Thread: First go at Sierra's

Hi Floody you may need to give some info on just how you did finish the pens ,Looks like a very flat finish ,turning the pens is the easy part most times ,just as you get more experienced you pick more challenging stuff hehe. The sanding is most critical as the better the finish you start with the better Final finish you will develop. Initially you can get quite a nice finish with friction polish ,like u beaut "Glow" mostly not long lasting though because of the hard usage a pen can take and sweat acids and other outside influences .One of the most protective and hard wearing is the CA " super glue" type finishes ,takes a lot of practice to perfect the methods but if high gloss and durability is the goal its amongst the best .My first few hundred (mostly slims) were done using glow,with few tries at other finishes till I finally got the CA to work for me ,there are a few ways to do it including the Blo CA which is easier than the straight CA , A little searching of the forums will bring lots of info on finishes ,including u-tube videos . You can still dismantle the ones you have done and rework the finishes if you so desire , happens to me all the time lol.
Thanks for showing ,we are a sharing and caring community and will offer all the help possible to increase enjoyment of our hobby (addiction) cheers John

Thanks for the reply John. I completely forgot to mention the finish.
The tiger myrtle was done using the wax bars from Carbatec.They work ok but certaintly not glossy and durable enough for me. The other two were done with the same bar but then i rubbed two coats of ca on them followed by buffing using medium and fine paste compound. They were all sanded to 400 and the 12000 Micro mesh.

Ill do a search now on CA finishes. Thanks

One important thing is CA does not like wax, we use wax sometimes to stop CA sticking to our bushes.You may need to sand to higher grits initially even 800 -1000 .
Also if you don't have any already get a set of Micro mesh sanding pads, these go to 12000 grit, you will need them to get a smooth high gloss finish with both CA and acrylics when you move onto them , and you will hehe. Have a look at Timberbits site if you havn't already he is one of our forum sponsors and a very handy pen maker amongst other things , he has put some easy to follow video tutorials on finishing and other things ( he is also a store for pen parts and more ) Hope that helps get you on the track, we never stop learning and finding newer or better ways to improve what we do, so never boring ,enjoy the journey cheers ~ John

Hi Floody, Sierras are nice pen kits to work, the turning is simple enough and the challenge is in the finish. I would stay away from a wax finish, gets sticky, personally I am still using a couple of coats of glow because I rather like the patina that develops with use, but thats a personal issue. I certainly appreciate the finish achieved by the users of ca (but I also don't get enraptured by acrylic blanks, still a woodie I guess). I suppose I will now get flamed.

Thanks John.
Ive already got the MM pads. I originally bought them for guitar work so I could probably do with a new set. I use them on every pen though.

All my kits and blanks so far have been ordered from Timberbits. I actually placed another order this morning lol. And included in that order were two acrylics hahaha! I couldnt resist after seeing all the acrylics around here

Floody in some respects acylics are easier to finish than wood ,not to be rushed as can be a bit brittle if attacked like wood, skew is best and light cuts, I sand the corners off after glueup to reduce the tool impact when starting the initial rounding of the blank.after initial sanding to at least 600, go through the full range of MM wet ,keep the revs down as you dont want heat (especially drilling the blanks) you will find after the final MM some plastic polish or brasso will really lift the shine to almost a glass like finish, very satisfying hehe, cheers ~ John

Thanks for the tips John. So a gouge is no good on acrylic? Im not overly confident with a skew yet. I can handle it when its already turned round but im pretty inexperienced when its still rough. Ill give it a go but. Whats the best way to reduce heat during drilling? Keeping the drill bit wet?

Floody ! I Use a small squirt bottle with water for drilling acrylics cools and lubricates, there are a few ways to help minimise blowouts when drilling ,one is to leave the blank a bit long then drill to just past the depth you need for the tube length, when you cut it off you have a nice clean hole and no missing edges around the drill hole .A sharp drill that will cut with minimun pressure and keep pulling the drill out to clear the shavings ,the main reason for heat buildup is the shavings jamming in the hole and getting hot enough to try and bond back again ,destroys blanks does that.I drill at about 300 rpm for most blanks wood or acrylic Keeping your blanks square is most important else you can get the drill coming out off centre at the bottom . As to the infamous skew I used mine as a scraper for about a year till I got some hands on instructions on proper usage , A gauge is fine in most cases ,just need to be sure to keep the cuts small and rubbing the bevel for a smooth finish, at first you may need to leave a bit proud and finish to size with sandpaper ,again watching for heat as it can melt the acrylics if to hard or fast, all in all sharp tools and slow and steady will get you there, after some practice you can turn and finish a sierra in under half an hr no problem . I have 2 sets of bushes so I can do two at a time Another thing I always do with wood or acrylics is to rough down to almost the bushes on a short taper at each end,so when you are doing the main turning if you get a dig in or catch it tends to not run along to the bushes and knock the end bit out. After a little practise this all seem very basic and you then can find what tools and speeds work best for you . I f when you are close to size and have some minor pitting ,you can fill with ca to repair ,it bonds very well and is undetectable after the sanding and polishing processes . It is very satisfying in the end and makes great gifts or sales items , Have fun John

Hey floody

I see that you are looking at doing some acrylics so I thought I would share how I do my acrylics I have done a few now and I am addicted to them I just cant stop when I turn them I use my roughing gouge to start with and I remove the edges of the blank on the bandsaw I use the gouge most of the way then I use either my skew or a scraper to get it to the final shape I always leave a little more meat on the cap and nip end for sanding reasons I wet sand up to 1200g I hardly every use my MM pads and then I finish with Novus polish 3 step process I am trying out some differents ways to finish but at this point and time I am happy with the way they turn out OH heat and acylics NOT GOOD BED FELLOWS good luck with the acrylics it wont take long and you will be addicted

Ian

Thanks for all the advice guys. Hopefully my new order from Timberbits will arrive within the next few days and then i can turn some more!! Im looking getting a scroll chuck as well within the coming weeks. Im not overly happy with my current drill press so id like to try drilling the blanks on the lathe.The drill press will work for now. Just gotta be reeallly reallly slow!

sorry to be a pain but it was mentionesd turning acrylics, is this new I have only been here a few time bo Ppl actually turn this stuff on a lathe is is dificult

Bettyboop, nothing new in turning acrylics into pens ,a wide range of colors and designs can add to their appeal, If you can turn a wooden pen ,the same tools will turn an acrylic , Takes a bit more care as they can be brittle and chip , Generally the finishing is quick and the finish glossy and long lasting cheers ~ John