Pen Crafting

[Big John]

I have a question on pen turning - should the barrel trimmer be used in a drill press or just by hand? Also should they be trimmed as square blanks or after turning?

Thanks,

[kkmbknap]

i have used both methods and i get a better"feel" going by hand using an electric drill, i also trim everything while still in the square blank stage. p.s. i make about 3 to 4 pen and pencil sets a week using these methods.

[tipusnr]

I have only been making pens since October but would definitely recommend NOT using the trimmer in a drill press. On softer woods I have put a long nut over the threaded end and done it by hand but find it most useful to chuck it in a variable speed drill. The reason for this is to get down to the brass without grinding the end of the brass down and shortening the tube. Different woods, plastics, and solid surface materials will require different speeds to keep from shattering the blanks.

Personally, I always square the blanks with the barrel trimmer prior to putting it on the mandrill so that the bushing will fit flush.

Good luck.

[WoodChipsAway]

I turn mostly plastics and I find that the trimmer is practically useless. I use a sanding disc to square the ends, and of course watching that I don’t shorten the brass tube. I use the trimmer only to clean out the glue residue that occasionally gets into the tube end.

[Richard Court]

I guess I am the minority. I have only been turning pens for a few months so I am certainly no expert, but I find it best for me to use the trimmer in the drill press. It's just too much like work to use it by hand.

And I also trim them before I turn them.

[Scrolldesigner]

My aunt told me, that if you want to start a hobby,(such as wood turning), then you need to start with the best money can buy. Although some of us do not have the luxury of affording the best that's okay. I myself started with the best and and have been turning pens for about 6 months and have already learned the tricks of the trade. Such as how to drill and get a smooth bore hole for the brass tubes without chip out on the end of the wood blank. From start to finish I have turned out some pretty unique pens. The satisfaction comes from the ooh's and aah's and a pat on the back when I've completed a project. I'm no expert by any means, but I might be able to give you tips on your pen turning.
You can e-mail me at Scrolldesigner@charter.net for any questions you might have. I'll help you the best I can.

[Admin]

Don't just tell us about how great your pens are - show us :) Upload a few photos to the gallery...

The point of the forums is to provide information HERE so that the next person who comes along and does a search for 'barrel trimming' will find the information they're looking for. The beauty of the forums is that there are always several ways to do the same thing and as a new penturner I can read how different people accomplish the same goal and I can choose the one that fits my way of thinking and working.

I use a small belt sander to square / trim my blanks before turning - I saw it in an article somewhere and it has worked great so far.

[twoodsmith]

I borrowed my first barrel trimmer from a new found friend. The thing was so dull, that it would not cut at all! I hand honed it the best that I could, it being a new tool to me. I ordered a complete set for myself with 3/4 in cutter. I returned the borrowed one in the mean time and explained to the "pro" that I sharpened it for him. He told me that the thing did not ever work very well. When I got my new barrel trimmer, I trued the ends of three pen blanks with the brass tube glued in place. The last one was requiring a lot of pressure and was only polishing, not cutting! I honed each of the four flutes with a diamond sharpening tool. This did nicely for a while, but I had to resharpen the barrel trimmer after avery four or five uses. Of course, this will eventually get the flutes out of alignment, causing some of them to not cut. I took it to a sharpening/machine shop. They re-machined all of the flutes to true and sharpened the trimmer. Whrn I got it to my shop, It was just like it came from the factory, dull and would not cut hard wood at all! So, my advise to you is this: get a 1/2 in for your pen truing. hone it my hand as best you can. use it in a hand-held drill or mount it in your lathe. Send it to a sharpening shop periodically, then hone it before you use it again. Watch those fingers and palms!

[Jes Pidlin]

I had the same problem with the barrel trimmer, wouldn't cut, just polished. Finally decided it was worthless as is, and placed it in the vice and using a file, gently put more angle on the cutters. I tried not to disturb the original cutting edge, just angle the back a little. It works fine now, we'll see how long it lasts.

I use mine in a drill press but use pliers! (had one to explode, luckily I was using pliers). I find slip-joints work best for me.

I also square the ends prior to turning to assure the blanks fit on the mandrel properly. I believe squaring after turning will give a ridge that will require placing the blanks back on the lathe and polishing down - extra work.

Have fun...jes

[John Siers]

I use the barrel trimmer in my drill press, with the blanks clamped in a pair of notched blocks (the same ones I use to hold the blank when drilling the hole). This has worked pretty well, and I also do the trimming while the blanks are still square.

When I first started doing this, I noticed that the trimmer seemed to be dull; but when I put pressure on it with the drill press, at a certain point it starts to shave the blank very nicely, peeling off very fine shavings. Maybe that's the way it is supposed to work... in any case, it works for me.

John Siers