I picked up a lathe back in September that came with a grocery bag full of different kits as well as a toolbox with all the parts. It took me a few months to give it a try because it was a little intimidating primarily due to the massive amount of different things & kits I had. Glad I finally got into it and too bad you didn't release this video about a month ago! :)
I chuck up a hex nut with a tiny piece of felt glued to it in the drill press, and use that as my pen press. loved the video, good to see you back on the lathe!
I just ordered a pen mandrel and was looking for a good how to video and here you come to save the day. I guess I need a few more items now. Thanks Very Helpful.
Good Video to get started. I wish they had all these videos when I started. I use wax on the tube ends to keep the glue out of the tubes. I don't use a pen mill tube. I clean up the ends with my HF disk sander. I agree that using those pen making dedicated tools are a big help. I do everything on the lathe since there is no run out and centering is no problem. I use a vicmarc chuck with pen jaws. I use a shear mandrel by woodpecker. It's pricey, but no comparison with the other pen mandrels. I make a lot of pens so it's worth it for me.
Another alternative to the pen press is some fittings that can be purchased inexpensively to fit into the morse tapers on your head and tail stocks and just use the ram on the tail stock as your pen press. It works great! I also like to use the lathe to drill the pen blank as the spinning workpiece naturally centers the drill bit as you drill. This does make use of chuck with jaws designed to hold pen blanks but works out really nice.
Hey David great video. Two tips for pen turning avoid gel type super glue for the brass tubes I've always had better luck with the liquid. Also if you don't have the end mill you can easily take it to the disc sander or the belt sander to clean up the ends of the blanks.
I find it funny that you post this and I've been researching lathes, tools, and the works all week long. I see so many people saying that HSS is the only way to go, but I think I'd prefer the carbide for now. I could spend over a thousand dollars in gouges and sharpening equipment alone. I'm not even sure I'll like turning, so it's a gamble either way. Great video though. Your stuff is always very informative.
I have one carbide tool and a cheap set of Buck Bros tools. If you don't mind sharpening, the Harbor Freight ones will work until you decide you need something better
+Penrod Garage I've thought about that, but I also need sharpening equipment and training. I've worked metal lathes with carbide tools. I know it's not the same, but it's it's all the experience I have lol.
+Phillip Rowland all you need to sharpen is a cheap bench grinder from HF. I got one from them and use it all the time for dumb little things aside from sharpening. Although it is not easy to learn from RUclips how to sharpen, it is possible. My teacher told me to just make sure you are touching the bevel, your metal isn't hot (use water), and that the sparks are flying over the bevel. It's hard to explain in text haha.
Just a tip with the Centering Vice. Chuck up a piece of round stock in your drill press. Lower the Quill down until the round stock is inside the jaws of the vice. Lock the Quill in place. Tighten the Vice around the round stock the clamp the vice to the table. Release the vice from around the round stock. Unlock quill and start drilling your thousands of pen blanks knowing it will be in the center each time. No need to mark the center of each blank.
Nope, but have worked with centering vice on a metal mill. Same concept and after a few times of removing and installing the vice you will have the steps down pat.
My first pen was a bolt action bullet pen and was alot more easy to make for beginners than slim lines so in my turning classes i have my students make bolt action pens
great video! Have you figured out how to batch these out for craft shows? Are they good sellers on avg or do people shy away from spending that much money on pens?
I just purchased the Rockler so-called press/centering jig combo. It's great for centering blanks for drilling but it stinks for pressing the parts together, having to fight with that crank handle.
Great video Dave. When you mounted the 2 pieces of wood onto the lathe they looked like they could spin. I was expecting them to stop turning as soon as the turning tool touched them. Am I missing something?
+Robin Lewis The bushings apply pressure to the blanks. You can see the brass nut in the mandrel he holds up at the end of the video. This is used to adjust the amount of pressure if you don't have the mandrel saver (Otherwise the lathe tailstock is applying the pressure). It does occasionally stop spinning when you apply the cutting tool but usually only in the beginning roughing stage.
Aaaah, i get it now. So when it looked like the piece was spinning as it was slid on that was just because there was no pressure on the blanks. Brilliant, thanks for the explanation!
+Joseph Watson Same here. My drill press is crap. I also barrel trim with the lathe, sometimes just holding the trimmer in the tail stock and bringing the blank to it by hand without using any power at all. Lately I have just been using the disc sander for this step with 80 grit.
What can you tell me about the dust collection for port for your lathe? I love printer name but does collection is something that I haven't figured out yet when doing so
The other way I found to press the pen parts together is to use my drill press. I just close the jaws up, hold the pen parts vertical in one hand, and spin the handle in the other.
