>Hi all. Am in the process of making the "studio" (!) neater...and have decided that perhaps I should slice all those little pieces of wood that I've been keeping for pen blanks...into pen blanks so they can be drying.
What's the best size to cut them into?
I've seen 1"x1"x5"...but I've also seen where people say that's a waste of wood and they should be smaller.
I don't care about wasting a little wood...to be honest.
>It really depends on what style pen you are making, and whether the wood is dry when you cut it. You can get away with as small as 1/2" square for a standard SlimLine, but you will appreciate the wood being 1" square if you are making one of the big pens like an El Grande.
Common commercial pen blanks are usually 3/4" square, but exotics are often cut to 5/8" square.
I make everything in the 7/8" to 1" range because I make a large pens. I can always make a smaller pen from a larger piece of wood, but there is no way that I can stretch a small piece of wood into a big pen.
Length also depends on the pen. 5" long is adequate for most styles, but larger pens can be easier to make with a longer stick of wood. I cut most wood to 6" length, but always make a few that are as long as 9" or 10" so I will have matching wood for a desk pen. Again, long wood is easy to cut to a shorter length.
The advantage to cutting your own pen blanks is that you can make them any size you want.
I was looking at a pen turning book the other day, and the author had "sheets" of dry and dryish wood, and a clear piece of plastic the size of a pen blank and he was placing it across, down, diagonal...as long as the wood's dry it should be okay, yes?
--Thanks,
--T.
staring at a skating rink parking lot in Contoocook, NH.
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