Luxury handcrafted pens and pencils- A peek behind the scenes
HerzerCraft writing instruments are individually created to produce luxury pens and pencils that you will be proud to display and use. Premium components and materials, coupled with master craftsmanship assure your complete satisfaction. Follow along as we share the creation process.
Cutting the blank to size
Our first step is to Select and cut the exotic wood that will compose the body of you pen or pencil. Only the highest quality wood is considered for use in the process. Each pen or pencil will have one or two brass tubes, depending on the style being created. The wood body is cut to the length of each tube, plus about 1/4" to allow for trimming in later operations.
Drilling the blank
To allow for the brass tubes to be inserted into the wood body, a specific drill bit is selected to match the tube diameter. The wood body is secured into a special vice, centered, and the hole is drilled through the entire length of the wood blank.
Bonding preparation
In preparation for bonding, the brass tube is abraded with a sanding process and cyanaocrylate, commonly referred to as CA glue, is applied to the exterior of the brass tube.
Bonding brass and wood
The prepared tube is inserted into the wood blank with a twisting motion to assure proper adhesion. This must be done quickly as the cyanaocrylate bonds in less than 20 seconds.
Flushing the blank
In this step, the cured brass/wood blank is sanded so that the wood blank is trimmed to the exact length of the brass insert. Care is taken to assure the ends of the blank are perfectly perpendicular to the length of the blank to assure proper component fit in later operations.
Bushing and blank set up
In preparation for the cutting process, model-specific bushings are inserted into the ends of the body blanks. Each bushing is machined to a specific diameter, serving as a guide in the cutting process and assuring a perfect match to the assembled components.
Sharpening the cutting tools
The primary cutting tools used in crafting the body are the roughing gouge and spindle gouge. Exotic woods have a variety of densities and hardness. It is therefore critical that the cutting tools be extremely sharp to assure even cuts that do not damage the wood. HerzerCraft uses the TORMEK sharpening system, arguably the finest sharpening systems available.
The roughing gouge
Initial cutting is done with the roughing gouge. In the cutting process, the lath turns at a high RPM as the gouge is carefully guided across the wood. Cutting continues until the blank is cylindrical, with no remaining flat surfaces.
The spindle gouge
Final cutting is accomplished with the spindle gouge This gouge is smaller to allow for more precise control and accuracy. The blank is shaped and cut down to just shy of the bushing diameters in this operation.
Sanding
Rough sanding creates the final shape that contours and aligns the body perfectly with the bushings. Progressively finer grit is used to produce a fine wood surface.
MicroMesh
After sanding, a synthetic abrasive called MicroMesh, is used to create the smoothest wood surface. As with sanding, progressively finer grits are applied to the spinning wood to finally achieve an astounding 16,000 grit smooth surface.
Polishing
A heat activated polish is applied to the wood body. This process produces a natural luster and protects the wood. HerzerCraft has adopted this finish because it preserves the natural beauty of the wood grain. It also allows for the natural oils from your fingers to gradually change the grain color over time, making the instrument uniquely yours.
Layout
All of the components and crafted body are configured for assembly.
Assembly
Component parts are pressed together in a special vise.
The completed writing instrument
The final, masterfully crafted, writing instrument is complete. Every HerzerCraft pen and pencil is a unique creation.
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