# USS Missouri teak deck pen blanks



## Steelart99

So I have a line on a larger piece of teak decking from Mighty Mo. Very good provenance and certification of authenticity. Supposed to be from the section near the signing of Japanese surrender. If I were able to cut pen blanks and stabilize them, would this be considered a high end blank? Any thoughts on what these could sell for?II'm not a pen turner and I am trying to figure out if this is something to pursue. Won't come very cheap. On the other hand I would like to just put it on display in the house. I like unusual and different and historic mementos. 
Thanks
Dan


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## robert421960

i would sure consider that a high end blank for sure
even if its not a pretty piece of wood it would still be very cool to have


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## ssgmeader

I'd say it qualifies as a high end, historical blank, ecspecially if there;s good provinonce. I'd do some research though and make sure it is what it is.

http://www.exoticblanks.com/index.php?option=com_virtuemart&page=shop.browse&category_id=54&Itemid=60

http://www.naplesnews.com/news/2010/aug/10/deck-where-macarthur-and-nimitz-stood-memento-wwii/

http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/2007/Sep/30/ln/hawaii709300366.html

http://forums.gunbroker.com/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=248857

I personally can't justify $150 for a blank. But then again Im poor and feel I don't have the skill to do something like that the justice it deserves. But there's obviously a market for something like that. I think the thing here is that the Teak has been replace before so even though it may be from the Big Mo,


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## Steelart99

Supposedly removed in 1945 shortly after the signing due to the historic nature. Yes, I need to be sure of the provenance.


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## Kevin

It would only be high end when marketed to the proper crowd that thinks it's high end. I think that crowd is small too and dying fast, but maybe still big enough to be worth it. For me, if it's drab looking wood and probably will be, it would not float my boat. Maybe segmented and/or accented with other wood/s to bring it alive, it might be more interesting to others. And of course some would prefer just the teak alone drab or not. 

I wouldn't gamble too much on it if I were you. This is just my opinion, and it could be 100% wrong so pinch of salt and all that. 

And as stated, provenance is everything here.


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## BassBlaster

I would think there is definately a market for it. The problem I see is that your going to get a COA for the plank you recieve. Once you chop that up, you need a COA for every blank. How you go about getting those is beyond me but personally, if I was looking for a high end blank like that, I wouldnt by one without a COA and just printing or copying the one you get wouldnt be acceptable.


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## Final Strut

I have a buddy that is retiring from the Navy within the year and would like to do a special pen for him commemorating his 21 1/2 years of service and have been looking for something like this. Thanks to some responses to my post on the subject here I have located a couple of sources of reclaimed material from navy ship decks. The material I have found can be cut up into 8-12 blanks depending on what I order putting my cost at $4 - $6 a blank. My thought is if I were to sell the excess blanks after I am done I would need to get $10 to recover a little bit of time and shipping cost. I am not sure how well they would move at this price because as Kevin pointed out the teak decking is quite bland and will only be considered a high end blank to the right person. I have a great respect for our nation’s military and can appreciate the historical value behind the material but unless it was a special request by a customer would not be willing to pay a huge amount of money for such a blank. I think if you hit the right niche with this material you could do alright but I wouldn’t expect to make a ton of money with it.


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## Kevin

BassBlaster said:


> ...Once you chop that up, you need a COA for every blank. ....



That was my thought also. Without the coa, to most people they will only be worth whatever a teak blank is worth.


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## BurlsorBust

I side with Kevin on this one. Really cool, but a tough sell unless to the right crowd. A local lumber company has had tons of bdft of reclaimed teak from an old navy ship (can't remember the name) and it was more expensive than regular teak (rightfully so), but now is the same price as teak, but still doesn't sell well.


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## ssgmeader

[attachment=20548]


Kevin said:


> BassBlaster said:
> 
> 
> 
> ...Once you chop that up, you need a COA for every blank. ....
> 
> 
> 
> 
> That was my thought also. Without the coa, to most people they will only be worth whatever a teak blank is worth.
Click to expand...


