# Hotel Room Key Pen and Custom Case



## wiset1 (Jun 20, 2013)

Okay, so I work in a place where we travel ALL the time and we have a Navy Chief who's going to retire this month and I figured I would try to make something to remind him of his time on the road.  I collected a couple hundred hotel room keys and glued them together with thin CA and got to turning.  I also made a custom pen case to go along with it.  The shape and size of the pen case is a replica of an item in our travel kits so the case will remind him of travels and the job while the pen will remind him of all the time on the road in the different hotels.  This was a prototype (Both pen and case) so there are plenty of flaws, but the idea was sound and I'm sure he'll love it.






















Hope you enjoy :biggrin:


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## ChrisN (Jun 20, 2013)

That's a pretty unique idea! Makes for a nice looking pen, too. The case looks great too. Does the lid attach via magnets?


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## wiset1 (Jun 20, 2013)

ChrisN said:


> That's a pretty unique idea! Makes for a nice looking pen, too. The case looks great too. Does the lid attach *via magnets?*


 
I bought some rare earth magnets from woodcraft that are 1/2" and they hold everything together pretty snug.  I slide the case apart to break the bond.  It was my answer to hidden hinges that wouldn't quite work.


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## Leatherman1998 (Jun 20, 2013)

Now that is cool.


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## mikespenturningz (Jun 20, 2013)

Ok that is cool. It has to be the pen with the most segments... Your tutorial is what got me doing scallops I think?


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## beck3906 (Jun 20, 2013)

Looks great.

Won't the magnets demagnetize the room keys?   :biggrin:


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## Russknan (Jun 20, 2013)

Very clever . . . not to mention a beautiful execution! You must really like this guy. Bet he'll be thrilled. Russ


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## WarrenMorrison (Jun 20, 2013)

That's just simply awesome.


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## tim self (Jun 20, 2013)

I bet the Chief will love it.  Love the case but to me it looks like a mini coffin.


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## 76winger (Jun 20, 2013)

Very nice Tim, I've been brainstorming a similar idea for old Credit Card (since I don't use them any more). Still haven't envisioned just the right way of purting them together yet however.


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## wiset1 (Jun 20, 2013)

mikespenturningz said:


> Ok that is cool. It has to be the pen with the most segments... Your tutorial is what got me doing scallops I think?



I'm sure there are more pens out there with MANY more segments than this one.  Fairly simple to make if you have the materials, I just had to travel a lot to get this many cards.  Regarding the scallops, it may have been my tutorial, but it was the Gisi pens that drove me to try scallops so I can't take credit for it.



Russknan said:


> Very clever . . . not to mention a beautiful execution! You must really like this guy. Bet he'll be thrilled. Russ



The Chief was my sponsor two years ago when I got to the agency and he made sure the transition was fairly painless so I was happy to be able to come up with something like this for him.  I already have a dozen people asking for the same thing, but for now only two are being made...one for me and one for him:biggrin:



tim self said:


> I bet the Chief will love it.  Love the case but to me it looks like a mini coffin.



I guess it does, but it truly has a different purpose



76winger said:


> Very nice Tim, I've been brainstorming a similar idea for old Credit Card (since I don't use them any more). Still haven't envisioned just the right way of purting them together yet however.



Well, good luck because you've got to have a LOT of cards, ha ha ha.  The only issue with credit cards is the raised lettering and card numbers which will cause gaps between the cards.  This may be good if you plan to fill the voids with colored resin, but the fusion of the materials may cause issues.  Would be interesting to see if it would work though.

Thank you to the rest for your comments and feedback!


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## Exabian (Jun 21, 2013)

Great looking pen and I love the idea.


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## angboy (Jun 21, 2013)

VERY nice!! Love how the pen turned out!


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## firewhatfire (Jun 21, 2013)

I really like the idea about using the magnets.  I think that idea will be borrowed down the road.  

Always enjoy seeing the creative things you bring to the site.

Phil


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## wiset1 (Jun 21, 2013)

Thanks again everyone!


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## Turned Around (Jun 21, 2013)

That's awesome. I really like the case, too


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## healeydays (Jun 21, 2013)

Great idea and great looking pen.  I have a world traveler brother and this might be a good idea for a Christmas gift for him...


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## wiset1 (Jun 21, 2013)

healeydays said:


> Great idea and great looking pen.  I have a world traveler brother and this might be a good idea for a Christmas gift for him...



I bet if you contacted a hotel you could simply buy a stack of old cards from them at cost.  I just had a lot of them due to travel.  I will say that CA glue get used up fast having to stack so many, plus there was a huge puddle of CA around the base of the cards that got everywhere so make sure you have a way to contain it.


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## healeydays (Jun 21, 2013)

wiset1 said:


> I bet if you contacted a hotel you could simply buy a stack of old cards from them at cost.



Probably not as they are paranoid of anything with a magnetic strip and could potentially be reprogrammed to gain access to their facilities.


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## jimdude (Jun 21, 2013)

NICE! JOB!


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## Brooks803 (Jun 21, 2013)

Awesome work Tim! These pics are so much better than the ones your texted me. I can see the detail much better. I'm digging that case a lot! Magnets were the way to go for sure.


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## wiset1 (Jun 21, 2013)

healeydays said:


> wiset1 said:
> 
> 
> > I bet if you contacted a hotel you could simply buy a stack of old cards from them at cost.
> ...



I didn't think of that, but pretty much everything offers cards like this.  You can ask friends for old gift cards, gym passes, frequent flyer cards, etc. It's the thought behind it and all people will see is the layered card.



Brooks803 said:


> Awesome work Tim! These pics are so much better than the ones your texted me. I can see the detail much better. I'm digging that case a lot! Magnets were the way to go for sure.



Yeah, cell phone pics can only show so much.  I will say that this is the first FINISHED pen in about a year now so I'm happy to have broken the ice.  I did start working with the brass and stainless steel, but I never finished.  The magnets did offer a solution to a problem and while not a traditional answer, it was an answer none the less.  I'm finishing up a case now for the love spoon I made for my sister in-law and I'm going to use magnets on that as well.


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## greggas (Jun 21, 2013)

love the originality of the piece


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## wiset1 (Jun 22, 2013)

I want to thank everyone for the feedback and I hope to be making more pens as time allows.  It only took me a year between pens this time so I'll see if I can do better next time, ha ha ha.


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## scotian12 (Jun 22, 2013)

Well Tim, it was well worth the wait to see your newest idea. we look forward to your next creation.    Darrell Eisner


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## wiset1 (Jun 22, 2013)

scotian12 said:


> Well Tim, it was well worth the wait to see your newest idea. we look forward to your next creation.    Darrell Eisner



Thanks Darrell, I hope to have a couple more made at least before the years up :wink:


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## tazhunter0 (Jun 22, 2013)

Like the pen and will be borrowing the idea.  I travel a lot as a competitive archer, so got a stack of key cards from the last 3-4 yrs.

Chris


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## wiset1 (Jun 24, 2013)

Sounds like a couple people will be borrowing the idea.  I hope to see a couple pictures floating around the IAP.


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## healeydays (Jun 24, 2013)

Ok, who beat me out for that stack of cards on Ebay last night?

:wink:


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## Robert111 (Jun 24, 2013)

Very creative Tim. He'll love it.


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