I see lots of people making these to sell but do they really sell that well? They look like they could make back the cost of entry pretty easily but I didn't know if they are quicker sells or if it will take a year to sell a handful.
Thanks for the video! But I hope you are able to take some constructive criticism. If this is your first pen, do you really expect someone to have this kind of equipment? I would really appreciate some more practical and cost effective solutions to making a pen.
Sorry I just watched the first half of the video and got frustrated with all the expensive equipment. Idk there are so many videos on how to do this with all the proper equipment, but most of us don't have it. I feel like RUclips wants creators that are like us. I have trouble connecting with this, because I don't have a single one of these pieces of equipment.
I understand. There are just some things are difficult to make without the expensive tools. Luckily there are some other great channels that have "limited tools" projects.
+Make Something thank you for understanding, I really enjoy your channel and you make some amazing things. I guess I'm just a person that likes woodworking in a simplified fashion. Keep up the good work.
nice pen Dave!- will u check out my "lathe as a pen press vid" the music makes it comical..well i tried to make it a funny video ..yea i use my lathe as a pen press.it works well too.but i didnt know about the mandrel saver.ill definitely have to "check it" thanks for the tips and great video as always:]
Why get a pen press when you can just use a vice? If you have a drill press, it probably came with one. If not, you can buy a cheap one for $30. A square is needed but a small box will do just fine too.
![Diggy Graves - Red Vineyard [Official Lyric Video]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/8Ro085T0mnQ/mqdefault.jpg)
Just getting into pen turning and RUclips recommended this video from 8 years ago- still a great video but WOW you have come along way! Thank-you.
I picked up a lathe back in September that came with a grocery bag full of different kits as well as a toolbox with all the parts. It took me a few months to give it a try because it was a little intimidating primarily due to the massive amount of different things & kits I had. Glad I finally got into it and too bad you didn't release this video about a month ago! :)
+Ty Moser (MonoLoco_Workshop) Ha! Keep up the great content! Love what you're doing!
Just discovered the MWA podcast and went back and listened to your episode. What a difference from then to now! Keep up the hustle!
I chuck up a hex nut with a tiny piece of felt glued to it in the drill press, and use that as my pen press. loved the video, good to see you back on the lathe!
+dan casey Ahhh nice! Great idea!
Finally! Thank you. Even Rockler's vid didn't show the order of putting all the pieces together
I just ordered a pen mandrel and was looking for a good how to video and here you come to save the day. I guess I need a few more items now. Thanks Very Helpful.
Good overview of pen turning! I am a big fan of slimline pens and really enjoy turning them. Keep up the good work!
Excellent pen and instruction. Looks like that vacuum on the lathe gets everything, I need one of those.Thumbs up.
+OG Timbercraft Thanks!!!
Good Video to get started. I wish they had all these videos when I started. I use wax on the tube ends to keep the glue out of the tubes. I don't use a pen mill tube. I clean up the ends with my HF disk sander. I agree that using those pen making dedicated tools are a big help. I do everything on the lathe since there is no run out and centering is no problem. I use a vicmarc chuck with pen jaws. I use a shear mandrel by woodpecker. It's pricey, but no comparison with the other pen mandrels. I make a lot of pens so it's worth it for me.
Another alternative to the pen press is some fittings that can be purchased inexpensively to fit into the morse tapers on your head and tail stocks and just use the ram on the tail stock as your pen press. It works great! I also like to use the lathe to drill the pen blank as the spinning workpiece naturally centers the drill bit as you drill. This does make use of chuck with jaws designed to hold pen blanks but works out really nice.
+KF7AIK Oh nice! This would eliminate two tools! Great tips!!
Hey David, coming back to this one for inspiration to turn a few pens for my kids for Christmas this year. Great vid.
Nice timing on this one. I just bought my lathe, and I bought a few pen kits.
One of the best beginner pen turning videos I've seen - nice Job! Scott
Very informative video David, thanks for sharing.
Thanks for the video! I've been making pens for a while now and I still learned something new. Your videos are always so great, thank you!
Great video, just what I was looking for. Thanks!
Hey David great video. Two tips for pen turning avoid gel type super glue for the brass tubes I've always had better luck with the liquid. Also if you don't have the end mill you can easily take it to the disc sander or the belt sander to clean up the ends of the blanks.
Thanks for making the video to get us started in pen turning.
+ADadAndHisKids Thanks for watching!
believe it or not, first pen making video I've watched. Awesome! think I will give it a go. Thanks for making!
