 
TURNING SCRAP INTO DOLLARS A recent flooring project yields many usable scraps. SHOP OWNER: Charles Mak LOCATION: Calgary, Alberta, Canada In April 2007, Shop Shot #822 features my use of Tiger wood hardwood floor scraps for making a wastebasket holder. Recently I found another good use for the scraps – pen making. 
For the first batch I chose scraps that had interesting grain or color and cut them into strips. The strips were then cut to length. Blanks vary in length depending on the style of pen (slim twist, European round top, etc.). So far, I have turned more than two-dozen pens from these scraps, many of which are in the slim twist style. 
I have about 60 square feet of these scraps, which is enough material to make thousands of pen blanks. I used to pay about $1.50 (US) for a pen blank. Shop Shot #799 shows the pens I made earlier from commercial blanks. Using these scraps could mean a savings of thousands of dollars! Of course, the savings is theoretical because, unless I have gone insane, I do not think I will be turning that many pens! . . .
Charles Mak
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