A customer asks "How long does it take you to do a pen?"

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Mack C.

Mack C.

Passed Away Sep 29, 2018
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What do you answer them?

I've had this question asked of me too many times to count.

I generally answer between 2 - 3 hrs, but this doesn't include the finishing which may take up to a week.

A few white lies, when they are eyeing a $75 - $100 pen. I've sold a few $75 pens, haven't hit the $100 mark yet, but I have an order for a Sedona Ti. G. with a knot on the cap and the barrel. I'm thinking he'll gladly pay the 100 smackers!
 
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Mack,

If you encounter this often, make a copy of the poem Don Ward uses, (ItsVirgil).

IF it's only a "once in a while" thing, I tell them it depends on the style, was there a particular type of pen? If it's just a "general information" question, explain you have to select the right material and cut it, drill the holes, etc. By the time I look at a full pen, a couple hours. They generally are looking to determine your income per hour, so this satisfies the curiosity.

The truly interested will then ask what the difference is between a $70 and a $300 fountain pen. THIS opens the door to selling.
 
I typically answer 2-3 hours as well. I figure that takes into account most of the time I spend finding materials, coming up with ideas, researching new products, and then hands-on time. For some pens, this might be overshot, and on others it's way under actual time - but it seems close to average.
 
ed4copies said:
Mack,

If you encounter this often, make a copy of the poem Don Ward uses, (ItsVirgil).

IF it's only a "once in a while" thing, I tell them it depends on the style, was there a particular type of pen? If it's just a "general information" question, explain you have to select the right material and cut it, drill the holes, etc. By the time I look at a full pen, a couple hours.
They generally are looking to determine your income per hour,
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That's exactly my take on the question!
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I will generally tell them that my most recent creation took me 34 years to make. In a few more months, I will change this to 35 years.
 
I always answer it depends on the pen, I then tell them if its a cactus that from harvest to pen a total of days which include harvesting,drying, bleaching,casting,turning, finishing and assembly this usually stops the Q&A on time and opens up my questions as "now what is your faviorte color" etc.
 
I tell them a several hours to several weeks depending on materials and complexity. I also let them know it's not as simple as working on one pen until it's complete. There are some processes that require cure and dry times where a pen may sit before it's ready for the next step in the process.
 
"As long as it takes to get a pen that is perfect for you. Now, the longest part of this process, of course, was just waiting for you to show up to pick up your pen. Let's find out which one is yours, shall we?"

:rolleyes:

.
 
The way I answer this question I could of been a politician. I tell them that it's hard to say just how long one pen takes since I am always working on several . Then I tell them some days I spend all day just picking out materials or I cut blanks all day ....or something as simple as painting blanks or tubes....by the time I get thru with my spiel they forget I never told them "how long" it takes! :biggrin:
 
When asked that question, I tend to say that the longest part of making a pen was learning how to do it right...and then I explain how I do it...

I don't think they're looking for a 'how much do you make per hour' sort of thing, but rather, they want reassurance that they're getting a quality product. Most of the time, they're just making sure they're not paying fifty dollars for something you threw together in a minute or two...

But then again, I'm not a salesman! :)
 
Greg O'Sherwood said:
"As long as it takes to get a pen that is perfect for you. Now, the longest part of this process, of course, was just waiting for you to show up to pick up your pen. Let's find out which one is yours, shall we?"

:rolleyes:

.
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And people say lawyers won't give you a straight answer. How long does it take you to make a pen? As long as it takes me to make a pen. OK.
:)
 
maxwell_smart007 said:
When asked that question, I tend to say that the longest part of making a pen was learning how to do it right...and then I explain how I do it...

I don't think they're looking for a 'how much do you make per hour' sort of thing, but rather, they want reassurance that they're getting a quality product. Most of the time, they're just making sure they're not paying fifty dollars for something you threw together in a minute or two...

But then again, I'm not a salesman! :)
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Agreed. Describe the process and explain how you have learned to improve on the basic process. That's what they want to know. Saying "it took me 57 minutes and 12 seconds" doesn't tell them anything useful. Explaining how hard you've worked to perfect a durable finish and you have given them something concrete.
 
Lots of good ideas already, but this is my aproach...
I usually say it takes a week or two, with several in different stages at any given time, but I may spend an hour or so one day casting blanks. then a day or two waiting for it to cure. drill and glue up, then wait for it to dry for a day, a day spent on the lathe turning several pens. Then if I am doing a lacquer finish, several days applying coats of lacquer with overnight drying and sanding in between sessions. Then final assembly. This is basically truthful, and by the time I get through with this spiel they think the high end pens are a pretty good deal and opens the door to a discussion on quality and hand made vs mass production.
 
