I invested fully to make pens properly and in abundance. After the initial learning process, I was making pens daily and constantly buying the newest hardware and every type of blank possible. I produced 3 to 4 hundred pens priced from $10 to $120 and could sell them when I bothered to try but found that I would usually end up giving them away or even trading for other crafts that people make. I "may" have made my money invested back and had a great time learning how to turn out a superior pen in several different types of materials, but just like with most things, if you do it to make money it loses its magic... ask most any prostitute. Those rare times I could spin out a perfect pen, no flaws, made it all worth it.
The Vertex kit is actually from Penn State Industries who provide pre scratched tubes and direction in the bag. Most kits Rockler sells are actually PSI. The Rockler kits don't actually provide either directions or pre scratched tubes.
A suggestion....Instead of cutting the blank so close to size at first, Drill the hole then cut it to the size you want . That way you don't have to worry about blow out at the bottom.
In regards to the paste wax to cool the drill bit - do you have problems with glue sticking? I would think you have to get rid of the was on the inside of the blank. Haven't seen this before so don't know. Thanks for the video.
I sand at low speed and use "One Step" (from Pen State Industries) polish on the "plastics". You don't have to spend a long time sanding. Super finish very quickly.
thanks i got a lot out of this. just getting in to it i in-joy it.... im from Australia Perth. and you can not get much over here trying to get parts or blank is a nightmare
You could make your own blanks. There's got to be somewhere you can buy timber, right? Or buy resin/epoxy online, make a little plastic mould and mix in some dyes, etc. I dunno. As for the bits for the pens themselves, I can't help you, sorry. Hope you have fun though.
I have made and sold hundreds of pens so far. A problem that I have is that pen kits are now costing $15 up to nearly $25 for some of the real nice ones. This makes them harder to sell. When you factor in the blank and materials and labor it makes the pens harder and harder to sell. Do you have any suggestions?
If you wanna contact me on my Facebook @ All American arts I can send you some pictures of ones I have and some I have made we can come up with something you are looking for
Thanks for watching!! I would get about 20-25 bucks depending on it its for some I know or at craft show ,if someone orders it I normally can get alittle more than just making a bunch and trying to sell them .
Do you ever do labels and cast clear resin? I’m thinking about getting into casting my own too. I’m interested in doing labels and adding that personal touch for custom pens. Is that what you’re doing?
@@jbafternoonpiper404 it is a glue used to glue in tubes in blanks but also makes a really good fast drying finish but you need to know how to apply it or can mess up a product pretty quick by trying to do it
very helpful video. You answered all my questions except two. Does lathe speed matter when you are sanding and polishing? What speeds do you recommend. Secondly, what did you use to clean out the paste wax when you finished drilling the blank? Thank-you!
Hi thanks for watching and for the comment. From my personal opinion sanding is better at a low speed but obviously will take longer , turn speed up a little just keep sand paper/micro pads moving dont let them get to warm you will reck your pads . Also you dont wanna re shape your project while sanding so dont hold it in one spot to long . The paste wax never left an issue for me with glue sticking but a tip and some alcohol..but I do not use it now that I only use alumilite blanks that I make and not stop bought acrylic. That acrylic is to brittle it's no good , alumilite is a game changer!!
They all vary a little bit but slimline about 10-15 ...Cubans and some other like 9 dollar kits I get like 20-25 ...15 dollar kits I normally get 30-35 ...just over double the price of the kit unless you get some hybrid burls and stuff you get that extra few bucks
I have never had anything fail as far as glue... but I do only use alumilite blanks now that I make and that will not blow out while drilling like the acrylic blanks so i don't need wax anymore.
@@ugh3012 look on etsy for reference on what pens go for ..everyone values their time different. Buy a few kits see what it takes you to make it and think what you would want for your time and materials. Some people sell pens for 100 bucks that I would sell for 40
The only big money being made turning pens is by the businesses selling stuff to turners. Seriously - the market is small for hand made pens and there are nearly as many turners trying to sell them as there are customers.
Very cool that your doing it at 14 keep it up !!! If you ever looking for some cheap acrylic blanks I cast my own ...will start to post some pictures of some different ones here soon on my Instagram and Facebook check my other pages out .
lissen, i turned a lot of this pens but if i ask ppl 2 buy 1 pen for maybe around 25 € the answer allways "oh so much ???", so i give a lot only as a gift, BIG MONEY with making Pens ??, NOT in Germany
@@AkkiSan23 yeah gotta know where to sell them ..I do craft shows and i have a business page on Facebook were i get alot of sales . Also custom label pens bring big sales with logos and stuff .
