# My first S##T . I can’t believe I did that moment



## ekeogh (Jun 21, 2020)

My first mishap mistake whatever you want to call it ... this is only my 3rd pen that I am embarking upon and I turned the blank too narrow and the blank broke and now the brass inserts are visable .... I’m not looking for a solution to this ... I just can’t believe how quick I went from having a thick barrel to none at all... what sucks is that I don’t have any more blanks ready for turning and need to wait until tomorrow night..... that’s what I am beyond mad at.

oh well ..in Wood working I hate to say it but I learn more from my mistakes than my triumphs .. but it still is disappointing


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## mark james (Jun 21, 2020)

Slow down, breath, get settled for the next journey.  All is well.  

Learning more from you/our mistakes, Yup - I agree!

"Beyond mad to wait 24 hrs", ... accept this as it will be common in your future woodturning/penturning future.  This is common and easily accommodated ...with patience.

We have all been there.  You'll chuckle in 12-24 months at this thread


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## Dalecamino (Jun 21, 2020)

I agree with Mark. I think it is standard procedure to ruin a few blanks in the beginning stages. Even sometimes later as well.
I also agree with you. You have just learned a valuable lesson. Stock up on blanks!


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## ekeogh (Jun 21, 2020)

Dalecamino said:


> I agree with Mark. I think it is standard procedure to ruin a few blanks in the beginning stages. Even sometimes later as well.
> I also agree with you. You have just learned a valuable lesson. Stock up on blanks!


 Agreed !!!! I have a lot of blanks but no glued up blanks with the inserts attached, I just started using 5 minute epoxy but you can’t glue and turn the same night as they need a long time to cure .. so I usually glue up one night and turn the next


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## turnit2020 (Jun 21, 2020)

Everyone makes mistakes in the beginning. Its part of the learning process. Remount them and turn the wood off and save the tubes. That way its not a total loss. You will do better next time.
Turncrazy43


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## sorcerertd (Jun 21, 2020)

Have to laugh a little because I just had a chunk chip off of a tube the other day.  I made a nice neat straight cut down to the tube with a parting tool and made a new piece to put on that end as a "fix" with a pearled nylon insert for a little flair.  I decided to trim just a little bit more off before gluing it up and blew up the whole thing.  Ah well... next...


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## jttheclockman (Jun 21, 2020)

Not going to be your last so get use to it.


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## More4dan (Jun 21, 2020)

I’ve gotten too good at turning blanks back down to the brass to start over when I first started. The last failure was going to be my first entry in the beautiful wood contest. An amazing desert ironwood burl that blew apart. 


Sent from my iPhone using Penturners.org mobile app


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## leehljp (Jun 21, 2020)

What Tool are you using to turn? The rough turnings make it appear as though the tool was not as sharp as it could/should be, and as a result it is possible that too much pressure was applied. Dull tools require more pressure.


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## Bryguy (Jun 22, 2020)

Turn the blanks back down to the tubes and reuse the tubes. Been there, done that! (more than once.)


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## Monty (Jun 22, 2020)

*BTDTGT

(Been There, Done That, Got Teeshirt)*


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## ekeogh (Jun 22, 2020)

leehljp said:


> What Tool are you using to turn? The rough turnings make it appear as though the tool was not as sharp as it could/should be, and as a result it is possible that too much pressure was applied. Dull tools require more pressure.


 I am using a carbide tool that has a square carbide tip ... you might be right I might need to turn the tip and get a fresh edge.


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## KenB259 (Jun 22, 2020)

ekeogh said:


> I am using a carbide tool that has a square carbide tip ... you might be right I might need to turn the tip and get a fresh edge.



You might want to change out the square carbide with one that has a radius to it. I believe mine has a 2 inch radius. They are less prone to a catch as the pure square ones are. 


