# My very first Steampunk



## Bigj51 (Sep 6, 2013)

Let me first say thanks to Jjartwood and Yorkie who's designs I drew inspiration from. After seeing many of the steampunk designs from the talented members here and not being able to find blanks to purchase anywhere, I finally decided to try and make my own. The first two I decided to try were Sierra Vistas. 


For the blank material I started with aluminum and copper tape as well as ebony Rub'n Buff for the distressing. I then created my imitated rivet pattern. Most I have see have the rivet dimpled inward. On mine i wanted it to look like the head of the rivet was sticking up so I did my impressions from the back side. 

Here is a shot after I had the tubes patterned, wrapped and ready for casting. 

And the cast blanks....... I used Silmar 41. I love that stuff!

And here are the pics of the first blank I turned. I decided on Black Titanium/PlatinumSierra Vista hardware. I love how it turned out other than I need to get pictures with my Nikon D7100. All of these pictures were taken on my iPhone 5. 

I would appreciate any comments and critiques.


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## anthonyd (Sep 6, 2013)

Very nice! The kit and the blank go well together.

Tony


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## LL Woodworks (Sep 6, 2013)

Very cool, I really like the one with the copper set at an angle.  I've been wanting to try this, may do it this weekend.  I assume you can get both aluminum and copper tape as well as the rub N buff at a craft store like Michael's?  Thanks for sharing.


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## johncrane (Sep 6, 2013)

Looks really good on first try.


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## Bigj51 (Sep 6, 2013)

LL Woodworks said:


> Very cool, I really like the one with the copper set at an angle. I've been wanting to try this, may do it this weekend. I assume you can get both aluminum and copper tape as well as the rub N buff at a craft store like Michael's? Thanks for sharing.


 
I will be turning the other blank this afternoon as well as creating some more blanks. The Rub'n buff paint came from Hobby Lobby, but Michaels sells it as well. The tapes I ordered through Uline. I get quite a bit of office supply stuff from them and surprisingly enough they had it. You should be able to get the aluminum tape at Home Depot or Lowes in the heating/cooling duct work section. The copper should be available somewhere..... I'm just not sure right off hand! Give it a try! the results are worth it!


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## Bigj51 (Sep 6, 2013)

And here's the second one from that first casting.



And the pair together.....

Comments appreciated....


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## MDEdwards (Sep 6, 2013)

I like em!
How did you do the rivets? They are so uniform.


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## Mordi (Sep 6, 2013)

Those look great!

Is there a writeup or tutorial on how to make these? I would to give it a try :biggrin:

Mordi


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## Bigj51 (Sep 6, 2013)

MDEdwards said:


> I like em!
> How did you do the rivets? They are so uniform.



I used a couple of improvised tools. One a small round carbide knife sharpener and second, a nail that i ground the point to a more rounded shape then set into a wood block. I then turned the copper and aluminum face down and did the pattern from the back side. As far as how uniform they are, Thank you! I did them one at a time and just eyeballed it. No measuring.


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## Bigj51 (Sep 6, 2013)

Mordi said:


> Those look great!
> 
> Is there a writeup or tutorial on how to make these? I would to give it a try :biggrin:
> 
> Mordi



I could not find a write up or tutorial on these anywhere, but after looking at some of the ones others have made I had an idea of how I wanted mine to look. I just looked real closely at the ones that had been made and reverse engineered them in my head. I love it when I try something new and succeed without screwing up several pieces in the process! Do you do any casting? I have been casting for about 18 months or so, so I already had most of the necessary supplies. To date my castings have consisted of  color patterned blanks, a few pine cone cast blanks and cholla cactus pen blanks. I have been working with Alumilite Clear and Silmar 41 PR. I really enjoy working with and turning the PR blanks, other than the smell while casting. I encourage you to give it a try. The results are well worth the effort!


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## Charlie_W (Sep 7, 2013)

Nice Job on the pens!
You can also get copper foil tape from stained glass suppliers in different widths. Just get the plain copper. No need for the silver or black backed foil.


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## Rangertrek (Sep 7, 2013)

Nice work on the pens.  That should lead to more variations on the concept.


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## mikespenturningz (Sep 7, 2013)

Very nice indeed.


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## hukcats1 (Sep 7, 2013)

Nice pens!