I find it funny that you post this and I've been researching lathes, tools, and the works all week long. I see so many people saying that HSS is the only way to go, but I think I'd prefer the carbide for now. I could spend over a thousand dollars in gouges and sharpening equipment alone. I'm not even sure I'll like turning, so it's a gamble either way. Great video though. Your stuff is always very informative.
I have one carbide tool and a cheap set of Buck Bros tools. If you don't mind sharpening, the Harbor Freight ones will work until you decide you need something better
+Penrod Garage I've thought about that, but I also need sharpening equipment and training. I've worked metal lathes with carbide tools. I know it's not the same, but it's it's all the experience I have lol.
+Phillip Rowland all you need to sharpen is a cheap bench grinder from HF. I got one from them and use it all the time for dumb little things aside from sharpening. Although it is not easy to learn from RUclips how to sharpen, it is possible. My teacher told me to just make sure you are touching the bevel, your metal isn't hot (use water), and that the sparks are flying over the bevel. It's hard to explain in text haha.
I actually wouldn't have a set of gouges if my school didn't give them to me haha
Very good video David , as always. I have never seen that mandrel saver.
+Jay Sybrandy Thanks Jay!
Def want to try turning in the future. Great instruction again as always
+Mike Greene Thank you!
Nice tutorial! I imagine a bench vise and couple purpose made wood cauls would be perfect for a pen press as well.
Please tell Rockler to come to Europe. I need them here!
Just a tip with the Centering Vice. Chuck up a piece of round stock in your drill press. Lower the Quill down until the round stock is inside the jaws of the vice. Lock the Quill in place. Tighten the Vice around the round stock the clamp the vice to the table. Release the vice from around the round stock. Unlock quill and start drilling your thousands of pen blanks knowing it will be in the center each time. No need to mark the center of each blank.
+Joshua Russell Ahh yes! Thanks for the tip! Do sell pens?
Nope, but have worked with centering vice on a metal mill. Same concept and after a few times of removing and installing the vice you will have the steps down pat.
Lookin' good Dave! Definitely something I want to get into soon. Gotta make room for a lather first though!
+Carter Wilson Workshop with Bradley Boggs Thanks!
Beautiful pen, David.
Excellent way of explaining everything David! Great work!
You really are good at project videos, it's your strength. Also growing manly beards.
Nice video and explanation David!
Like and subscribed just got my first lathe, and tools as well as pen kits. Please tell me where you got that dust collector setup behind your work.
Well now,,I didn't think you'd be back after that BigWig Cribs Video. Thanks for sharing with all us little people! LOL TY, C-Ya!,,,,Peace!
Very helpful video. Thank you for doing what you do!
+Quinn Leffingwell Right on! Thanks Quinn!
great explanation! who knew it was that easy!! great work my firend
Great video dude!
+Make it Extreme Thanks man!
I always watch Kyle Toth's turning video's and think "I could never do that"... But this, I think I could do. Time to buy a lathe I suppose...
Great tutorial. Really enjoyed it.
Good stuff. Great video!
+Al Smith Thanks!
You can TURN a profit with these
+Living Wood Creations -wood turning videos- I see what you did there.
My first pen was a bolt action bullet pen and was alot more easy to make for beginners than slim lines so in my turning classes i have my students make bolt action pens
Not a fan of pen turning, but this was a nice explanation video!! thanks!
Thanks for the great video.
+Aaron Otto Thank you!
great video!
Have you figured out how to batch these out for craft shows? Are they good sellers on avg or do people shy away from spending that much money on pens?
I just purchased the Rockler so-called press/centering jig combo. It's great for centering blanks for drilling but it stinks for pressing the parts together, having to fight with that crank handle.
Great details!
Good video. Very didactic. Thanks for sharing. And great ending.
For pressing the parts together you could use also simple bench vise.
I need to get a set of the carbide pen chisels,standard chisels work but those others are nice.
+Dave's woodworks I need to get a set of standard chisels for turing bowls.
+Make Something ha,I'll trade you.....
Its pretty cool to see you using the mandrel on the rockler website. Looks like you got a pretty lucrative sponsor with that one. Good job man!
Great video Dave. When you mounted the 2 pieces of wood onto the lathe they looked like they could spin. I was expecting them to stop turning as soon as the turning tool touched them. Am I missing something?
+Robin Lewis The bushings apply pressure to the blanks. You can see the brass nut in the mandrel he holds up at the end of the video. This is used to adjust the amount of pressure if you don't have the mandrel saver (Otherwise the lathe tailstock is applying the pressure). It does occasionally stop spinning when you apply the cutting tool but usually only in the beginning roughing stage.
