Thread: Ca Finish

Originally Posted by dai sensei

I sand to only 600 at ~900 speed, I have found any finer can cause delaminating, and on Delron cone bushes. Any oily type woods should be wiped down with metho/spirits before applying the CA, although I tend to do this anyway, to remove dust etc. I then apply 2-3 coats of thin at 400, before 5-10 coats of medium or thick at 900, removing any ribs with XXXX wool every 3 coats. I apply the CA with a double layer of paper towel, over some closed cell foam to protect my fingers. I use a fair bit of CA, ie not just a few drops like some others, but it is a fine line between too much and too little. I rub the CA with the soaked paper towel until it is almost set, too early and you get ribs, too late and the paper towels sticks (it is a real timing thing). I do not use accelerator for thin, but use it for the med/thick after 3 coats before sanding back with XXXX wool.

When I am happy with the coatings and the overall dia is ~0.5mm over size I score the coating at the ends with a very sharp tool (similar to a tiny skew) before removing the blank to do final end squaring and sealing the ends with thin CA. Then I wet sand blank with micromesh before polishing with plastic polish (apply and buff off). My resultant coating is 0.5-1.0mm thick that is ideal for multi medium pens that I do, to help bond/strengthen them, whilst providing a deep gloss finish.

I have not found high humidity causes major issues, but it can cause thin CA to go milky if applied to thick or if any ponding occurs. It does however reduce working times, so you need to apply it more quickly.

Do NOT us shellowax or similar over the CA, the heat required can cause issues with CA. There is no single right way of applying CA, everyone has to develop a method that is right for them, and I have seen many many ways to do it (not all successful though LOL).

I do still intend calling in whilst passing your way some time this year on my way, or way back, from Darwin and happy to give demo. But that is what I said last year LOL

Cheers

Neil
thanks
if you give me plenty of notice ie 1 month i will try and get time off
that way i can hold you to ransom for a few days/ week and try and soak as much info as i can from you
cheers Tony

Ya not left with a lot of choice on cotton buds these days ... I used to use Johnsons ..... these days I use Swipers.

If you are using a cotton bud ..... you have to get it wet enough ...... wet enough that the CA flows but not wet enough that it drips or causes runs on the job.

I don't ever find shedding fibres or sticking is a problem .... as the bud dries it just seems to not transfer product ..... it may because I use a prety light touch.

even when I did CA with the lathe running I had no problem with the buds sticking or shedding.

If I get one clean wet pass at the blank, I leave it at that .... a single coat will often dry reasonably fast ..... new bud and another pass.

One thing I find is applying too much in one pass is counter productive for speed ....... thinner applications go off faster.

cheers

Originally Posted by PenTurner

I noticed in the Video that your CA ran quite quickly out of the dropper, I noted my CA is running a bit gluggy or slow, I am positive that CA reacts differently at different temperatures and AGE; I have noticed this on a few occassions in the past and when I had a fresh bottle of CA I achieved better results. Tried again today, results not crash hot, but not giving up!!! Amos

Hi Amos. It sounds like your CA might be old. Should be the consistency of water for pen finishing, IMO. I use those blue paper towels that you find in the paint section of hardware stores for a wiper. They are more like cloth than paper, but are completely disposable. Twelve or more coats for a high end pen and then crank the speed back up and burnish to 12,000 grit with MicroMesh. That's what gets me by. Probably takes five minutes to apply the CA, then I let the pen sit (and the air clear) before polishing. Ten minutes to polish it and it's good to go.

Thanks to Neil and Cisco Kid for the advice, more learning.

Originally Posted by PenTurner

Thanks to Neil and Cisco Kid for the advice, more learning.

Amos, you have forgotten more about CA finishing than I will ever know. The only times that I have real difficulties with CA is extreme humidity or, like now, extreme cold. -8 C in my shed this morning.