Three...well two and a half pens.

[DougB]

Shane...where to start...there are so many things I need to say so I'll start out with some and then come back and finish up with another reply.

First of all, you can always download instructions from Penn State Industries for a pen kit even if you bought it from Woodturningz or somewhere else...but, Woodturningz has always sent the instructions with the kits I have ordered from them.

I have 2 sets of cigar pen instructions, one from Berea and the other from PSI, but only 1 set of bushings. That has always bothered me some, but both kits seem to work OK with the bushings I have...at least so far anyway.

Anyway, here is a link to the "Big Ben" cigar kit from PSI - it may not be the same as your kit, but I bet it will work for it: http://www.pennstateind.com/library/PKBIG_ins.pdf

<edit in> Wow! I just checked the Berea site and they have new instructions for the cigar pen and they look really good! Check these out too: http://www.bereahardwoods.com/price/...CigarPenBH.pdf

[DougB]

Ok, now that we have the cigar instructions taken care of, let me just say that you did a superb job on your first cigar pen. That looks like you nailed it. And the Timboti wood looks fabulous - you guys are going to bankrupt me with all these new woods that I'm gonna have to try out :) I never even heard of that one.

The Chechen slim looks real nice...coppers looks like a good choice for the kit with that wood. And the pen looks very well made.

Now, for the swirl pen(s), I am so glad you posted a pic of the glued up blank (wish I had thought to do that). The pic shows exactly what the issues are with making a swirl - blank is going to be slightly smaller where the swirls are glued back in. And I don't think your curves are much different than what I experienced with mine. For me the small nib/finial arcs were easy to make a smooth line with, but the larger center arc tended to have a flat spot in it...looks like you had a similar experience. But the pieces still fit together well and the glue fills any gaps pretty well.

And I have to agree with you that the Mesquite is a little light - a darker color might have provided a better contrast. It's not bad at all, but darker wood might work better.

Anyway...nice job! And congrats on your first cigar and swirl. You are making progress in leaps and bounds. And the pics are just fine too.

[shane_s]

Thanks Doug,
I never put Peen State Ind. with PSI I feel kinda dumb now. I just started using PSI kits. Everything I have used in the past came from Woodcraft. I did use Woodcrafts instructions to help figure out the bushings after I couldn’t find the PSI instructions at Woodturningz. Thanks for pointing me in the right direction.

I hope I put it together right?

[carl civi]

Nice work shane,thats the way to pick up things and learn and that is to mix up your styles and techniques with doing swirls and such..
My order came in last week and i have 10 Big Ben Cigars in there with the better and more expensive hardware anxious to turn them when i decide on right blank to use to make them special.I ordered a new set of bushing with them and they are different then the ones i have,the old ones have 4 bushings an the new ones have three.Best way to keep things COPISETIC(not a word) is use calipers.. Carl
http://www.pens-by-carlo.com
http://thepenmall.com

[shane_s]

Please excuse my pictures. My prop fell apart when I was setting up and I just got new lighting.

The first one is just a copper slim made with Chechen wood.

The second is my first Cigar. Just got the kits/bushings today but no instructions! Took me a while but I think I figured it out. The wood is Timboti.

The third pic is a Swirl attempt. I had some jagged band saw cuts and they showed up really bad. Plus I just didn't like the wood combo. Mesquite and bois d'arc. I think it just has too much bois d'arc for my taste. Didn't want to throw a kit away on it so I didn't even put it together. I figured I would post a pic of it so others could see the mistakes I made.