This is a piece of wood that I scored from the Mystery Box when it came my way.

It was marked as 15000 yr old NZ Kauri, I have put it on a gold Retro Jr, or Jr Victor.

I have never seen any timber before that can soak up so much CA, I must have used half a bottle on this pen. And I have never seen timber that can change colour so dramatically when you twist and turn it, it goes from almost black to bright gold almost matching the metal parts of the pen.

Click on the pics to enlarge.
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My second missus was a Kauri by name. Yeh a KIWI but can not hold that against her. Do like that pen tho, even with bad memories.

Very nice pen . This is what the rest of the timber looked like. http://www.woodworkforums.com/attach...et-wip-top.jpg

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Very nice timber and well set in the pen. Its almost seems a pity it wasn't set in a solid gold kit

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Sorry to dig up the old memories Cookie, I guess I wont be sending you the offcut off the end of the blank.

Thanks for including that blank in the box Ben, I have been looking at it for a while now, wondering what pen to put it on, It came up even nicer than I was expecting.

The similarity of this wood and Gold, both dug up out of the ground and precious, I guess some would value the wood more than the gold.

A Guy who owns a shop accross the road from me ( he happens to be a Kiwi ) just came into my shop,
I showed him this pen, and told him what it was made of. He wants to buy it.
Just have to decide on a price now .

Just love the look of that pen, wood really appeals to me, Amos

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Good, better, best, never let it rest;
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Great pen Ironwood I've done several 'Ancient Kauri Pine' pens, yours in comparison is full of color while the ancient (45,000 - 50,000 year old) have a rather bland light brown color, almost boring in comparison.

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I never forget anything I remember !!

I was going to comment on the color, but held off…now that Pariss has noted it, I also have never seen kauri that wasn’t plain, almost a sandy tan with little figuring or texture.
That’s an outstanding piece, and the lumber it came from is stunning.
Your neighbor from NZ better have deep pockets, that’s an really one of a kind pen.
You might want to try and score a little bit more of the stuff…

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Pen Turner Extraordinary and Accidental Philosopher.

Just an addition to my previous post, your fit and finish is perfection +.

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I never forget anything I remember !!

Thanks Pariss, I am happy with how this one turned out.

As this is the first NZ Kauri pen I have turned, in fact its the first piece I have seen except in pictures, I have nothing to compare it to, all I can say is, it certainly is a special looking bit of timber, echoed by all who have held it in their hand.

Iron

You would have to be looking above the $100 mark for that pen.

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The Pen is mightier than the Sword

www.artisanpens.com.au

very very nice pen I am getting closer to making pens, was taught in NZ by a lovely craftsman by the name of Chris Flute a dutchman living in picturesc Wanaka in the South Is a few years back, he invited me to his shop and he made me a pen out of ash, we talked about NZ timbers all afternoon, Matai Totara, Kauri, Rimu etc. But I have still not made my own.

I believe I may have supplied the timber, I have plenty more, a few bits of burl that would make amazing pens and lots of whitebait figured which is just so so rare pm me and I can put together bulk packs of sawn blanks but prefer send you raw stock up to 200 wide and all 50+mm thick.

have a few furniture packs with some long 50x150 lengths which is for sale. There is a post in the market place with pics so search there for Ancient Kauri if interested.

I am able to import you any Ancient Kauri you want except whole logs as it is not allowed by NZ, the Miller is licenced to mill AK and export it.

cheers, Matt

Ironwood,

Indisputably fantastic Pen from this Ancient timber, Thankyou Bupton for your pic and association and Matt for your knowledge and maybe connection.

The pen stands out with its exceptional finish and photograph.

Thankyou everyone for your contributions.

Kind regards Peter.

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Stunning pen!!!

I visited the Kauri Museum on the west coast of the North Island and the range of colours and grain figure in the timber is astounding, you are fortunate to get such a piece to turn.