andy - a basic pen starts with a 3/4 inch square piece of wood - I'd turn
at 2,000 to 3,000 RPM, it is actually easier to turn fast than slow. take
light cuts. use a spindle gouge (3/8 inch is the size I use for pens) - do
NOT make fancy pens at first - make the simple ones that are a knock off of
the CROSS pen, and try to get the shape perfect - no ripples, bulges, etc -
then make the one that is a copy of the Mont Blanc (they call it "euro" I
think) - when you have those to shapes down right, you can decide what you
want to do next. I haven't made pens in a while, when I did, I would put a
small (about 1/10th inch) bulge near the tip to make them easier to hold -
pens with lots of coves and beads are tiresome to look at and not
comfortable for writing either (my opinion, others may differ). Also, stick
with woods that have high contrast grain close together - zebra, cocobolo,
etc - things like walnut and maple don't look good in pens. Bamboo is
interesting, baltic birch plywood is interesting, but I found that teak,
zebra wood, canary wood, and that kind of stuff sold the best (and as gifts,
when given a choice, those were choosen first). Also, eschew pencils - no
one seems to want them.


"Andy K." mcse666@gmail_com wrote in message
...
Hello All and Happy New Year,

I have a couple of questions being new to turning. Currently the
only thing I have done is to try and make square stock round and other
things to get a feel for the lathe. My main projects at this time are
going to be turning pens. How do you figure out what speed to turn at,
is it different for the different species of wood, or is hardwood
hardwood? When I am turning what type of shvings should I expect;
actual shavings, dust or what?

Also can I figure out what I am doing wrong based on what is coming
off of my turned piece? Any and all suggestions and info would be
greatly appreciated.



I'm never lost, someone is always telling me where to go...






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