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## plano_harry (Sep 7, 2013)

Nice work Jeff!  Looks like you don't need it, but model railroaders have a tool for making rivits easily.  It is like a tailor's star wheel and you just roll it along - automagic.  You can get them in different "scales" to fit your preference.

Harry


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## Si90 (Sep 7, 2013)

Very nice. This type of blank is really starting to grow on me. It's also got the little grey cells going about doing something similar on my Steampunk pens.


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## reddwil (Sep 7, 2013)

Mordi said:


> Those look great!
> 
> Is there a writeup or tutorial on how to make these? I would to give it a try :biggrin:
> 
> Mordi



I got one in process, just got to find time to finish it up. Should not 
be long


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## Jjartwood (Sep 11, 2013)

Very nice,the hardest part of building the blanks to me are not to make them too busy.
Your pens are a nice example of the style. The back side pounce marks do add a nice depth to the look. Although people on this site have since surpassed the pen I have  explained the process on the ACME ROCKET ZEN thread, it may provide a start point for others to move forward on playing around with this stuff.
Mark


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## jeff (Sep 14, 2013)

Looks great on the front page :biggrin:

I get asked how I select the featured pens. This was an easy pick.


Just a darn nice pen! Looks fun to use.
Been a while since we had a similar pen (Mark's Steampunk)
Excellent photo, with good pose for the front page
Materials and hardware called out
Excellent description of the making
Maker had not been on the front page for a year (this is Jeff's first)


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## walshjp17 (Sep 14, 2013)

Congrats on the front page, Jeff.  Well deserved.


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## johncrane (Sep 14, 2013)

Well done making the front page.


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## Bigj51 (Sep 14, 2013)

jeff said:


> Looks great on the front page :biggrin:
> 
> I get asked how I select the featured pens. This was an easy pick.
> 
> ...


 
Thank you!!!!! Makes me feel really good! Making this one was a lot of fun, which was enhanced by getting it right on the first try. Usually when I try a new process I mess up a few before I get it figured out!

*** And another first on this was turning between centers. I recently purchased some of the TBC bushings from penturners products and I am in love with them!


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## edstreet (Sep 16, 2013)

Could someone please explain to me how and why these would be classified as steampunk?


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## Bigj51 (Sep 19, 2013)

edstreet said:


> Could someone please explain to me how and why these would be classified as steampunk?



An explanation of "Steampunk" to me by vanngo5d......

Steampunk is, The Victorian Era with our modern technology. The use of brass, copper, bronze, and silver to make the new things look old. 
One of the largest meeting of Steam Punk patrons is held every year at the Dickens on the strand @ Galveston Island Texas.

.....based off of this explanation, I think they fit.


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## joefrog (Sep 20, 2013)

Good work!  Looks very close to the blanks from "firewhatfire" -- I've got one I made from his blanks on my desk right now.


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## Bean_Counter (Sep 21, 2013)

Jeff I think you nailed... Very cool looking pens....


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## ugrad (Sep 22, 2013)

edstreet said:


> Could someone please explain to me how and why these would be classified as steampunk?



It's tenuous at best, it seems that anything with a bit of brass or copper is now called steampunk, they are really "metal clad".

There has been only one guy, here, I have seen that has produced steampunk pens and they are truely magnificent.

<http://www.penturners.org/forum/f13/latest-victorian-skunkworks-113026/>
<http://www.penturners.org/forum/f13/my-pens-so-far-112866/>

Regards
Peter


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## Bigj51 (Sep 22, 2013)

ugrad said:


> It's tenuous at best, it seems that anything with a bit of brass or copper is now called steampunk, they are really "metal clad".  There has been only one guy, here, I have seen that has produced steampunk pens and they are truely magnificent.  <http://www.penturners.org/forum/f13/latest-victorian-skunkworks-113026/> <http://www.penturners.org/forum/f13/my-pens-so-far-112866/>  Regards Peter



Call it whatever you want. I enjoyed making the blanks and think they turned out really well.


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## ugrad (Sep 23, 2013)

Bigj51 said:


> Call it whatever you want. I enjoyed making the blanks and think they turned out really well.



Yes, they are fun to make and you did a great job.

Regards
Peter


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## mad about pens (Oct 1, 2013)




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## Jjartwood (Oct 1, 2013)

The explanation that I received to describe Steampunk..........
19th Century industrial without the orphans.


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