I invested fully to make pens properly and in abundance. After the initial learning process, I was making pens daily and constantly buying the newest hardware and every type of blank possible. I produced 3 to 4 hundred pens priced from $10 to $120 and could sell them when I bothered to try but found that I would usually end up giving them away or even trading for other crafts that people make. I "may" have made my money invested back and had a great time learning how to turn out a superior pen in several different types of materials, but just like with most things, if you do it to make money it loses its magic... ask most any prostitute. Those rare times I could spin out a perfect pen, no flaws, made it all worth it.
The Vertex kit is actually from Penn State Industries who provide pre scratched tubes and direction in the bag. Most kits Rockler sells are actually PSI. The Rockler kits don't actually provide either directions or pre scratched tubes.
I work at the JET warehouse in Lavergne / Nashville Tennessee.....love seeing that machinery at work.....
Murfreesboro here
Well done. I enjoyed your video very much!
Thank for watching!!
A suggestion....Instead of cutting the blank so close to size at first, Drill the hole then cut it to the size you want . That way you don't have to worry about blow out at the bottom.
Thank you for sharing, good tutorial video, and very nice pen. Have a good day
Thank you for watch and the nice comment...really appreciate it
Well made video and beautiful pen, thanks for taking time out of your day to help us newbies.
Thanks! Just getting started and this was the most informative video yet.
Nice job.
Great video, very well explained, no rambling. Very informative man, thanks.
Thank you for watching!!
I like to use aluminum foil over my bed when wet sanding. Water doesn't soak through and I can reuse it numerous times. Good video 👍
Nice job, beautiful end results!
I would be very interested in seeing you do the duck and game calls.
I have a video on the whole process I did on a pine cone duck call
CA clue sets or hardens. It doesn't dry. Elmer's glue dries.
Great work buddy!! Informative and captivating.
Good to see an ironworker brother doing other great things. Good job. Local 495.
Thanks for watching!! Hope work is going good for you guys !!
In regards to the paste wax to cool the drill bit - do you have problems with glue sticking? I would think you have to get rid of the was on the inside of the blank. Haven't seen this before so don't know. Thanks for the video.
Awesome work. Beautiful pen. What rig do you perfer hanging and banging? 2250, 4100, 248, 9310, etc?
Much appreciated. Its all about the Operator lol
I sand at low speed and use "One Step" (from Pen State Industries) polish on the "plastics". You don't have to spend a long time sanding. Super finish very quickly.
thanks i got a lot out of this. just getting in to it i in-joy it.... im from Australia Perth. and you can not get much over here trying to get parts or blank is a nightmare
You could make your own blanks. There's got to be somewhere you can buy timber, right? Or buy resin/epoxy online, make a little plastic mould and mix in some dyes, etc. I dunno. As for the bits for the pens themselves, I can't help you, sorry. Hope you have fun though.
Timberbits.com is in Australia.
I have made and sold hundreds of pens so far. A problem that I have is that pen kits are now costing $15 up to nearly $25 for some of the real nice ones. This makes them harder to sell. When you factor in the blank and materials and labor it makes the pens harder and harder to sell. Do you have any suggestions?
I've ordered kits (limited styles) from STRONGINK in China...the price is right. Check them out.
Hey just found your videos awesome work! I'm interested in the game calls. Could you do a how to on those ?
Hey thanks for watching..I did a video on a pine cone duck call stabilizing casting and all
Can you post a link to where you get your blanks?
If you wanna contact me on my Facebook @ All American arts I can send you some pictures of ones I have and some I have made we can come up with something you are looking for
Very helpful, thank you for sharing. Beautiful pen! ❤
Safety glasses!!! Looks good though.
Particle Mask!!!
Thx for sharing. Nice looking pen.
How much would you sell that pen .
Thx .
Thanks for watching!! I would get about 20-25 bucks depending on it its for some I know or at craft show ,if someone orders it I normally can get alittle more than just making a bunch and trying to sell them .
@@AllAmericanArtsMN thx for replying.
Nice work.
I’m noticing your pressure pot. Do you cast a lot of your own blanks?
Sure do !!! That's all I use now is my own blanks
Do you ever do labels and cast clear resin? I’m thinking about getting into casting my own too. I’m interested in doing labels and adding that personal touch for custom pens. Is that what you’re doing?
Yes I do label casting . I also made a video on one before
I just realized, I didn’t even catch that it’s your video on the Marine Corps label pen. Nice video. You a Marine Vet? I’m a Marine Vet. 1990-1994
@All American Arts what resin do you use? Some kinda of deep pour and a silicone molds ?
I use a Zebra Z grip pen to make turned pens. Have you tried this method?
The lathe and the window can't be a good idea right?
Lol I put a piece of wood there if I make a bowl or anything....pens nothing that bad could go wrong, plus got the lake out that window!!!
I was thinking a sheet of lexan would work great for this. Glass is bound to get broken sooner or later. Thanks for videos.
