Knowledge You Can Build On — Est. 1998
pen turning Question
yellamo
>I turned some pens over the weekend. I noticed after taking them off the mandrel, the thickness of the wood was not the same all the way around the tube. I assembled them anyway and they were not as smooth a fit all the way around the tip. What is my problem here?
Re: pen turning Question
Bill Hale / The Wood Spinner
>May be two things that I can think of.
1.You tightened the tail stock to tight and warped the mandrel to one side in the middle.
2. The mandrel is to small for the tube you are using and the tubes were not centered around the mandrel.
You can also check www.penturners.org
Good turning and be safe
Bill in Casa Grande, AZ.
Re: pen turning Question
EagleS.C.
>Another pssible cause was a soft spot on one side of the blanks or diference in hte hardness of the grain depending on the type of wood.
Sometimes it happens regardless of everything being correct,as in spalted wood.
The punkier parts will sand differently than more solid.
What was the blank?
Re: pen turning Question
yellamo
>Thanks for the info. The blank was cherry. It was not soft or pucky.
