Wood pens give bullets and used oak whisky barrels new purpose
By Barret Galauner
August 12, 2013
Elgin, IL – Paul Justis of Elgin, IL and Barret Galauner of Campton Hills, IL have begun a project on kickstarter.com (http://tinyurl.com/JustisBulPens) to make handcrafted wooden pens that redefine what people think of bullets and whisky. They plan on accomplishing this by combining authentic used oak whisky barrels with specialized hardware to make various kinds of bullet shaped writing pens.
It is common knowledge that many consider both alcohol and bullets dangerous objects. However it is Barret’s and Paul’s belief that both of these things have an undeniable beauty to them, and so their project aims to bring out this beauty in a safe way.
They plan to harness this beauty by making pens in the shape of bullets out of oak wood from a barrel used to age whisky. In order to personalize these pens, they are offering authentic wood from Jim Beam, Jack Daniel’s, Maker’s Mark, and Wild Turkey whisky barrels.
Currently they are offering 6 varieties of bullet pens: Mini, 50 Caliber, 30 Caliber, Magnum, Rollerball, and Fountain. The Mini-Bullet Pen is short and stubby, and is priced at $35. At $40, the larger 50 Caliber Bullet Pen is made using a once-fired 50 cal. brass bullet cartridge. Then there is the medium sized 30 Caliber Bullet Pen for $45, which is made from replica hardware and is the only click pen being offered. A slightly larger Magnum Bullet Pen is being offered at $50, which is also made using replica hardware but it is a twist pen. Then at $60 there is the Rollerball Bullet Pen which is made with a walnut wood shotgun shell cap, shotgun shaped clip, and the main body is shaped like a 30 Caliber Bullet. Finally at $65, they are offering a fountain pen which is designed like the Rollerball Bullet Pen and it comes with disposable cartridges and re-fillable ink reservoirs.
For more information or to pre-order these handmade pens, please visit the projects website at: http://tinyurl.com/JustisBulPens
About Paul Justis and Barret Galauner:
Paul Justis was inspired by his father to try making wooden pens and soon he found that he was good at it. After selling multiple pens locally through friends or flea markets, Paul was approached by his future partner Barret who told Paul that he should try to expand his business.
They then started their first kickstarter project together which was the successful Wooden Writers: Custom Pens and Styluses project. After that, Barret came up with the idea to make bullet pens using whiskey barrels, and the rest is yet to be written.
