My Planned Pretty Wood Entry that was not to be.

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More4dan

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I had this nicely figured Desert Ironwood I selected for the Pretty Wood contest. The body section of the pen blew apart into 3 pieces while turning. I found the pieces and glued them back together with lots of thin CA and shavings and dust in the cracks and two small missing areas. It helps that my eye sight isn't as good as it use to be, it hides the flaws a bit. Many coats of thin and medium CA, sanded and polished to the final finish. The body near the end is too large for the hardware but I didn't want to chance the blank coming apart again.

The kit is an older gen 1 Jr Statesman with 10mm and 12mm tubes, finished in Rhodium and Gold.

Danny



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keithncsu

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May 28, 2016
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When I see pictures like these it only confirms that my CA finish has room for improvement. That is a beauty of a pen. Desert Ironwood is on my short list of materials to use when I finally get back up and running.
 

More4dan

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When I see pictures like these it only confirms that my CA finish has room for improvement. That is a beauty of a pen. Desert Ironwood is on my short list of materials to use when I finally get back up and running.



Thanks Keith. One of my favorite woods, but it sure does stink when sanding. I will use epoxy for the tube next time, the Medium CA fully covered the tube but separated from the wood when it blew apart.

Danny


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keithncsu

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When I see pictures like these it only confirms that my CA finish has room for improvement. That is a beauty of a pen. Desert Ironwood is on my short list of materials to use when I finally get back up and running.



Thanks Keith. One of my favorite woods, but it sure does stink when sanding. I will use epoxy for the tube next time, the Medium CA fully covered the tube but separated from the wood when it blew apart.

Danny


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I stopped using CA to glue tubes almost from the start. Epoxy worked SO much better for me. Don't recall having any blowouts with the epoxy other than when I tried to get a little more "goodie" out of a dull carbide insert few times.
 

More4dan

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I stopped using CA to glue tubes almost from the start. Epoxy worked SO much better for me. Don't recall having any blowouts with the epoxy other than when I tried to get a little more "goodie" out of a dull carbide insert few times.[/QUOTE]



I lack the patience require sometimes to wait on the epoxy. I usually have a single night during the week to turn and waiting for glue to dry can turn into a week. I've had good luck in the past but the ironwood didn't cooperate this time.


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Talltim

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Mar 12, 2017
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That is a beautiful pen. Sorry it did not make the contest. I love a jr statesmen set. It is a classy hardware. Probably my favorite.

The others are right, that is a nice finish.

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Dehn0045

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Mar 19, 2017
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Really nice looking pen Danny. DIW is one of my favorites too.

I was having a lot of issues with pens cracking on the ends during assembly. I was using epoxy and was super rigorous about cleaning the tubes before assembly, but some kits seem to just make the fit too tight. Anyway, I changed to gorilla glue which has reduced this problem considerably. I still sand out the inside of the tube to make the fit a little more loose. The gorilla glue foams up a little so it gives a little room for expansion where the components press in. Also, I think the foaming gives an even spread of glue. The only downside is that the glue doesn't seem to be quite as powerful as epoxy, but it has been a good change for me.
 

greenacres2

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Nice job on the re-assembly Dan. I've chased some wood that i should have pitched--and get rewarded often enough that i can't quit.
earl
 

More4dan

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Nice job on the re-assembly Dan. I've chased some wood that i should have pitched--and get rewarded often enough that i can't quit.
earl



Earl this was my first time trying this. I almost threw it across the shop then caught my head. I remember the tips I've read on this site about trying to fix these types of mistakes. Credit goes to you guys posting suggestions and tips.

Didn't have coffee grounds but the saw dust worked.

Danny


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