![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjZJ1oaGvc9QPGGhTbel_1lIEf2EcNEYhqa8POiAO5UDPea-bGvesh-VfaxBt0XlIdVfd9hPO08y-ESSty3jSdZRuCRAF7rRSi7xTmiokMyBtRjozC7dKQvt9aw7qHBr-dBCUmBmkxuzk/s200/dolphinpen-finished1.jpg)
And now we see where the dolphin I posted about last week ended up.
This is more of the blue mahoe wood. The dolphin carving was described here.
The base of this pen holder was cut from a block of 1x4" wood and a roman ogee router bit applied to the edges. I also drilled six 1/4" holes along the back edge for tip storage.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2wgkKo3qRPF8kyEoH8kEcq7YTP4Xg1ysQypMzAF3JS7zSXaI4-NCKE2B829NsZs2li4xb7pRgagd0UVta0I5UoN0B7TiVigGl6R0Ocu94Bk6xf4vC6EMdFr5bXORyJp7MHBx5JGsF5eg/s200/dolphinpen-finished2.jpg)
The fin was several 1/4" thick "boards" (it's hard to call them boards when they're 3/4" x 1/4" x 4") edge joined to show off the grain. I smoothed them with a palm sander, then cut the shape of the fin out with a coping saw. A dremel with a drum sander smoothed the edges nicely.
An oopsie happened with the mounting of the dolphin to the base. The 1/8" tab I carved into the base of the dolphin snapped off after gluing it to the base. It obviously wasn't strong enough for this use! I fixed it and made it stronger by sanding the piece that stuck in the base smooth, sanding the bottom of the dolphin smooth, and creating a steel brace.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7wNPbBPMBYq0_VBqAgngL0GT18qdyyQuMx7R9-lstTt_APPUWXvFfMjKzKrPsLE-Kvf_UrsOtWCaW660nVaTJF15EGPgzZZ05aag9IkkJeSem8wlGLm-vaGqk4tFBLpzEIuDXK7817Sc/s200/dolphinpen-finished3.jpg)
I hammered a thin nail into the base. Using a pair of wire cutters, I snipped off the head of the nail. I used the smallest drill bit I have (1/32"? I forget) to drill a hole in the dolphin for the pin to rest. Glue was put in the hole and thinly spread on the bottom of the dolphin. I put it in place and wrapped the whole thing with blue masking tape. MUCH stronger now!
No stain whatsoever was applied. Just six coats of Minwax Poly out of a rattle can. Because of the high oil content of this wood, the poly took a week to dry. I did a test piece comparing shellac and this poly. The shellac masked the grain and blackened end grain. The poly did neither. Because the grain in this wood can be so subtle, I didn't want to take any chances with covering it up.
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I like this wood. I just wish it would maintain its blue color when finished. It's still attractive with a finish, but I don't know if it's worth the $10-12 bf it costs.
But it sure makes neat stuff!
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