Sent from my iPhone using Penturners.org mobile app


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## Lucky2 (Jun 22, 2020)

Ed, like most, I've had this happen also, but I did learn from it. What did I learn you ask? I learned to never start to turn a pen, with only one blank prepared. for turning. I had an old friend named Murphy., he's taught me a lot over the years. One of the most valuable lessons, was to always have a spare whatever you're working on.

Len


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## sorcerertd (Jun 22, 2020)

FWIW, I have a "square" carbide cutter with the 2" radius and mostly use it to scrape CA finish even before sanding. If I make something with a stone inlay, I use it there, too.  Otherwise, I prefer a standard HSS skew.  That's just what works best for me.


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## johncrane (Jun 22, 2020)

most of mine were wrecks too! it's no biggie there's plenty of free wood about.


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## mick (Jun 22, 2020)

"I've never in 15 yrs of turning had anything like that happen"! Said NO ONE ever!

Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk


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## ekeogh (Jun 22, 2020)

KenB259 said:


> You might want to change out the square carbide with one that has a radius to it. I believe mine has a 2 inch radius. They are less prone to a catch as the pure square ones are.
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Penturners.org mobile app


Will do thanks so very much for taking the interest in my work


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## KenB259 (Jun 22, 2020)

Re looking at your picture, I can’t for the life of me figure out why you were so close to the tube in relation to the rest of the blank. 


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## ekeogh (Jun 22, 2020)

KenB259 said:


> Re looking at your picture, I can’t for the life of me figure out why you were so close to the tube in relation to the rest of the blank.
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Penturners.org mobile app



I was just turning the middle of the barrel thinner so as to create a flaired cap and nib kind of like the picture below


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## leehljp (Jun 22, 2020)

To achieve that in the photo just above, be sneaky, - sneak up on it, size wise. 

You have one advantage going for you - most people are a little timid and leave blanks a little "proud" - meaning oversized because they are afraid they might turn it down too much (and I did that early on). And another thing you did - you posted it here. There are a bunch of us too embarrassed to publish our mistakes and it takes us a lot longer to learn too! 

You will get up to speed in no time. Keep at it!


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## KenB259 (Jun 23, 2020)

ekeogh said:


> I was just turning the middle of the barrel thinner so as to create a flaired cap and nib kind of like the picture below



That makes sense then[emoji52]


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## egnald (Jun 23, 2020)

Greetings from Nebraska.  For what it's worth, another thing that might help is to make sure that the blank is securely glued to the tube, especially on the ends.  I've had even minor catches tear a blank off when it wasn't securely glued - so I over-apply the glue to my tubes - I use glue like someone else is paying for it - more epoxy (or CA) goes in the trash than anything, but a good secure bond between the blank and the tube I think is very important.  (This is something that I learned from Zac Higgins on one of the NV Woodwerks, Pen Turning 101 YouTube videos. 

Regards,
Dave (egnald)


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## SteveJD (Mar 18, 2021)

As a newbie too, I had a couple of blanks blow out while turning. I believe I had gap between the tube and blank due to poor drilling  technique. I made a homemade a drilling jig but just invested in drill press vice for better repeatability. Thanks for the tip about turning and reusing.
Also, seem to be timid about leaving ends proud. I am afraid of coming to close to bushing. Is sanding the best way to reach the bushing.
Thanks. I really appreciate any advice.


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## penicillin (Mar 19, 2021)

I always tell beginners to buy a pack of spare pen tubes for each kit type (usually slimlines to start). I assume that they have extra pen blanks on hand, but the same applies - have a few spares on hand. I assume that beginners are starting out with wood pen blanks (not plastic). The wood pen blanks should be basic and cheap, not super expensive or exotic. 

Spare pen tubes (and blanks) remove much of the stress of pen turning for beginners. If something goes wrong, grab another tube and try again. No big deal.


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## SteveJD (Mar 19, 2021)

Thanks for the advice.


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## Madman1978 (Mar 31, 2021)

This happened last week.  A beautiful piece of Buckeye Burl.    I will cast the leftover in some epoxy.


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