Not sure if its just the practice that I'm starting to get good with it but it seems that I've been able to manage getting turning pen barrels down to less than 11 minutes.  It just seems so simplistic now that I've got it down.   Id honestly like to try and start doing some ornaments that sounds like find.  Did these two pen barrels today... I find that zircote wood is a bit on the brittle side of things.  Not sure myself why I can get these done so fast but it seems like I turn one sand it and put the stain on it and its done in no time.   I've also been considering investing in a Collet Chuck for the lathe.  Any suggestions on those would be greatful.  Side note this video is NOT edited with speeding up the video nor slowing down it is REAL TIME.

 

Mike Peace reviews this one from a few years ago-

 

https://www.woodturnerscatalog.com/p/101/4400/apprentice-Collet-Chuck-7-Piece-Set

 

Here's a discussion on the subject-

https://www.aawforum.org/community/index.php?threads/tell-me-about-collet-chucks.13882/

What finish did you use?

Mineral Oil worked quite well.  Yea I may have to get a collet chuck it would probably be a worth while investment.

2 minutes ago, AndrewB said:

Mineral Oil worked quite well.  Yea I may have to get a collet chuck it would probably be a worth while investment.

One drawback to the collet chuck is the diameters of the compression holders. The max/min of each compression holder is pretty limited. So you need to make sure your stock is sized correctly.

 

After your sanding and before you apply the finish, try burnishing your turnings. It really can create a nice surface to apply the finish-

 

Look into one of these.  Saves your pen mandrel from bowing and gets you a better turn on the pens because it sits against the bushings not the end of the mandrel shaft.

 

Pen mandrel

 

19 hours ago, Gunny said:

Look into one of these.  Saves your pen mandrel from bowing and gets you a better turn on the pens because it sits against the bushings not the end of the mandrel shaft.

I've got one of those, and I really like it.

22 hours ago, Gunny said:

Look into one of these.  Saves your pen mandrel from bowing and gets you a better turn on the pens because it sits against the bushings not the end of the mandrel shaft.

 

Pen mandrel

 

Yea I need to get one.

 

Would a regular live center do as well?  

14 minutes ago, FlGatorwood said:

Would a regular live center do as well?  

It does but the support this offers saves a pen mandrel from bowing over time.  

Thanks, Gunny.  Will be putting this on my wish list.  

28 minutes ago, FlGatorwood said:

Thanks, Gunny.  Will be putting this on my wish list.  

Pen mandrels have more uses then just making pens.  I use them to turn my goblets, small handles, all kinds of uses verse chucking it up the conventional way.  I keep it on my smaller JET lathe and have the RIKON set up with a chuck and live center.

Now thats an interesting thought on using them to turn goblets thats a pretty darn good idea.  I just ordered this https://www.rockler.com/nova-pen-mandrel-saver-2-morse-taper

so we shall see how that improves everything.  Maybe that odd noise the wood makes when carving will go away with that tailstock chuck.  Either way  I may have to try that to turn a goblet at some point.  How ever I'm not sure how you would cover up or conceal the hole that is drilled out through the middle and I was thinking last night that I could use it to turn candle stick holders and actually make them squared instead of lopsided and wobbly.

I take wine glasses and cut them stems.  Now I need a hole for the stem to go into the wooden base.  Having turned the base on a pen mandrel shaft I have a perfectly centered and squared off hole in the base.  Just drill down to correct size for stem and use epoxy to attach.  Now the bottom of the wine glasses can be used again as candlestick base.  Same idea.   For the bottom of the base I make a dowel and plug the hole.