Broken Drumsticks Make Great Pens!

I'm a drummer and a woodworker, so whenever I can combine these two loves of mine, I'm happy!  After playing hundreds of gigs with my local cover band, I have accumulated quite a collection of broken drumsticks.  Most drummers would just throw them in the trash, but I make pens out of them.

I just learned that my drumstick pens are featured in WOOD Magazine on page 14 of the October 2014 issue.  I haven't seen it yet, so I need to go buy a copy or three!  Thanks to Steve Ramsey for mentioning me and my pens in the article.  I keep a few of these pens for sale on my Etsy Store if you would like to see what I have on hand.  Let's look at some examples...

I like to include the logos on the pen if it is still somewhat intact.  This is popular with drummers, especially if it's the same brand they use.

This one is 9" long to make it look more like a drumstick.  I used my lathe to shape the grip end of the pen into the shape of a drumstick tip.  Since this pen is so long, it's more of a novelty desk display item rather than something you would carry in your pocket.

This pen comes from a drumstick that had split along the grain at the grip, so I was able to use the drumstick tip on the back end of the pen.  There were some chips and dents on the surface from hitting cymbals, but I was able to sand these away on my lathe.

Sometimes a stick will be broken such that the logo or tip cannot be used.  In this case, I use my lathe to shape the grip like a drumstick tip.  Any pen turner could make one of these with a regular pen blank, but I like to use up my drumsticks.

Thanks for checking out my drumstick pens.  Please visit my my Etsy Store to see if there is one you like.  The few dollars I make from each pen go toward more pen supplies and materials.  I try to keep the prices low because I know what it's like to be a starving musician.  Rock on my friend!

Patience Clock

I built this Patience Clock to remind myself that "Only those who have the patience to do simple things perfectly ever acquire the skill to do difficult things easily."  (Friedrich von Schiller, 1759-1805, dramatist, essayist and poet.)

Thanks to Nick Ferry and Sterling Davis for inspiring me to make this clock.  Check out their videos below:

• Watch Nick Ferry's Walnut Desk Clock video.
• Watch Sterling Davis's Letter Opener Clock video.

I made this clock from a scrap piece of a White Spruce 2x4.  The scroll sawn symbol is the Kanji character that represents Patience.  Here is a link to the Clock Insert that I used.  Click this link to download my free Patience Clock PDF Template.  

  

Angel of Hope Whirligig

Shortly after I finished my Whac-A-Woodworker whirligig for this year's Whirligig Wars contest, my daughter asked if she could make one too.  So we walked away from the computer, TV, video games, and phone for a while and made this Angel of Hope whirligig.

I explained to her how every contest entry would benefit Make-A-Wish, and that there were children who needed help making their wishes come true a little sooner than the rest of us.  One of the prizes was for a whirligig that represented hope and inspiration, so we did some brainstorming and she came up with the idea to make a whirligig version of mom's Angel of Hope figurine.

So we drew up some outlines and cut it out, then we painted and assembled the whirligig together.  During the project, she used the drill, drill press, scroll saw, sander, wire cutters, spray adhesive, and spray paint.  She also learned how to record a video and edit it together, so we could submit it for the contest.

This is what I love about woodworking.  I got to spend some quality time with my daughter.  She got to learn some new skills.  We got to help make a child's wish come true.  And we created a whirligig that might inspire others to make one.  That's what I call a Win Win Win Win!  Thanks to Laney Shaughnessy, Steve Ramsey, and all of the sponsors who made this contest possible!

Click here to download the free PDF outlines that we used to create this whirligig!
Click here to see all of the contest entries and the results!