# custom fountain pen in olive wood



## duncsuss (Nov 30, 2014)

A while back I was looking around for blanks to fill an order I got. The customer had seen a pen I made some time back out of lignum vitae and black ebonite (hard rubber), only he wanted it to be made from olive wood.

That raised a few challenges. Lignum vitae is pretty much bulletproof, they use it for submarine prop shaft bearings so I reckoned it would be safe even if there was an ink leak inside the barrel. Not so olive wood, so I decided I had to line the inside of the barrel and cap. Since I was using ebonite inserts for the threaded parts (cap-to-barrel and barrel-to-nib-section) I decided to extend the ebonite plug into a full-length liner down the center of the wooden blanks.

There's another trick going on inside the cap, but it's not visible from the outside -- it has a double-liner, the internal one is drilled out to accept the nib but it strikes against the front edge of the ebonite section holding the nib. This prevents the cap from being screwed on too far, and also reduces the air cavity around the nib substantially (which I was advised can help keep the nib from drying out when not in use.)

I've got quite a few pix of the build process, when I find a few spare days I'll write up a build thread for this type of pen.

Here's the end result, after I'd given it a wipe down with Mahoney's Walnut Oil and then buffed with carnauba wax to give it some protection. The nib is a JoWo #6 two-tone (from Meisternib.com) and the clip is a Ti/Gold Rineheart from ExoticBlanks.com.

Reactions: Like 2 | Way Cool 9


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## Johnturner (Nov 30, 2014)

Really incredible Duncan.

Reactions: Thank You! 1 | Agree 3


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## Sprung (Nov 30, 2014)

Wow... John's right - incredible! Amazing work and craftsmanship!

Reactions: Thank You! 1


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## manbuckwal (Nov 30, 2014)

Awesome work Duncan . Very well executed

Reactions: Thank You! 1


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## David Seaba (Nov 30, 2014)

Awesome work !!!

Reactions: Thank You! 1


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## gman2431 (Dec 1, 2014)

Your pens are off the charts man.

Reactions: Thank You! 1


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## ironman123 (Dec 1, 2014)

Nice work Duncan.

Reactions: Thank You! 1


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## Tom Smart (Dec 1, 2014)

Duncan, really outstanding work. I'm looking forward to the tutorial and build pictures for this.

tom

Reactions: Thank You! 1


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## duncsuss (Dec 1, 2014)

Thanks everyone -- I can promise that I will write it up, but I can't promise when ... lots of small steps, and I have to edit out the dead-ends and mistakes that triggered a "go directly to jail, do not pass go, do not collect $200"

Reactions: Funny 2


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## rdabpenman (Dec 1, 2014)

Great looking form on a nice looking timber.
Is the threaded nib section plastic?

Les


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## duncsuss (Dec 1, 2014)

rdabpenman said:


> Great looking form on a nice looking timber.
> Is the threaded nib section plastic?
> 
> Les



Thanks, Les.

The non-wood parts (barrel and cap linings, the threaded area, and the entire section that holds the nib/feed/housing) are all made from black ebonite.


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## Kevin (Dec 1, 2014)

That's one of the most attractive pens I've ever seen. That's a piece of art.


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## duncsuss (Dec 1, 2014)

Kevin said:


> That's one of the most attractive pens I've ever seen. That's a piece of art.


Thanks, Kevin, that's a great compliment ... where's that blush smiley ... ah, found it:


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## Johnturner (Dec 1, 2014)

Duncan
I'm looking forward to having a chance at owning that pen at our club's Christmas grab.

Reactions: Funny 1


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## duncsuss (Dec 1, 2014)

Johnturner said:


> Duncan
> I'm looking forward to having a chance at owning that pen at our club's Christmas grab.



LOL ... sorry John, it's going to California for a nib re-grind before heading out to Singapore. I've got a couple of ebonite off-cuts and a spare olive wood blank, if you'd like to make your own


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## Johnturner (Dec 1, 2014)

That kind of skill is above my pay grade


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