# Mother of Pearl Elegant Sierra



## JohnU (Jun 16, 2009)

I was reading about casting some mother of pearl powder two days ago and remembered I had this blank, so I finally finished it.  I bought a bag of crushed shells and sorted out the pretty ones to glue on a painted sierra tube with medium ca.  It was casted in silmar 41, turned, sanded, micro meshed, and polished and buffed!  I think the elegant chrome kit is a bit bright next to the blank, but it was all I had.  Next time I'll have to check with Ernie at Beartooth and see what I can get in a satin.  All comments welcome.


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## bitshird (Jun 16, 2009)

Nice looking pen John, I like it the way it is, maybe even with a black TI would look sharp also.


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## the_benz (Jun 16, 2009)

*Same Kit*

Beautiful Pen!

The same kit is available from Berea with the Chrome and Sating Chrome sections reversed.  The will cut down the shine for you.  Also, how thin was the shell when you glued it on a tube?  Did any of it it come through the simlar?


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## Ligget (Jun 16, 2009)

John that is a beauty, great casting, if you are taking orders for those blanks send me a pm.


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## JohnU (Jun 16, 2009)

the_benz said:


> Beautiful Pen!... Also, how thin was the shell when you glued it on a tube?  Did any of it it come through the simlar?


I'll have to try the reverse kit to see how it looks. Thanks     I didnt have any come through the pr. The shell pieces were very thin.  I had a couple break when I pushed them flat against the tube.  




Ligget said:


> John that is a beauty, great casting, if you are taking orders for those blanks send me a pm.


Mark,  Im not taking orders because I dont know when I'll get a chance to make more, but I will keep you in mind if I get some done.  

Thanks, John


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## cnirenberg (Jun 16, 2009)

Wow,
that is a sharp looking pen. Great casting, the shells look like they are bursting out of it.


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## broitblat (Jun 16, 2009)

That is very nice looking.  Very nice combination (I like it with the chrome), and very well executed.

  -Barry


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## CaptG (Jun 16, 2009)

Great job John.  I like it just the way it looks.  BTW, my pens made with your pheasant feather blanks have been a big hit.


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## akbar24601 (Jun 16, 2009)

Great job John! That is a beautiful pen. I think it looks nice on that kit too. Great pic as well!


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## artme (Jun 16, 2009)

That is a standout pen!!:star::star::star::highfive:


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## rjwolfe3 (Jun 16, 2009)

wow that is one sweet pen.


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## thewishman (Jun 16, 2009)

John, I really like how you get an idea and then actually make it into a reality. That is another very nice blank and pen. Good work!


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## ed4copies (Jun 16, 2009)

John,

I don't think you need to worry about flashy when using MOP!!

People who buy that are seldom trying to be subtle.


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## Randy_ (Jun 16, 2009)

Nice job, John.  Must say, though, that I agree with Ken and think a black Ti would do better as the contrast of the black and the white would do more to show off the MOP!!


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## JohnU (Jun 16, 2009)

Thanks for all the comments.  I'll have to play around with these blanks on other finishes.  John


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## greenacres2 (Apr 20, 2018)

This thread was linked in a post by John today, and since i'm new to the "sport", i'd have never seen it without that link.  Thought i'd bring it back up so others can see.  Glad I took a look--that is beautiful!!
earl


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## Dr Robert (Apr 21, 2018)

Absolutely gorgeous pen John!! Two questions: (1) What color did you paint the tube and (2) I always get paranoid when I’m turning down the clear casted blank for fear I’m going to hit the substructure material! But I don’t want it to be over bulky as well.....What is your technique in reaching this happy medium!? Thank you


Sent from my iPad using Penturners.org mobile app


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## JohnU (Apr 21, 2018)

Thank you!  Didn’t expect to see this post alive again. Lol. These were very small thin pieces of shell so I didn’t have to worry about the thickness.  The other shell pens like the abalone piece blanks were much thicker.  For those I glued them down with medium ca and then after a day I lightly rolled them on the belt sander to thin them down and then put them on the large and sanded  through some of the grits to smooth them out. Then I polished them before casting.  The other shell pens with texture or patterns on them I just selected the thinner pieces for the tube edges since sanding the outer surface would remove the pattern off of them. The tube paint depended on the shells. I would try to match their color.  The mother of pearl blank tubes were first painted white and then I coated them with a pearl looking nail polish.  The abalone tubes were painted a dark blue or black and the other seashells were usually an off white to match the underside of the shell.  Be sure to wear a respirator when sanding shells.  The dust can be very harmful to your lungs.  Hope this helps! Thanks again!


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## Bob in SF (Apr 21, 2018)

Beauty!


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## OZturner (Apr 23, 2018)

Spectacular Pen John.
Glorious Blank, Beautiful Precise Tiling of the Shell Segments.
Excellent Casting, Fit and Finishing.
Congratulations,
Brian.


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## mg_dreyer (Apr 23, 2018)

Always great to see John's work. Spectacular.


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