This page will discuss the drilling of the pen blanks for the brass tubes that will be glued into the wood. The individual steps are in the order that I complete them. Use other techniques if you wish, so long as the results are the same .
Select the long blanks for the pens. In this case they are the "Pacific Yew" that is used throughout this presentation. This wood has a strong grain, and we are going to "grain match" the two halves and they are marked in some way that will identify them as pairs and the matching ends. Other woods may not require this matching.
Mark the centerline for sawing them in half.
Saw the long blanks in half. I prefer to do this with a cut-off saw because the smoother flat end surface will help prevent the drill from wandering when we drill the holes through the blanks.
We should be careful to keep the ends smooth and square if we are sawing them with the bandsaw or a hand saw.
We now have a pair of pen blanks that are ready to drill.
They will not be cut to length for turning until AFTER drilling. This will give us some wood to remove should there be any damage from the drilling. This is not a concern with all wods, but it is a good habit to get into.
Here the blank is held in a Stronghold chuck with the No. 1 jaws. With the lathe at about 1200 RPM, bring the point of the drill up to the wood and let it spin for a few seconds until it finds the center. Then feed the drill through the blank with the handwheel of the tailstock. Withdraw the drill several times to clear the chips.
The lathe isn't the best way to drill the pen blanks because there is no way to reposition the wood if the drill wants to wander with the grain.
The drill bit is a 9/32" Bullet-Point as made by Black and Decker. The "bullet" type bit is used because it is more immune from being steered by the wood grain, and is less likely to drill a curved , crooked, or oval hole than some of the other types of drill bits.
The larger 9/32" drill is used because we are going to use Polyurethane Glue to hold the brass tube in the wood. The Poly Glue expands to fill the void and has sufficient elasticity to keep the finished pen barrels from cracking during use.
The drill press is a faster way to drill the blanks. One reason is that it is easier to run the drill in and out of the hole to clear the chips than it is with the lathe.
Here I am using a drill press vice. It has a vertical V-notch in the jaws to hold the blank and it is heavy enough to stay on the table, yet it can be moved to adjust for any wandering of the drill bit as it enters the wood.
Rules For Drilling Pen Blanks
Running a drill press is an easy thing to do, but I have learned some things about drilling pen blanks that may be helpful.
-- 1200 RPM is a good speed for the size drill we are using in almost all wood species.
-- A drill bit has a mind of its own when drilling into end-grain wood.
-- Always let the tip of the drill spin on the end of the grain for a few seconds until it finds the center. If it does start into the wood off-center, move the vice until it is recentered again.
-- The smoother and flatter the end of the pen blank, the straighter the drill will start.
-- The Black and Decker "Bullet-Point" drills will start easier and wander less than any other type of drill bit. At least it does in the woods that I use.
-- Drill in small bites. Pull the drill out of the hole often to clear the chips.
-- Cool the drill with a stream of air every time it is removed to clear the chips. A drill that is starting to squeek is one that is getting too hot.
Always start the drilled hole from the matching ends of the blanks. This will help to preserve the wood match at the center of the pen. If the bit wanders as the hole is drilled, these ends will still be in alignment. If there is any break-out at the bottom of the hole, it will be on the opposite ends where it can be trimmed away.
Drilling the blank while it is held in the vice, and obeying all of the rules.
Another option for a vice is a "Jorgensen" clamp with two notches cut into the jaws. I have seen these for sale in the catalogs, but this one is home-made.
Clamp one of the jaws to the table, leaving it just loose enough that it can be moved by hand with a little effort. Loosen the clamp on the drill press column until it is "snug" but not "tight". This allows the blank to be moved in two directions when the drill bit insists on starting off-center.
Another option for clamping pen blanks for drilling is this hand clamp that is available from Hut Products for about $30. It is durable and fast. The fast part is appreciated when there are a lot of pen blanks to drill.
One jaw of the clamp is clamped to the table, and the table clamp on the drill press column is loosened just enough that it can be moved.
Next!!
This one s has been drilled.
Cut it to a length that is 1/8" longer than the brass tubes.
Make the cut on the opposite end from the center-match.
