Our pens go through a minimum of 15 steps before you can purchase them.
When Pat begins with her chain saw and a log, there are more steps. We won't talk about those.
A pen blank arrives my mail or by chainsaw. A pen blank is about 1" square and 5 inches long. It is often coated in heavy wax to protect it in shipping and from drying out too quickly. (Wood splits as it dries. This often makes it unsuitable for our pens.)
The wax is scraped off. The grain pattern and colors evaluated and a pen style is chosen for that particular piece of wood.
The wood is marked as to tip end and clip end then it is measured and mark to length according to the brass tubes that will be inserted into the wood in a couple more steps.
At the bandsaw, Pat slices the pen blank into an upper and lower barrel based on the directional and length markings. The wood pieces are paired together and held with elastic bands so they don't get lost among the other wood at the bandsaw. At this point the pieces of pen blank are slightly longer than the brass tubes.
Off to the drill press, where each piece of wood is individually placed in a professionally hand-made drilling vise. The wood is aligned according to the markings. This allows the grain to match more accurately in the finished pens. After drilling, most materials return to the bandsaw for a final cutting to length. This will make the wood 1/16th of an inch longer that the tube that will go in it.
The glue table is next and Pat slips nitrile gloves over her hands to keep them from sticking together when the epoxy get on them. The tubes are corked with dental wax and epoxy is wiped in the drilled hole in the wood and on the brass tube. The tube is then inserted into the hole using a special twisting action that spreads the glue properly for a good bond of wood and brass. The sticky things are set aside on an old phone book to dry overnight.
In the morning, Pat takes a specially sharpened pocket knife and removes the dental wax and the glue that has run out. She chamfers the edge of the tubes so the transmission and other internal parts of the pen will go together more easily and reduce the possibility of the materials cracking. This all happens before the wood/tube pieces are put on a custom-made jig at the sanding wheel. By sanding off the 1/32" beyond each end of the tube, the ends are made square with the tube itself. This enables the parts of your pens to properly abut each other and the metal fittings.
On the lathe, Pat aligns the tubes with bushings specific to the style of pen being created. These are slid onto a mandrel and brings up the tailstock (wood blocks on a metal stick that is stuck securely in the lathe). The lathe spins the wood towards Pat so she can cut and shape it with very sharp, specialized tools. One was ordered specifically from the maker in England. This tool is a 1/2" U-shaped roughing gouge.
Once the spinning wood approaches the shape needed to the particular style pen, decimal measurements are needed. Pat preferes to measure her pens in millimeters for greater accuracy. When the pen and fittings are a gine match, the wood is ready to be finished.
Most pens are sanded and finish applied while the pen is on the lathe. You pen gets sanded with paper sand paper through several grits (220-400 if an 'Abralon' pad is to be used; 220-2000 if sand paper alone is used). Depending on the wood and the desired results, a wax-based sanding can be done. Throughout the sanding process, the wood is cleaned often with denatured alcohol. When the wood presents a proper foundation for the finish, Pat begins melding by hand a lacquer and wax to achieve the hard covering that touches your hand. If the finishing process does not work for some reason (excess humidity, too much hand pressure etc), Pat sands off the poor finish and begins again. Pat is committed to providing you the best pen she is capable of making.
After the wood is satisfactorily finished, it is removed from the mandrel and lathe and rests in a v-form, in which Pat takes it to the assembly press.
The assembly press is an older drill press, no longer able to drill. It has found new meaning by being converted to sort of a huge arbor press for pens. It is not plugged in to electricity. Pat places the parts vertically under a special insert in the quill of the drill press and using very light, but firm steady pressure, she presses the parts of your pen together. Each insertion is inspected. When the pen is fully assembled, it is placed in a padded container to be taken to the office.
Upstairs (in the house part) is Pat's office. The numbered and recorded in detail. Photographs are taken of the pen to show all the grain and how it fits the hand. A Pin ID Card is created and filed. The photos are edited and your pen is placed in the right inventory area depending on where it will be offered for sale to you.
Lots of steps. That's cool. Pat likes making quality products and you like using them. Quality takes time.
Thank you for reading about how I make your pens. I consider it an honor to create for you.
Love and Light--write from the heart,
Pat
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pen, handmade, crafted, created, how-to, make pens, studio, shop, workshop, manufactured, made, parts of pens,
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