Cigar Pen Case

It is very important that the steps contained here are followed exactly. When stating give time to dry for the glue, I recommend giving two to three times longer for the glue to set and dry than normal. In the case of the Starbond adhesive, you can always use an activator to have it set faster, but you want to still give time for even that to dry and evaporate completely. 

This was designed with a specific pen in mind (See the bottom of this step) but should be able to be used with most pens. In the event that you have a heftier/thicker pen than can fit, once the case is assembled, you can always attempt to drill out the center to accomodate the thicker pen. Just be safe and secure the pen case before drilling and be sure to keep your drill as centered as possible, use a drill press if you can.

There is a large amount of sanding that is optional to get a similar look to what I have in the photos. You could leave square and not do the rounding of the edges if you desire, that is completely up to you. I still recommend sanding to get the burn marks out and clean it up. You will also HAVE to sand the interior sleeve to help it fit better. 

While this is a beginner level project, I do recommend a bit of experience dealing with CA glues and lasering to get this to work exactly right. 

I used two different sized boards for this project. 3mm (1/8") for the interior sleeve and 6mm (¼") for the exterior. The reason for the thicker board for the exterior is to allow some “meat” to sand away to achieve the rounded look without losing the integrity of the case. 

Not shown in the pictures of this project but included in the plans are tiny breathing holes in the end pieces of the outer sleeves. These were added after the cut and assembly to make it easier to assemble the inner and outer pieces. 

There are two colors included in the plans. Red are your cut lines and Black is for informational purposes only and currently set to ignore in the XCS plans.

The pens I used can be purchased in multiple locations but I have always gotten mine from xTool. They are fairly inexpensive and engrave very well. Note the different fonts on this pen. I went through several fonts and found that there are some fonts that engrave quickly while others engrave rapidly. Also, I don't have settings for these pens for the P2 and I do all my pen engraves on the F1. However, I have seen several people engrave these pens in the P2 so I know it is possible. If you have settings for these pens on the P2, would you please provide them in the comments of this project. TYIA!

These pens are great and last a long time. They also include a full stylus on the end. You can find them at this link here: 

https://www.xtool.com/products/ballpoint-pens-with-stylus-12pcs?_pos=3&_psq=Pen&_ss=e&_v=1.0

There are two different cut settings for this project. One is for the 3mm and the other for the 6mm. Note that these settings are using my P2 with Birch Plywood. Anyother machine and/or material will require you to set these to your own settings for the machine and/or material you are using.

Also, I am using birch plywood, which means that there are glue ups within the wood that can hinder the cuts from completely going through. In those cases, I ran that cut a second time and if it still did not cut through, I usually had enough of an idea of where the line was on the back that I could score it with a razor knife and snap the piece out. 

Once you have cut your pieces, you should have a total of 20 parts. there are 10 pieces to each sleeve, 8 side pieces and two end pieces.

The inner sleeve is made using the 3mm pieces. First, lay each side out together as shown in the first photo. Make sure you have the pieces aligned properly. 

Then, start with the bottom (longer pieces) of the sleeve. Put a drop of glue on each tab. Move quickly as the glue sets fast. I usually focus on two pieces at a time with the last side having glue on all the tabs for that piece in addition to the tabs of the assembled part on either side. Once the sides are glued together, put a drop of glue on each tab of one of the end pieces and then on the inside of the corners of the assembled sides. Snap in the end piece and allow this part to fully dry while you assemble the next piece.

The shorter end is assembled the same exact way. Again, allow to completely dry while assembling the next parts.

With the 6mm wood, you will create the outer sleeve. This is done just the same as the inner sleeve.

Once you have the sleeves finished, allow them to fully cure before proceeding to the next step. Even though CA glue dries very quickly, I recommend letting the pieces sit for 10 to 15 minutes before moving on.

STOP!!!! READ THIS NEXT PART IN FULL BEFORE ASSEMBLY!!!!

It is here where most people will experience difficulty. The inner sleeve (3mm) is to be inserted into the outer sleeve (6mm). You want the longer inner sleeve to be in the longer of the outer sleeves and the shorter pieces together in the same way. 

Before you can put them together there are a few things to do and note.

First, make sure you line the top and bottom half of each sleeve so that the tabs match up where they meet. This is very important for assembly purposes. 

Second, do a dry fit where you put just the end of the inner sleeve into the open ends of the outer sleeves. Make sure you are doing so that the tabs you lined up in the previous note also line up here. In other words, line up where the top halves of the inner and outer sleeves meet with the bottom halves of the inner and outer sleeves. 

It is here that you may find that the inner sleeves do not fit into the outer sleeves very well. This is intentional. You will want to sand the inner sleeve on all sides and slightly round the corners, especially at the bottoms, as there is a likelyhood that glue has built up on the inside of the outer sleeve. Sand until you can get the inner sleeves to slide in about half way without having to hammer in. 

Once you can get the inner sleeves to slide into the outer sleeves, pull them out and put glue along the bottom of each inner sleeve and a single generous dot on all four sides about ½ way between the top and bottom. Quickly insert the inner sleeves into their respective sides. Again, note the way that each sleeve is inserted so that the tabs line up where they meet. If you meet resistance when inserting the sleeves, use a hammer and lightly tap on the top of the inner sleeve to get them to go in all the way. Once set, you may note a squeeze out of glue at the breathing holes of the end pieces. This is normal. Wipe away or let dry and sand away later. 

Once the sleeves are assembled, let these pieces cure completely before proceeding to the next steps.

This step is completely optional. You could leave square as shown in picture 1 or you could sand to round the edges as shown in picture 2.

To sand these, start with 80 grit sand paper to remove the corners and get a general idea of the roundness. This is also a good time to remove any wood you don't want such as a tab that sticks out too far. Be sure to save your sawdust incase you need it for filler (More on that in the last step). Keep sanding with 80 grit until you are satisfied with how much wood has been removed and a general shape has been obtained. 

Use the 150 grit paper to fine tune the sanded, removing a bit more wood and bringing the roughness out of the rounded areas.

Use 220 as a final sand to achieve a smooth finish and completely smooth over the rounded areas. 

TIP: I use an orbital sander for most of my sanding. This allows me to hold the sander in one hand and “rock” the piece back and forth at each corner to achieve a rounded look. Grab the piece you are sanding in your off hand and hold the sander in your dominate hand. Lay the corner against the running sander and gently move it “around the corner” and then back the other way. This will help to round each corner evenly. Don't press in too hard or you could inadvertently take off more than you need. You can actually see where I did that in a few spots on mine if you look closely.

Do not neglect giving a light sand to the inner sleeve that pokes from the outer sleeve bottom to remove any other dust or glue that may have built up. 

Once sanded to your desired look, wipe off with a damp cloth to remove any dust and let dry for about 5 minutes before putting on any finish.

Here you can use a stain or finish of your choice. Follow the instructions of your preferred finish to apply it.

One note about this step. You want these to dry standing up so consider making a jig that will hold your sleeves upright while they dry. I made mine out of scrap wood and scrap dowels. See photos.