That was bad ass! Great work man
Do you use the same cutting tools for wood and acrylic
I do . Lately I have been just using all carbide tools just cause I have new ones now circle and square. Just using other tools on bowls and stuff .
Would you use that wet sanding procedure if you use wood blanks? I just starting out making pens. I really liked your video.
@@jbafternoonpiper404 I dont go that far with my sanding for wood unless I do a CA finish then I buff it out using first few pads of the micro
@@AllAmericanArtsMN CA finish?
@@jbafternoonpiper404 it is a glue used to glue in tubes in blanks but also makes a really good fast drying finish but you need to know how to apply it or can mess up a product pretty quick by trying to do it
You put paste wax in your blank? How did you get it all out before gluing? It would suck to finish it and the glue not stick.
very helpful video. You answered all my questions except two. Does lathe speed matter when you are sanding and polishing? What speeds do you recommend. Secondly, what did you use to clean out the paste wax when you finished drilling the blank? Thank-you!
Hi thanks for watching and for the comment. From my personal opinion sanding is better at a low speed but obviously will take longer , turn speed up a little just keep sand paper/micro pads moving dont let them get to warm you will reck your pads . Also you dont wanna re shape your project while sanding so dont hold it in one spot to long .
The paste wax never left an issue for me with glue sticking but a tip and some alcohol..but I do not use it now that I only use alumilite blanks that I make and not stop bought acrylic. That acrylic is to brittle it's no good , alumilite is a game changer!!
All American Arts MN I just looked around for alumilite blanks. cheapest I could find are $16.
@@markgoodsmith7229 looking on etsy ?
Please put on safety glasses. Very nice
Do you sell them on e bay?
Pens or blanks ? I do most of my sales through my business page on Facebook
Who can you sell them to? Good video by the way
How much do you sell them for.
They all vary a little bit but slimline about 10-15 ...Cubans and some other like 9 dollar kits I get like 20-25 ...15 dollar kits I normally get 30-35 ...just over double the price of the kit unless you get some hybrid burls and stuff you get that extra few bucks
what is the white plastic piece on your work bench at the end that you moved away?
No idea what you mean
Does the paste wax effect the gluing of the tube?
I have never had anything fail as far as glue... but I do only use alumilite blanks now that I make and that will not blow out while drilling like the acrylic blanks so i don't need wax anymore.
I know it's been a bit but I clean mine after I cut them to size to make sure with dna can't have all that grease and be a good thing for sure.
Good video but you should change the title to pen making
Amazing work man
Thank you!!
How much do pens sell for?
All depends on blanks and kits used
All American Arts MN lol. That does not help at all. I am looking into doing this to make extra money.
@@ugh3012 look on etsy for reference on what pens go for ..everyone values their time different. Buy a few kits see what it takes you to make it and think what you would want for your time and materials. Some people sell pens for 100 bucks that I would sell for 40
Where did you get the center marking tool?
Woodcraft..its a Wood river center finder
Very nice pen. I'm sure you SM will love it.
I guess the thin ca gets rid of the was so no problem.
I have seen the shredded money ones
Yeah they are pretty cool made a few things out of that now , a shaving razor and a pen
Cost of resin, time sand paper, glue hardware...its a losing labor of love i have to imagine.
Such a cool item though!
I come from Germany good job
Thank you for watching!!
Sorry, I had to laugh when you first turned on the drill press. We've all done that.
The only big money being made turning pens is by the businesses selling stuff to turners. Seriously - the market is small for hand made pens and there are nearly as many turners trying to sell them as there are customers.
Nice, informative video. PLEASE wear goggles or a face mask when turning (especially when doing tutorial videos)!
You can buy it for me
what am I buying?
@@AllAmericanArtsMN blue pen
Thank you for sharing your process but please.....wear safety glasses and a mask.
I'm 14 and make pens hahaha
Very cool that your doing it at 14 keep it up !!! If you ever looking for some cheap acrylic blanks I cast my own ...will start to post some pictures of some different ones here soon on my Instagram and Facebook check my other pages out .
H
BIG MONEY ???? LOOOOOL
If you know what you're doing?!??!..something funny?
I sell pens/blanks for alot more than I make them for.. and they are easy & fun to make
lissen, i turned a lot of this pens but if i ask ppl 2 buy 1 pen for maybe around 25 € the answer allways "oh so much ???", so i give a lot only as a gift, BIG MONEY with making Pens ??, NOT in Germany
@@AkkiSan23 yeah gotta know where to sell them ..I do craft shows and i have a business page on Facebook were i get alot of sales . Also custom label pens bring big sales with logos and stuff .
thats bad, i dont use that fck Facebook, sry, so its imposible 4 me to take a look at ur webside , sry dude