Celtic Knot Pen Blanks
I have a couple of pens to make. I wanted to make them similar but contrasting, and have always wanted to try making Celtic knot blanks. This was the perfect opportunity.
I decided to make these out of ebony and maple. I cut some blanks and milled them to 1 inch square by around 12 inches in length. This should give a nice contrast.
I’ve seen some examples where the cut was at 45 degrees, and I thought I wanted a longer knot. So I opted for 60 degrees.
I set my miter gauge to 60 degrees, and centered the cut around 3 inches from the end. I lowered the blade to around 1/16 inch lower than the blank, and made the first cut.
Cutting First Strip Groove
I milled some strips of the same material to 3/32 inch thick, the same thickness as my tablesaw blade.
First Strip
These were glued in with medium CA glue and sprayed with activator.
First Strips Glued
Then I cut the excess off with my multitool.
First Strip Trimmed
I sanded them smooth so that they would cut properly on the tablesaw.
First Strip Sanded
The blank is rotated 90 degrees and another cut is made. Even though I was using a stop block on my miter gauge, this second cut was a little off, as seen below. Notice the cuts should meet precisely at the corner of the blank.
Second Strip Glued
Glue, clamp, trim, sand, rinse, repeat.
Third Strip Glued
And one more time. Once they were all glued, I put them on the lathe and turned them round to see what they looked like.
Turned Down
I was pretty pleased with the results, but I do think 45 degrees might be better. These knots might be a little long for a pen blank. I am making a sled for the tablesaw, and will try making a few more blanks to see which I like best.
