koat because the claims are good, it just doesn't last or take abuse.It is instant but not long lasting gratification.
As far as wanting to turn other things, that is not true for me.
I have enough problems getting this pen thing down on a consistant basis.
In one month from now it will be 3 years that I have been making pens.

[nelsone]

One other thing you will need that I haven't seen brought up is a meant to drill the blanks. A drill press is the best option for this. See if there is anyone around you that turns pens and see if they will be willing to help you get started. It is a lot of fun and most people are willing to help you out. Others just want to show their pretty work and let you figure out how it's done. I recommend getting the stuff you need and give it a shot. It really is pretty easy to turn a basic pen and soon you will want to try other things, different pen styles, inlays, segments, etc... As for books, I picked up "The Pen Turners Workbook" by Barry Gross and it seems to be pretty good. Let us know how it goes and remember to take pics!!! I want to see the first pen!

[Eaglesc]

I have yet to see a book that showed me anything I didn't figure out on my own in the first month of making pens.
I did waste my money on a book by Dick Sing after making pens for 2 months, I am sure it collecting dust somewhere around here.
Before you run out and make the same mistake I did take a look at Russ Fairfields site.
http://www.woodturner-russ.com/Pen10.html
It will give you a good idea of the process and might save you some start up money.
Russ also answers just about evey question you have on sanding, finishing, adhesives, and it is free.
He does go into greater detail on his DVD's which are for sale.(SO ia m told, have not had the need to but one)

[Eaglesc]

I alsmost forgot.
DON"T let anyone talk you into an adjustable mandrel!
They are cumbersome, not well made and there is nothing"professional about them.
One of the best pieces of advice I can give to someone starting out is to have more than one pen going at one time.
For the cost of the worthless adjustable mandrel you can get 3 complete mandrels at Woodcraft.
The biggest mistake a beginner makes is they are in too much of a hurry.
If you sare working on more than one pen at a time, the blank and madrel will cool down after sanding, the finish will have more time to set to harden.
Bushing are cheap and a "wear item" get a couple of sets.
For your start kits a Drill index at HF will have just about every bit you will need.
I use a Drill Dr. to make split point bits forget brad point they wander and are difficult to sharpen.
As you progress your needs for "must haves" will change.
I could not live without a Beall collet set up.
Is it necessary for you? Not now but eventually ytou may decided to make patterened blanks.The most accurate way to drill them is on a lathe.
BTW it is possible to drill your blanks on a lathe with nothing more than a JAcobs chuck and a live center, that's all.
Most of my reccomendations will be different than most, then again my pens are different than m,sot also.
This endevor does not have to be a bottomless pit you throw money into unless you really want it to be.
The HF chisels are just fine.
I figure if I want someones name on my tools I'll get a magic marker and write my own.

[NCPete]

Originally Posted by Eaglesc

I figure if I want someones name on my tools I'll get a magic marker and write my own.

[Eaglesc]

Originally Posted by NCPete

The thing you must remember is I used the $12.00 set from harbor freight that isn't in the catologue.
(didn't need to put my name on them, no one would dream of stealing them.)
Someday maybe I'll splurge and buy the "high Dollar" $40.00 set.
(That's only if I ever get good enough to deserve them)

[clowman]

DON"T let anyone talk you into an adjustable mandrel!

I have 2 adjustable mandrels. (Yeah, I'm a bit slower than most) Then it hit me that the NON adjustable ones just work better. At least for me they do. I'd agree with Eagle on this one.

I would recommend these 2 books. The Basics and Beyond. More Pens Plus Tricks.

I think that the slimlines that you can get from woodturningz, will be you best way to learn. (read that as cheapest way) Until you get comfortable with the steps to make a pen. Then you can move up to more expensive kits.

[GENEREED]

Thanks to all of you for the advice and inspiration. I am at least headed in the right direction. Lots of links to check out and articles to read. I'm probably 2 months or so from my first pen, but I will post a pic no matter how it lookes. Probably have to put it in the Jokes thread.

Thanks again

Gene

[Eaglesc]

Originally Posted by GENEREED

Thanks to all of you for the advice and inspiration. I am at least headed in the right direction. Lots of links to check out and articles to read. I'm probably 2 months or so from my first pen, but I will post a pic no matter how it lookes. Probably have to put it in the Jokes thread.

Thanks again

Gene

I wouldn't say it is an absolute must, but if you want to get your feet wet both Klingspor and WoodCraft hold pen making classes.
For the price of the class you can walk out with your own pen./or pencil.
No need to wait for your own lathe.
It may give you the incentive to speed things up.

[MikeH]

Originally Posted by Eaglesc

I wouldn't say it is an absolute must, but if you want to get your feet wet both Klingspor and WoodCraft hold pen making classes.
For the price of the class you can walk out with your own pen./or pencil.
No need to wait for your own lathe.
It may give you the incentive to speed things up.

It will certainly give you incentive! You will be hooked that much quicker once you realize how easy it is to jump in and make some wood dizzy. It is truly addictive.