Pen CA Finish

[Harry]

I don't have any pictures of work during the process, but this is how I do it...

*Sand through 220-grit, wiping off the sanding dust for each grit except 220
*Use an applicator with a few drops of thin CA glue on it to wipe off the dust
from the 220
*Put some mineral oil on a piece of 320 w/d paper and sand off the CA glue, filling the pores and sealing the pen blank
*Use a paper towel to wipe off all the mineral oil
*Use 400, 600 and 800 w/d paper, wiping off the residue between grits
*Fold a paper towel so it's thick enough that several drops of medium CA glue won't immediately soak through
*Wipe down the pen blank
*Put a few drops of tung oil (others use BLO, but I don't have any) on a clean spot of the paper towel and wipe the blank again
*Repeat the medium CA glue and tung oil once or twice--more than that isn't necessary, IMHO
*Let the pen sit for a couple or a few hours so the glue cures completely
*Go through the micro-mesh grades, 1500-12,000, wiping off the residue for each grade

All the above steps are done with the lathe at its slowest speed. Then I increase the speed to the fastest one (don't remember, exactly), and wipe the pen down with friction polish. Most pen turners don't do that, and it probably isn't necessary but I like the look. I only buff acrylic pens, but I don't make many of those.

Let the friction polish cure overnight before handling, 'cause it's soft.

[patsfan]

paper bag works well for wipe down between MM grits and final buffing.

<-- Cheap.

[Chuck K]

I used CA on a pen today. I was an acrylic with coffee beans in the blank. It was, to say the least, problematic. When I went to finish I decided to use CA for a harder finish. I was almost done when I saw I need to add a small amount of CA. I made the mistake of using an accelerator when I was not in a possition put the pen back on the lathe. In the future I will not make that mistake again. That goes for the coffee bean blank and for using accelerant.

[Gregory Of Sherwood Forest]

Although I've used CA on the coffee bean blanks, it isn't my favorite finish for them. Most coffee lovers are in it for the smell. A CA finish will seal off most of that wonderful aroma. I use a VERY light triple buff (Don Pencil for me). Very light because any beans that aren't cupped real well get pulled out with too much pressure.

If I notice a loose bean before buffing, I will set it a little better with use of medium CA to fill any gaps, but that's the extent of my CA use on those blanks unless the customer specifically requests the CA over my recommendations.

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