I think in this case as the vendor the COA is created by you....no real diffrence than the COA's for the Jack Daniels casks ECT. I would think if you had provenance and stated that it was a limited run of blanks that would suffice for most people @ the right price point....Again the Shipwreck blanks are a good example. they come with a certificate and a copy from the dive log. So you give a COA and a copy of whatever provenance you have from the person your buying it from...Again demand+supply+marketing=price of what you can get for anything in this world. We may be willing to pay $50 a BF for some awesome figured wood but some people go...eh it's wood (no matter how purty it is) Other people that don't have the skill set to create something on their own will pay someone else to build it for them. A good audience for this would be military buffs/collectables...a nice retirement present for a 20 year Navy vet that likes Naval History. I think for the right project person $12-$30 a blank might be resonable....I 'm still not sure why those M3's are $30 a pop??:dunno:

There is definately a market (albeit small) for something like this, it's just wether or not you have enough access and exposure to it to make it worth your investment.

I found some stuff on IAP below talking about other Ship decks. 

http://www.penturners.org/forum/f14/turning-teak-92125/

Personally I learned early on in sales that I can't put my own preference on what people may or may not buy...It's called pre qualifying and its BAD....I remember my first pen sold was a kingwood slim line---I HATED the pen the finish was crap and blotchy, I just happened to have some pens with me over a fellow woodworking friends house at a party and this guy was looking at them and said how much for this one? I was like that one? you want that one? uhhhhh $18? He hands me a $20 and said keep the change....He was obviously happy, and ultimately thats what matters. I never in a million years though I could have gotten $1 for that pen let alone what the guy was willing to pay. Lesson learned---wood is subjective to what people find valuable and beautiful.


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## Steelart99

I'm starting to lean towards getting it as a cool wall hanging vice trying to make a buck from it. Cool piece of history.


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## Kevin

That's what I would do. Make a presentation case for it and hang a 48 star flag next to it in another case and in a third frame, that famous picture of the Japanese delegation in their tuxedos and tophats in front of Mighty Mo's main battery signing the surrender, with Mac and his corncob pipe looking on. A nice triad of history that would be.

Reactions: Agree 1


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## Steelart99

Kevin said:


> That's what I would do. Make a presentation case for it and hang a 48 star flag next to it in another case and in a third frame, that famous picture of the Japanese delegation in their tuxedos and tophats in front of Mighty Mo's main battery signing the surrender, with Mac and his corncob pipe looking on. A nice triad of history that would be.



 good concept!


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## ssgmeader

Steelart99 said:


> Kevin said:
> 
> 
> 
> That's what I would do. Make a presentation case for it and hang a 48 star flag next to it in another case and in a third frame, that famous picture of the Japanese delegation in their tuxedos and tophats in front of Mighty Mo's main battery signing the surrender, with Mac and his corncob pipe looking on. A nice triad of history that would be.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> :no dice. more please: good concept!
Click to expand...


That'd be cool. You can buy some USS California teak and use it for the frame... One ship that was sunk @ Pearl Harbor the other that the surrender was signed on.


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## MarkMyWords

I was recently honored to make this set for a man who served on Big Mo. This was commissioned by his sons.

Reactions: Like 1 | Way Cool 4


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## ssgmeader

Great revival of a thread.....So if you don't mind. What did you commission the pens at? This may prove exactly what we were talking about. - I bet being from Big Mo he loved it!

Reactions: Like 1


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## MarkMyWords

The Sailor actually recieved the piece of deck when Big Mo was decommissioned i believe. His son told me he has had the block stashed away. And yes he was very pleased with the results. Due to the nature of my relationship with the sons and the historical significance of the Teak, I discounted my fees. I was given a piece of the deck as well. If I were to make a second set with same hardware (Sterling Silver) I would ask $350.00.

Reactions: Like 1


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## ssgmeader

Are those the sterling silver Sedona's?


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## MarkMyWords

ssgmeader said:


> Are those the sterling silver Sedona's?


Yes they are


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## SubVet10

how much is it? what yard is it at?


BurlsorBust said:


> I side with Kevin on this one. Really cool, but a tough sell unless to the right crowd. A local lumber company has had tons of bdft of reclaimed teak from an old navy ship (can't remember the name) and it was more expensive than regular teak (rightfully so), but now is the same price as teak, but still doesn't sell well.


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## SubVet10

Steelart99 said:


> I'm starting to lean towards getting it as a cool wall hanging vice trying to make a buck from it. Cool piece of history.


If you cut it up, let us know!


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