Pen Blanks

[just bob]

A while back I posted a question asking for help trying to make celluloid handles. I never came up with anything and instead found out about something called pen blanks. These are 3/4 x 3/4 x 5 blocks of acetate, acrylester, and wood that are in various patterns. These are used to make ink pens out of. They are easy to drill, shape, and work with. Here are a few I've been working on.

The Case knife was smooth rose and the handle I put on it it Borneo Rosewood. The 2-bladed knife has a pattern called patriotic swirl. The leg knife has a pattern called confetti on it. These blanks are about $3 each. I caught some on sale for $1 each.

I've got one more glued up I'll post when it's done. I don't want to interfere with anyone selling anything on this site or in the knife related hobby. I'm unsure if it is acceptable to post where I bought these blanks at, but if you'd like the link pm me and I'll send it to you.

[Joe Dirt]

Nice work, Bob! They all look great!

PM inbound.

..... Joe

[just bob]

I'll go ahead and post this and if it's not supposed to be here they can take it down. These are nice people to work with.


http://woodturningz.com/Pen_Blanks.aspx

[ringergary]

Bob, Very nice, well done,






cheers Gary.

[TripleF]

Knice work bro

[just bob]

I wanted to go ahead and post this. Actually I posted this old knife in the Q & A section on this site and never got any comments on it. I assumed it was a $5 knife and decided to make an organ donor out of it. The pattern on the acetate is Holiday Swirl. This knife was more than 3/4 wide so the company also sells some patterns of this material in blocks that are 1 x 1 x 6. I used one of these bigger blocks on this knife and added the easy open. 8 hrs later I have a $6 knife - progress!

I don't have any others glued up right now but am going to do one of the Russell Barlow's I made backsprings for on another post in a cracked ice pattern. I'll add it to one of the posts when it is done.

[orvet]

Nice Bob.
How is that material to work with?

[just bob]

I don't have a lot of experience in this. I have used some of that Dymonwood and a pc of stag before. This works just as well and can be drilled and sanded. There are warnings about getting it too hot and maybe that is an issue?

Also I would say wear a respirator because it does put off an odor when being sanded, but I guess that is just common sense.

[Miller Bro's]

Actually I posted this old knife in the Q & A section on this site and never got any comments on it. I assumed it was a $5 knife and decided to make an organ donor out of it.

That is an interesting old knife, I believe it is used for stripping electrical wire

[orvet]

Actually I posted this old knife in the Q & A section on this site and never got any comments on it. I assumed it was a $5 knife and decided to make an organ donor out of it.

That is an interesting old knife, I believe it is used for stripping electrical wire

I think you are right Dimitri.

[Elvis]

Nice looking stuff and no doubt more stable than celluloid. I have to agree with the safety advice. I've always worked under the theory that if you can smell it, you're breathing it in. Probably not a good thing no matter what material you're grinding. Polishing materials like those can be tricky (and probably the reason for the heat warning). Most of the synthetics will begin to melt at high speeds on a buffer, so slower speeds and a light touch really pays off. Again, nice looking material and pen blanks work very well (as you've shown) and are often cheaper than knife handle slabs of the same material.

[conslade]

There is a plastic polish called "Novus" that you can buy off of ebay. It doesn't cost too much and the bottle has plenty of polish to do plenty of knives. It comes in 3 grits, 1,2 and 3. The number 2 does a great job on delrin and other plastic knives. #1 is a coarse grit and #3 is super fine. I heard of this from a friend who collects and restores vintage switchblades. He has some early plastics that will shine like a diamond in a goats ass!

[Elvis]

I've heard that expression before and know its reserved for only the really shiney stuff. No doubt different compounds help. I may have to check those out. I recently bought a compound from Jantz called scratch remover. I was afraid it was going to be too rough but turns out to do a nice job (on metal). Still, too much speed will melt delrin and just about anything man-made that isn't reinforced. I reckon that's why they charge so much more for the variable speed controls on belt grinders (trust me, they do). Anybody know a good electronic gizmo builder?

[conslade]

I forgot to say that the Novus is a liquid hand polish.

[muskrat man]

Nice work. The acrylic pen blank material is very similar to the decorative synthetics that jantz supply sells. It seems to crack pretty easy and like any plastic it will melt if you get it too hot but other than that it's agreat material to work. you can even get it in various camo patterns!

[just bob]

I actually had the chance to visit the company that sells the pen blanks. It is about 40 miles from where I live and was goingto be in the area so I stopped in. The people are super nice and have a huge bin of seconds. I went through it and found enough material to keep me busy for the next 5 years. Here is a little Remington that had bad scales and a broken blade on it. It is going to be my EDC. This is some of the scrap material I bought for $1. I did learn that after you haft this if you take very fine sand paper and go over it before you buff it - it turns out much better - without scratches and uneven places in the finish. I'm also posting another knife with the pen blanks in the post about back springs from a while back.