What do you sell more of? Wood pens or acrylic/PR?

[redfishsc]

So, for those that sell one pen a year or more, what do your customers go ga-ga over? I am going to have to say "mostly acrylic/pr" pens. They always like the wood pens but when they put their money where their mouth is, they buy an acrylic/pr. I guess they just like the flashy or bold look of the PR resins. In fact, many of my resin sales have been from "stone" looking resins like Trustone and HUT Polygem. Which is good, I love turnin' them!


What percentage best represents what you sell?

 

[redfishsc]

One of these days I'll pay attention to what I do. I accidentally voted "75-100% Wood" which is backwards.[B)] I sell mostly acrylics. I guess I have to throw ADD/ADHD into this survey as an intervening variable.[V]

 

[rtjw]

I am getting more into customen parts and I think the resins always look better with custom work. I havent turned a wooden pen in prolly a year.

 

[Rifleman1776]

Yer askin' <b>ME?</b>

<br />

 

[redfishsc]

Looks like we have a horse race--- so far the woods and acrylics are in a dead heat!

Oh, and apologies to Ed4Copies for not putting "stained glass" in the lineup![]

 

[LEAP]

So far I've sold one pen, to my brother in law and he stiffed me.[!] But it was a wood pen so I guess I'd have to say 100% wood.

 

[pensbydesign]

this is the first year i turned any acrylic, and not sold one. all sales have been wood

 

[PenWorks]

25% wood 75% other than wood. []

 

[wood-of-1kind]

99% wood and 1% other (antler, tagua nut). Not ready to change my name yet[]
-Peter-

 

[fiferb]

I'm actually 66% wood but voted half n half. I counted dymondwood as other along with acrylic, corn cob and pine cone.

 

[ed4copies]

Originally posted by redfishsc
<br />Looks like we have a horse race--- so far the woods and acrylics are in a dead heat!

Oh, and apologies to Ed4Copies for not putting "stained glass" in the lineup![]

That's OK, so far the "stained glass" category is still in development. By next year, (or maybe Christmas), it should be a "category"!!!

Thanks for thinking of me!![][][]

Oh, lest there be any doubt, I answered over 75% acrylics and alternatives.

 

[NancyLaird]

I don't turn anything but wood. In fact, I just gave away the acrylic and corian blanks that I had been given by someone else. Part of the joy of turning is seeing the beauty of the wood that comes out of a rough piece of wood. When you turn acrylic or corian, the surprise element is removed.

Just my .0198.

Nancy (103 days)

 

[cdcarter]

Folks can buy a plastic pen anywhere. I'm a woodworker, not a pen maker. Pens are just something else I make (along with tables, clocks, peppermills, bookshelves etc.). It's all wood, so it's all good.

I'll start turning synthetic-material pens when I start making plastic coffee tables.

 

[wayneis]

I used to turn a lot of acrylics but never sold many so now I do 99.9% wood and the wood is all special like burls or very extra special grained.

Wayne

 

[redfishsc]

Originally posted by cdcarter
<br />
I'll start turning synthetic-material pens when I start making plastic coffee tables.

I built 8 dormer louvres out of PVC board recently for the Seminary.
Not exactly a coffee table, lol, but it was out of plastic. I eyeballed some of the drop for making a pen, but it was too porous and spongy, and well, just white.

My theory is basically, whatever the customer wants, the customer gets. For whatever reason people seem to prefer my acrylic pens the most, and trust me, I put a whammadyne finish on my wood pens (some gloss and some satin).

I learned a long time ago in retail (grocery) that you carry what you sell, and everything else is just decoration. Fortunately since pens don't have a "sell-by" date, any pen you make will be around until you sell it or give it away as a gift.

 

[RONB]

I've sold mostly wood. People look at the acrylics and have sold a few of them.Most of my inventory is wood.Maybe just a mathematical thing. If you have 90% wood and 10% acrylic that you would sell 90% wood and 10% acrylic?[?][^]

 

[ed4copies]

Originally posted by RONB
<br />I've sold mostly wood. People look at the acrylics and have sold a few of them.Most of my inventory is wood.Maybe just a mathematical thing. If you have 90% wood and 10% acrylic that you would sell 90% wood and 10% acrylic?[?][^]

Or, if 50% of the people want acrylic, but can't find what they want, they will buy NOTHING from YOU!!

 

[Brewmeister35]

I have to say 75% wood but..... I just brought an acrylic to work about a month ago and everyone has been going nuts. I've got people that bought a wooden pen buying 3, 4, and even up to 7 more in the acrylics. Everyone loves to ooh and ahhh over the wood ones, but it seems that people are more serious about buying the acrylics. I've even had people go out searching the net and ask for a specific blank from the different suppliers. It's been an eye opener for me and I'm sure my acrylic/pr sales will overtake the wood sales eventually.

 

[redfishsc]

Originally posted by Brewmeister35
<br />I have to say 75% wood but..... I just brought an acrylic to work about a month ago and everyone has been going nuts. I've got people that bought a wooden pen buying 3, 4, and even up to 7 more in the acrylics. Everyone loves to ooh and ahhh over the wood ones, but it seems that people are more serious about buying the acrylics. I've even had people go out searching the net and ask for a specific blank from the different suppliers. It's been an eye opener for me and I'm sure my acrylic/pr sales will overtake the wood sales eventually.

This has been my observation as well. They look at the wood pens as sorta "novelty" and "oh that's neat!", but almost routinely they buy one of the acrylics. And I have some very, very sweeeeet wood pens in my display-- several mallee and cherry burls, tulip wood, bloodwood, cocobolo, purpleheart, box elder flame, and all sorts..... all with a nice, thick, glossy finish (some satin finish)...

I don't mind them buying the acrylics more, since they are less allergenic and I can produce them a good bit quicker (read Ed Brown's tutorial on making a cigar pen out of PR resin, good info).

 

[bob393]

I'm a wood guy. I only do plastic as a special order.

 

[snowman56]

This is hard for me to say since I sell mostly alligator jawbone pens, but I sell lots of wood, especially burls, and lots of acrylics. My doctor clients usually want either wood or alligator, my realestate clients usually want wood, and other clients love the acrylics and mother-of-pearl, corncobs, etc. I guess I sell it all.