# Playing with some Pickguard



## Ron Mc (Jan 15, 2008)

A few months ago a stranger walked into my garage and asked me what I was making. I spent some time with him and showed him exactly what I was doing.

The next time he showed up he had a small band saw with him and said that he noticed I didn't have one and explained that he had several of them and that I could have it. I was shocked. It's a very small Delta with a dull blade so it sat for a couple months. Last weekend I decided to play with it to see what I could do with it without replacing the blade and this is what I came up with.

The pen consists of Holly and several types of Pick guard.

















One thing to note....When using a band saw NEVER use your thumb to push the end of the blank along!


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## gerryr (Jan 15, 2008)

I like it.  I hope you didn't learn that about band saws the hard way.[:0]


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## Ron Mc (Jan 15, 2008)

Yes....I learned the hard way.[]
It's amazing how well a dull blade can cut flesh and finger nail!

Be very careful everyone!


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## JayDevin (Jan 15, 2008)

Nice Pen Ron!
Ron, that is why PUSH sticks are here! Or use a spare blank!


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## R2 (Jan 15, 2008)

What a great looking pen!![][][]Well done.


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## sah6139 (Jan 15, 2008)

Nice pen
Note to self
Add to list of things to try.

steve


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## wdcav1952 (Jan 15, 2008)

> _Originally posted by Ron Mc_
> <br />Yes....I learned the hard way.[]
> It's amazing how well a dull blade can cut flesh and finger nail!
> 
> Be very careful everyone!



OWWW! I thought that was red pick guard!!

Seriously, I hope it was only a warning nick!


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## 7miles (Jan 15, 2008)

Ron,
Sorry to hear about your accident. I hope its not to bad.

The pen on the other hand looks wonderful!!!! 


Dale


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## rhahnfl (Jan 15, 2008)

Nice pen. I like the colors. Hope you heal quickly.


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## GaryMGg (Jan 15, 2008)

Ouch! [] I hope it heals quickly & completely.


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## TBone (Jan 15, 2008)

Ron, careful with that thumb.  You only have 2 of those push sticks.  The pen looks great.


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## les-smith (Jan 15, 2008)

Great pen.  Good use of the pickguard material and color contrast.

Sorry to here about the thumb, hope it heals quick.


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## thewishman (Jan 15, 2008)

> Seriously, I hope it was only a warning nick!



I just got this picture of a very large man (Nick) in a too small suit, large hands with fingers like sausages, wagging an index finger and saying, "hey watch it there, buddy" in a thick Bronx <s>accent</s> dialect.
<b>
Nice work, Ron. I'm always amazed at your work. Amazed as in, "How the heck did he do that?" Thanks for all that you share.</b>

I'm still trying to figure out how your old miter saw made so many beautiful pen blanks.

Chris


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## Stevej72 (Jan 15, 2008)

Ron, That really turned out nice!


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## stevers (Jan 15, 2008)

Ron, very cool looking. Love to know how you got the twist like that. Did you bend the pick guard to form to the holly, or is it one of those optical illusions.
Very nice job and very unique.


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## Ron Mc (Jan 15, 2008)

Steve,
I cut the Holly and then applied glue to both sides and placed the pickguard in between the two pieces and put in a vise. Basically I made it do want I needed.


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## Mather323 (Jan 15, 2008)

Ron that is one very nice pen, great job!


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## alamocdc (Jan 16, 2008)

Nice looking Executive, Ron. I like it. I tried something like this a few years ago using black denim as the accent medium and it didn't work well. Never thought about trying to bend PG. [^]


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## RONB (Jan 16, 2008)

Glad you didn't get any blood on the wood.[]
Hope your thumb is O.K.The pen is great.


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## alphageek (Jan 16, 2008)

Very nice Ron.  I've done that exact same idea using colored wood veneers and my scrollsaw.  Good luck healing that thumb.  That pickguard is sharp for this. I like the multicolor effect.


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## UKpenmaker (Jan 16, 2008)

Nice work Ron, i have got some pickguard to play with in the latest GB.
Hope your thumb heals quick, i have had one or two close encounters with my bandsaw too.[:0]


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## Jim15 (Jan 16, 2008)

Ron, great pen. Hope the thumb heals quickly.


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## Glenn McCullough (Jan 17, 2008)

he was a very good person, hope you gave him that great looking pen for his generosity, he would get the best of the deal, well done!


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## jwoodwright (Jan 17, 2008)

Beautiful pen!

I may go overboard with safety, however, you can never have enough push sticks...  One of the easiest is a new pencil.  The eraser gives good traction, pushing small stuff through the bandsaw.

Sounds like your Bandsaw Guide was Too High, should only have a 1/4" gap for thin material, this and the pencil will save your fingers...[:I]


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## Marc Phillips (Jan 17, 2008)

That is one great looking pen!


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## pendemonium (Jan 17, 2008)

Love it!! []


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## JimBobTucson (Jan 17, 2008)

Ron,

Nicely done, that has been on my "To-Do" list for a while now (the pen, not your accident[B)] )

Sometimes the Wood Gods demand a little blood, I am happy that you can still count to 10 (or at least have enough fingers to do so). Thanks for reminding us all to be careful.


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## Verne (Jan 17, 2008)

Ron. As always, what more can I say. You da man! Hope the "push-stick" heals nicely.
Vern


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## wudnhed (Jan 17, 2008)

> _Originally posted by Ron Mc_
> <br />
> One thing to note....When using a band saw NEVER use your thumb to push the end of the blank along!



I resemble this note []!

Great looking stuff, Ron!


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## byounghusband (Jan 17, 2008)

Ron,
Wow!!  Nice Pen.  Glad you didn't get hurt too badly....  Make yourself a blank holder for cutting waves in pen blanks.
Take a piece of scrap, about 1"x1/2", 8" long.  Cut 2" off of it and attach that to the remaining piece.  Making an "L".
Lay the sled on edge, set the blank into it, line it up on teh Band Saw table, and use a small clamp to secure the blank to the sled from the backside of the blade.  
If you a scrap piece 2" wide, you can tape two blanks together and do a stacked cut.  More results, less time[]
I'll post a pic this weekend if you want....  Better yet, I smell a Tutorial coming.....  Stay tuned!!


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## rdunn12 (Jan 17, 2008)

Wow that looks nice.[]


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## fernhills (Jan 17, 2008)

Hi Ron, very nice pen i gotta try that,,If ya had a sharp blade in your BS it wouldn`t have hurt as much it woulda givin you a nice shear cut[]If it was sharp you wouldn`t have to push as hard and it might not have happened.. Carl


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## louisbry (Jan 17, 2008)

Ron, very nice looking pen design.  Did you laminate the pickguard or is it tri-colored?


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## byounghusband (Jan 21, 2008)

Here is a pic of the sled I use for cutting waves and curves in Pen Blanks.  I am stack cutting two blanks for use later:




<br /> This is 3/4" Maple and is about 6" on the long side and 2" on the short side.  It is approx. 2" high.





<br /> Here is how I clamp the blank to the sled.  I use a clamp on the backside of the blade.  A clamp with a deeper throat would be much better, but I don't have one at the moment that is not beig used on another project.

I will create a tutorial as time permits.....


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