Ha, Johnny! Big of you to confess but don't let it bother you. Most folks would readily accept your explanation re different lengths is due to one being a f/p and the other a r/b. If there's nothing wrong with them then sell 'em, matey! (Or split them up?)
Re the splitting - unfortunately spalted beech (and some other spalts) suffer from a softness problem. Avoid the rubbish that is almost as soft as balsa!!! If buying from ebay, etc always ask the seller what the consistency is like. My experience is if you can sink a fingernail into a blank without resistance then bin it. A precaution you might adopt is to turn the blank nearly to right size then put the chisel away and go in with the sandpaper. This won't necessarily stop the nib/centre/cap ends from fraying but it's worth a shot. If it fails so be it - you wouldn't have gotten a pen from it anyway! You can also try to stabilise soft wood but I've never had much success - save this method for when a blank flies apart while turning - hopefully the bits will glue together again. Hope this helps.
Bob.
