This is the month that everything here at Wood-N-Whimsies
Dink says,"I think that the violin should find it's way to the rubbish bin and I'll just keep the case as a nice bed.
goes crazy and everyone wants everything yesterday. We do not send packages out via Overnight Express, FedEx Express or any other kind of next day express service. We have found that we are much too rural for your package to ever reach it's destination by the next day. We tried several times with zero percent success. The package just doesn't make it to the main hub no matter how early we drop it off at the Post Office. We then have a very disappointed customer who feels let down even though we did our part. We then have to take a second trip back to the Post Office to get your shipping money back and refund you. We think it's just best to be honest with you up front and let you know that we are in a location where overnight just won't work. The huge hub for the Post Office is in Springfield as well as FedEx and UPS. That would be 90 miles round trip which wouldn't be realistic either. We hope you can understand. We know it can be hard to plan ahead but thought by sharing this information with you, it might help motivate you to get your supply list together earlier. Every year we get folks who put things off until the last minute and all of a sudden it seems like Christmas showed up early! That's how we feel about many of our projects!
TECH TALK
Poor Mans European Pen
Let's talk about the versatility of the ever so humble and under rated Slimline Pen Kit. This kit is a really interesting kit in that it can be adapted to so many possibilities. Over the next couple of months we are going to make some videos on how to get more out of this kit. The first kit we are going to make is going to be what I call a Poor Mans European Pen. This is an adaption that looks like a European style pen without the added expense and a lot more class to be sure. As you will see in this month's video that the possibilities for color combinations can be endless. You can also put a few of those little cut off scraps you have around the shop to some good use. We will be using a piece of locust and a small scrap of acrylic acetate for our accent piece. As you will see, the finished product looks great. You can also add multiple color layers/stripes just by cutting further over from the bushing and repeating the process. You will need a set of slimline bushings and a center bushing from a Comfort Bushing Set. You will also need a parting tool. If you do not have a parting tool, you can grind one out of a piece of steel or an old file on your bench grinder. I use a skew, I use a skew to turn everything except for inside turning. The skew is an all purpose tool and is very versatile. You will also need a bottle of medium or thick CA glue, a 7mm barrel trimmer or universal barrel trimmer for the sander. Other than these few special requirements, everything else will be old hat. What the heck, you need that stuff anyway. Click on the video link above and let's get started. The video has been time compressed to save you from being completely bored, just the necessary facts and deviations from the norm are included.
WHAT'S NEW
We have a new bottle stopper kit available which has a corkscrew inside the stopper. We also have a special mandrel made up to facilitate turning the top.
This is a really nice kit and is very competitively priced as low as $4.50 each. The mandrel is available for $7.69 or you can make your own from a 3/8-16 bolt and a 3/8" X 5/8" bushing. You will need a drill chuck to hold the mandrel while turning.
Tracey has another new inlay blank, It is a cute little reindeer peeking out from within the pen and is here just in time for Christmas.
Check out the new Poly Pearls that Curtis is coming up with. They are really cool.
Seattle Sea Mist-Lime Green, Navy Blue, Silvery Gray and White. Wow, what a combo!
We've added another Reusable Resin Casing Mold to our inventory It's round for those of you that may have projects other than pens that you'd like to cast some resin for.
FEEDBACK
Here is a relatively inexpensive alternative to buying those expensive carbide tipped turning tools sent in by Allen Johnson. It is a piece of drill rod with a router bit inserted into the end.
He turns his own handle and presto, a very nice carbide tipped turning tool. You can either discard the worn out router bit and get a new one or spend a little cash and get it resharpened. I use American Sharpening in Rogers, Arkansas to sharpen my table saw blades. I know they sharpen router bits as well. They have a high end CNC sharpening system that keeps my blades razor sharp, even sharper than a new blade out of the box from the store.
There is probably a good resharpening shop in your area to suit your needs. Check you local phone book.
Think outside the box. there is always a better mouse trap to be made. Another customer has a great idea about the Monet/Sierra/Wall Street/Gatsby/Mesa Pen Kit. It seems that folks are losing their twist mechanisms up inside the barrel when the kit is reassembled. Instead of pulling the mechanism out and then replacing the refill, the tip is being unscrewed from the mechanism while the mechanism is still inside the barrel. When they reassemble the pieces they are pushing the mechanism up inside and out of reach for the threads to catch. To solve this problem he uses Locite to secure the mechanism in place and then the out of reach mechanism is no longer a problem because it is secured in place by the Loctite. Red Loctite of course.
Thank you for reading our newsletter, I hope we have covered some new ground for you. We welcome your feedback. Let us know what you want us to talk about. We will do our best to do the research and get the information out to you.
Tracey has another new 
Instead of pulling the mechanism out and then replacing the refill, the tip is being unscrewed from the mechanism while the mechanism is still inside the barrel. When they reassemble the pieces they are pushing the mechanism up inside and out of reach for the threads to catch.