The Pen Makers Boat: #450 Now Sold

A Premium Ballpoint Twist Pen Dressed In Rare Oak Burr

A burr (American burl) is a tree growth in which the grain has grown in a deformed manner. It is commonly found in the form of a rounded outgrowth on a tree trunk or branch that is filled with small knots from dormant buds.

A burr results from a tree undergoing some form of stress. It may be environmental or introduced by humans. Most burr grow beneath the ground, attached to the roots as a type of malignancy that is generally not discovered until the tree dies or falls over. Such burrs sometimes appear as groups of bulbous protrusions connected by a system of rope-like roots. Almost all burr wood is covered by bark, even if it is underground. Insect infestation and certain types of mould infestation are the most common causes of this condition.

Burr yields a very peculiar and highly figured wood, one prized for its beauty by many; its rarity also adds to its expense. It is sought after by people such as furniture makers (mainly used as veneers, artists, and wood sculptors. The knots and twists in oak Burrs are usually a few per foot or so, however these pens have many more to make a spectacular premium quality dressing for only the best of the pen mechanisms that I sell.

Seasoning burr can be a long drawn out process that can take many years and there is no guarantee that there will be any usable timber once it is sawn.

Leaving the marina at Hawne Basin on new year's eve we moored up at the Black Country Living Museum and headed into Tipton to meet up with some friends for a bit of a doo. We had just about recovered from our excesses and on a very gusty January the 2nd we headed the ten miles and three locks into central Birmingham where we will hide away from the worst of the weather in the BCN’s basins and loops.

We were feeling a little guilty a week later as we had been enjoying catching up with more friends in the restaurants and bars in the city centre so I started to make a rough plan for the next pens to be made. First a day or two of cutting, drilling and gluing brass tubes into various pieces of wood and colourful acrylics.

Another fortnight of the delights of all that Birmingham has to offer went by rather quickly and after a short day cruise we moored up within sight of the Sealife Centre and the Barclaycard Arena on this very modern part of the Birmingham Canal Navigations.

Pen #450 was turned outside the Barclaycard Arena in Birmingham on the 4th February 2016.