Aaaah, i get it now. So when it looked like the piece was spinning as it was slid on that was just because there was no pressure on the blanks. Brilliant, thanks for the explanation!
Nice video Dave! But Wow $100.00 jig that's just way too much Rockler!
Summers Woodworking know I just made a jig for my pillar drill
You could use a vice instead of a pen press
Is that panga-panga? One of my favorite pen woods.
Did you build that lathe from scratch? lol j/k....great video man. Enjoyed this very much.
Nice tattoo!
i just drill them on the lathe, I use a chuck with pen jaws and drill from the tail stock. I don't have a drill press.
+Joseph Watson Same here. My drill press is crap. I also barrel trim with the lathe, sometimes just holding the trimmer in the tail stock and bringing the blank to it by hand without using any power at all. Lately I have just been using the disc sander for this step with 80 grit.
What can you tell me about the dust collection for port for your lathe? I love printer name but does collection is something that I haven't figured out yet when doing so
What kind of wood is that?
+Dave Starr Honestly I forget. It was scrap from the bin.
***** Ahh, yup. Totally. Thanks.
The other way I found to press the pen parts together is to use my drill press. I just close the jaws up, hold the pen parts vertical in one hand, and spin the handle in the other.
I see lots of people making these to sell but do they really sell that well? They look like they could make back the cost of entry pretty easily but I didn't know if they are quicker sells or if it will take a year to sell a handful.
+travis wyatt when I did craft shows I'd take 5-10 and sell them for $25. Most times I'd sell out or nearly sell out.
+Make Something thank you for the reply. Good to know. Not many shows in my area, was wondering how they sell online.
I've never tried to sell them online. That might be a bit tougher.
Thanks for the video! But I hope you are able to take some constructive criticism. If this is your first pen, do you really expect someone to have this kind of equipment? I would really appreciate some more practical and cost effective solutions to making a pen.
+Dixon Olson Did not watch the end of the video? I talk about what you need and what you don't.
Sorry I just watched the first half of the video and got frustrated with all the expensive equipment. Idk there are so many videos on how to do this with all the proper equipment, but most of us don't have it. I feel like RUclips wants creators that are like us. I have trouble connecting with this, because I don't have a single one of these pieces of equipment.
I understand. There are just some things are difficult to make without the expensive tools. Luckily there are some other great channels that have "limited tools" projects.
+Make Something thank you for understanding, I really enjoy your channel and you make some amazing things. I guess I'm just a person that likes woodworking in a simplified fashion. Keep up the good work.
Great vid and info...
Me podrías decir cómo puedo conseguir el herrajes para lápiceseros
Why not use your ordinary vise in your workshop instead of this jig?
can this be done on a desktop lathe
+Sally hansen I'm pretty sure it can!
what is a reasonable price for slim line pens?
$2.70 to $6 a piece.
Magnificent!!! Where to buy accessories for manufacture of pens !
Euripedes
use your finger to rub the glue on the tube. lol
nice pen Dave!- will u check out my "lathe as a pen press vid" the music makes it comical..well i tried to make it a funny video ..yea i use my lathe as a pen press.it works well too.but i didnt know about the mandrel saver.ill definitely have to "check it" thanks for the tips and great video as always:]
+Joe basementwoodworking Thanks Joe! I'll take a look!
+Make Something thanks man!-appreciate it. its more for a laugh then anything..;)hope u like it:]
DAVID TURNING!?!?!?!
+the merchandise Yep! Got to get my money's worth from this lathe that's been sitting in my basement for 2 years. :)
Why get a pen press when you can just use a vice? If you have a drill press, it probably came with one. If not, you can buy a cheap one for $30. A square is needed but a small box will do just fine too.
+Derek Cook thanks Derek! I never even thought about using the drill press until all the comments I received. Brilliant idea!
I've had a problem working with Ca glue. It's in liquid form and drying so fast, about 3-4seconds. Any suggests?
Welcome to the dark side David heheheheheheheh
+Living Wood Creations -wood turning videos- Ha! My lathe will probably sit for another 2 years without being used. :)
+Make Something its ok my spindle sander is the same way :)
Does it matter what kinda wood that is being used?
I never understand why cutting a 20mm when you want to make a thin 9mm pen.... ? What a waste of wood/money/turning time
You extol the virtues of using a "dedicated pen press," yet you use a combination tool?
Crazy, right?!
Where did you get your glue
What type of wood is that?