# Quill Pens:  Commercially Produced or Always Home Made?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/quill-pens-commercially-produced-or-always-home-made/712369>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [February 11, 2015, 3:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/quill-pens-commercially-produced-or-always-home-made/712369 "2015-02-11T03:42:58Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\
**Post date:** [February 14, 2015, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/quill-pens-commercially-produced-or-always-home-made/712369/21 "2015-02-14T16:47:01Z")

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> [@UDS](#):
>
> There is. As well as having a left side and a right side, a feather has an upper surface, which is harder and smoother, and a lower surface, which is softer and rougher.

The natural hardness is irrelevant - quills are heat-treated before cutting (in hot sand, usually), so the hardness is adjustable.

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