I've always answered in days. I dont break my work down to hours because i dont count drying or curing time as my time (epoxy, glue, finish). If I can start and finish in a day, its one day. If I use lacquer or my home made blanks in pr, then its going to a few days to a week. I also let them know I usually work on more than one pen at a time so while one is drying, Im working on something else.
 
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Yes, that question means they are fishing for a per hour cost in an attempt to figure out if your pen is worth the asking price. Translated: they are not going to buy a pen, no way.
My usual answer is that making a pen is a process and it is difficult to put a specific time on any one pen because some do not turn out successfully and the customer will never see those.
 
I usually tell them 2 hours or more spread out over at least two days. Sine I am not usually at shows when I am asked this question. It is usually a genuine interest in my craftsmanship and not an evaluation of my pricing. The answer usually gets met with a "You don't charge enough" type reply. I actually had a real estate agent outright say "are you actually making any money selling them at these prices"? It is the single most surprising response I have ever gotten to that answer. Here was someone that realized there was a lot more costs in making them than just my time.
 
I usually like to think of this as a contest of wills.....they want an answer, and I want to give them one....


I start out by saying " The process starts off with me deciding what pen I would like to make". This takes about 5 minutes to explain, and if they are still with me, I like to move on to "selecting the wood". Another 5 minutes to explain...and if they are still with me...I move on to "Sharpening my tools to prepare for the experience of turning the pen"...this could be 10 minutes or more, but I usually lose them after the first or second explanation...LOL....
 
Rifleman1776 said:
Yes, that question means they are fishing for a per hour cost in an attempt to figure out if your pen is worth the asking price. Translated: they are not going to buy a pen, no way.
My usual answer is that making a pen is a process and it is difficult to put a specific time on any one pen because some do not turn out successfully and the customer will never see those.
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You know, I think you guys are spot-on about this. I had not thought about it before.

I generally had been saying 1-4 hours, depending on the type of pen and material.

However, after reading the responses here, I now realize how I've been crapping myself with that response.

Very, very very very seldom do I ever start with nothing and have a pen an hour later. Thanks to CA glue, I can do that with Sierras and 7mm pens, but I prefer to epoxy everything.




So... now.... my official answer is going to be something like yours, Rifleman. It's so true.... not to mention that my process takes really two days (one day to drill and epoxy.... for an overnight solid cure.... turn and spray with catalyzed varnish the next).

Daniel said:
"are you actually making any money selling them at these prices"?
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:rolleyes:..........:redface:.........:frown:..........:confused:.........:eek:...........:mad:........:at-wits-end:

Man, it always seems like I make profit on every pen.... but I had to scrap the credit card to keep myself from flushing that profit right down the drain!!! Now I'm selling pens to pay for my past addiction to the "add to cart" button...
 
Tell them the truth. It took you years to learn all the tricks you have learned to turn a pen of that quality. Think about it and this is the real truth. A surgeon takes years to learn his trade why should ours be different? You first have to learn how to choose the right blank. Lord knows 9 out of 10 blanks are just average and will not make a fine pen. It took years to see the finished pen when you looked at a blank. Then you need all the tools required for the task. Master the tools and learn how to turn a fine pen. Then how many trial and errors did your finish take to master? The entire process was needed for you to reach this point. It may have only taken you half an hour to make "this" pen but you may have spent a thousand hours getting this good in the first place. Tell them you may have turned half a pickup load of wood to get this good. Give him a short answer of a few grand in tools and a few hundred hours in training. And that is the short truth of the matter. Then the per hour rate becomes an honest value, not some minimum wage calculation by someone who has no clue how to turn a pen. There is time and skill and both need to be appreciated in the fair valuation of your work.
 
The question I really love is when someone sees one of my snakeskin pens. They will ask, "How did you make that?"
I'll take out the pen, stare at it for a while, then using long dramatic pauses, I'll answer, "First.......you kill a snake..........and the rest is a secret."
 
Rifleman1776 said:
The question I really love is when someone sees one of my snakeskin pens. They will ask, "How did you make that?"
I'll take out the pen, stare at it for a while, then using long dramatic pauses, I'll answer, "First.......you kill a snake..........and the rest is a secret."
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For snakeskin pens, I tell them that the real trick is getting the snake to crawl through that little hole in the acrylic :biggrin:
 
Rifleman1776 said:
The question I really love is when someone sees one of my snakeskin pens. They will ask, "How did you make that?"
I'll take out the pen, stare at it for a while, then using long dramatic pauses,
I'll answer, "First.......you kill a snake..........and the rest is a secret."
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That just gave me an idea for my answer.
"First, I cut down the tree .............. and the rest is a secret", and that even disregards the planting of the tree. Or if I tell you anymore, I'll have to kill you!

There goes "No Sale" again! But sometimes a guys got to do what a guys got to do!
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