Spalted oak fountain pen

Fresh from the shop but it almost didn't make it. This prototype includes several new ideas for me, the main one being the epoxy parts were poured in predrilled blanks, left to cure then drilled for the final sizes for the pen interior, leaving a "sleeve" to seal the inside. The main advantage is that I was able to use semi-punky wood that otherwise might not have made it without interior support (despite using a lot of CA).
But since it was a first, things went wrong a few times, ultimately leading to the wabi-sabi look, with the resin peaking through the wood in several places (mostly due to slopy remounting in the chuck). As I was progressing I thought adding black accent bands to some areas would enhance the look (I used black tinted CA) but that also contributed to the wabi-sabi look. Overall it won't be the first and last try, I already have several in the making, but hopefully I will remember what I have learned with this one
C&C welcome.

I really, really like it. Awesome Job!

Really cool techniques. I love the innovation. That blank is also mighty nice - well done to give it a new life. Thanks for sharing.

I love this! As for me, I love wabi-sabi. Our experiences, scars, and imperfections have shaped us all into who we are inside and I love to see that reflected in nature and in our art. Kintsugi also comes to mind here. My plan B "fixes" are often my favorite features of the finished product.

Looks great!
i have wondered why this approach isn't more common. It opens up a lot of possibilities.
looking forward to more.

It turned out awesome! Wabi sabi is in!! All of my pens have some little thing that isn't perfect. I like the timber section!
There's a fine line making them like this, they are often not very concentric but work themselves out once sleeved and mounted on the mandrel.
Love it mate, great job

Nice pen. Thanks for sharing.

CjG78 said:

It turned out awesome! Wabi sabi is in!! All of my pens have some little thing that isn't perfect. I like the timber section!
There's a fine line making them like this, they are often not very concentric but work themselves out once sleeved and mounted on the mandrel.
Love it mate, great job

Click to expand...

Thanks mate!
I don't struggle too much with this type of section, I start from the back with the piece in a 4-jaw chuck, M10x1 threaded tenon to fit the body, about 1 cm drill, minimal shaping, close to final size at that junction. Then reverse mount via the tenon and further drilling and shaping. Where I struggle the most is the internal threads, mostly for that I typically have a backup piece to make another section in case the first one fails. The ready-made section sleeves that Beaufort Ink started selling a few months back are more tempting every time I make a section!