# different kinds of wood blanks



## woodboys (Feb 1, 2009)

Thanks Jason for showing me how to do this. 

As I stated in my other post how many of the several thousands of species of wood pen blanks do you have on hand. 

I have somewhere in the neighborhood of 135 species and growing. Who knows maybe I can win the contest Dave is throwing and gain some more stuff.

this poll is just for wood not PR or manmade material. The blanks that Curtis makes, that is half and half, would count because it is wood.


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## wood-of-1kind (Feb 1, 2009)

How many wood pen blank species do you have?

Different species OR total (qty?) wood blanks?


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## leehljp (Feb 1, 2009)

wood-of-1kind said:


> How many wood pen blank species do you have?
> 
> Different species OR total (qty?) wood blanks?



I was kinda wondering the same thing. Most suppliers don't have a hundred different species.

Me - I have no clue,  but guesstimation is somewhere around 500 - 600  blanks and 60 - 75 different species, but then I am not a collector.


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## woodboys (Feb 1, 2009)

Species. As Hank says it's easy to have a bunch of a few species but to have some of several is different. Well that's not exactly but that's the jest of it.


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## Tn-Steve (Feb 1, 2009)

I am new to this, my starter kit came with 5 blanks, then I picked up the blank assortment at Woodcraft, and that will be my undoing.  Each one I turn tends to become my new favorite wood, right now it's bloodwood.  I'm learning what I like and don't like, how organic materials differ even in a single piece.  

Since the wood I'm getting is still in the fairly inexpensive (1-3) dollars a blank range, I'm using a half a blank to turn to a nice round to get a feel for it, finish it so I can see how it looks when done.  This also gives me a chance to practice my finishing skills(?).  The remaining half gets saved to become centerbands since I've found my friends REALLY like the looks of a contrasting wood centerband and for when I'm ready to try my hand at inlays.  Nothing goes to waste, I hate throwing out pretty wood.  

Steve 
Wood... Collect the whole set.


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## woodboys (Feb 1, 2009)

Steve sometime you can get a box from the classifieds on here with lots of different kinds for about 50 cents a blank. I did that an was amasd at what I got. Also trading works out good.


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## Dario (Feb 1, 2009)

I wonder who have 500-1000 (and more) species in their collection.

I am on the 2nd level (20-50) I think and I thought I had it bad.  Good to know that I am that low on the totem pole. :biggrin:


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## bobskio2003 (Feb 1, 2009)

I happen to have over 750 species/variations of wooden pen blanks.  I've been collecting them for about 7 years now and belong to the International Wood Collectors Society.  I suppose if I had to cut out the variations (spalted, burls, etc...) I'd probably still have over 600.  Unfortunately not all of them would make a great looking pen.  I'm always on the look out for ones I don't have and love to trade.  Bob I.


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## woodboys (Feb 1, 2009)

If you have just the domestic woods that would almost take you to the second group. Oak,walnut,cherry,cedar,pine,elm,hickory,alder,mesquite,hackberry,maple,redwood,Desert Ironwood,sycamore,catalpa,butternut,basswood,poplar,ash,birch,beech,cypress,pecan,sassafras,apple,peach,apricot, and that's not including variations like red oak, white oak, tiger maple and birds eye maple, which would put this list over 30. Granted I wouldn't use basswood on a pen or some of the others but almost everyone has cocobolo, purpleheart, and a few other popular ones. It takes very little to add up.


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## TellicoTurning (Feb 2, 2009)

I don't know how many "species" I have, I have 6 of the plastic shoe boxes filled with a variety of blanks, plus all the native wood I have in my yard... if I cut up all the wood stacked behind my shop into just pen blanks, I probably would wind up with about 5-10,000 blanks.  I have several stacks of maple, oak, cedar, mimosa, willow, elm, hackberry, cherry, bartlet pear, and who knows what else is out there.  That doesn't count what's in the shop stacked on the floor and various shelves.


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## jkeithrussell (Feb 2, 2009)

I had to make a blind guess.  I have been wanting to take an inventory so that I will know what I have.  Probably in the 50-100 species range.  My ratio of blanks purchased or milled versus pens made is probably around 500:50-60.


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## woodboys (Feb 17, 2009)

I wonder who is the only person that has over 1000?


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## Ned B (Feb 18, 2009)

I picked up a mixed pack at woodcraft last summer, then I was in a swap on another forum and I just bought a flat rate box on here... plus some wood in my shop; cherry, lyptus, walnut, maple & Box elder... I'll have to line them all up and count when I get home.


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