Salutations from Taco Bell

[Bikerdad]

These are pics of a hard luck pen I made for my mother's birthday. I had a fair bit of trouble deciding what to get her, so when I finally had decided and secured the goods, I didn't have much time left.

Unfortunately, disaster struck. Following instructions I vaguely remember reading somewhere regarding Fiji blanks, I flooded the blank multiple times with thin CA as I was turning it down. Turning it down went great. Finishing went great. Then it came time to face the blank and put the pen together.

And I could not get the bushings out. Slice the bushing/blank interface? Sliced nicely, but a no go. Tap it out? Nope. Hold it in a vise and tap it out? Nope. Gently soak the ends for a few minutes in acetone? Nope. Soak the entire blank and bushings in acetone while I go to lunch? Nope. Soak overnight in acetone? TADAAAAAAA!! Unfortunately, soaking a Fiji blank overnight does more than just free the bushings up. It also destroys the blank. :frown:

So, I get more materials, miss my date, etc. Glue up new blank using epoxy, wait, get sick, etc. Finally turn and finish the puppy the weekend before last, taking care to remove the blank from the bushings before flooding with CA, turn some more, remove, flood, turn, repeat. When it came to final finishing, I decided not to do an even CA over it, because I liked the tactile difference between the infused wood and acrylic. You can see in the pics a difference in the shine line between the two.

The kit is Craft Supplies Aero, Black Titanium & Chrome. Between Mom's favorite color being blue, and her living in Hawaii, the choice of which Fiji blank to get was pretty simple. The pics were taken with my cellphone at Taco Bell, before crossing the street to the Post Office to mail the package. Pen Box is from CSUSA, bubble wrap from ?? Had I been thinking a little better, I would have been on the OTHER side for taking the pics, with the window behind me, rather than beyond the pen.

 

[magpens]

Very nice pen ... your mom will cherish it !!!!

Why is it called a Fiji blank ? ... have heard referred to as Amalgam Mutt ... or worthless wood

And what DID you use as the final finish, if any ?

 

[OZturner]

John, With all that Trauma, and Anxiety you deserve for something to go right.
And Well you Have, the pen is Beautiful,
Excellent Blank, Great Fit and Finish.
Beautiful Case.
I am sure that your Mum will be Delighted.
Congratulations, Well Done.
Brian.

 

[Bikerdad]

Very nice pen ... your mom will cherish it !!!!

Why is it called a Fiji blank ? ... have heard referred to as Amalgam Mutt ... or worthless wood

And what DID you use as the final finish, if any ?

Craft Supplies sells 'em as "Fiji Fusion Pen Blanks", as does Woodcraft. I got this one at CS, spent 15 minutes picking out "the right one". (In part, because I've never spent $20 on a blank before.)

For the final finish, I used 2 coats of thin CA, followed with a single coat of Pen Finish CA, then 400 Abranet, 500 Abranet, MM all the way up, then Hut Ultra Polish. The CA was so light on it that I sanded through it on the wood. I felt the difference as I was working through the grits, and decided that I liked it for this pen. It clearly communicates "this section is wood." (Note that the CA flooding was for filling voids, which it did do.)

 

[magpens]

Thank you for those details, John. . I too like the feel of bare MM'ed wood ... the smoothness and just a tiny hint of shine.

 

[Rink]

Bikerdad, GREAT looking pen. Really nice. Any time I'm using CA on a blank, I use Delrin bushings. CA doesn't stick to that material (mostly). I think you can get them at Exotic Blanks, probably other places, too. They're a generic size, you can use them for any pen style. If you're applying CA before the finishing step (as in the case you described)...you could use the delrin bushings and CA until you get "close" to the final size. Then change out for the steel bushings to get the size perfect. Then switch back to the delrin bushings for the finishing. Sorry, that's a bit long-winded, but I hope it's helpful. I wouldn't trade my delrin bushings for anything. Keep up the good work!

 

[bpgoldo]

John, I kept reading....and reading...and reading and waiting for Taco Bell. That was one Chaloopa of a build up! Beautiful finish on the wonderful blank. When my barrels get stuck to the bushings (almost every time) I just roll them under an Xacto blade for a few moments and maybe wiggle the bushing with a pair of pliers. POP, out they come, but I do score them with the knife first so it doesn't crack the finish on the barrel. Congrats on the fine gift for mom.