Corian Pens

[knottyharry]

I have been experimenting with corian lately with some good results, and some not so good results. The blanks drill okay, they turn and polish out great. But when I go to assemble them I have had a couple that have cracked and I don't know why. I turn and sand them to the bushing size at the ends. I don't know if it is that they are too thin, and I should be keeping them a little larger. Or if it is in the assemble where they are being pressed together. Should I ream the ends of the brass sleeves a little before trying to assemble them. Maybe put a drop of oil on them so they don't bind.
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks
Harry

 

[Guest]

I have turned a number of Corian pen and not experienced any"cracking".
What type of pen are you doing?
One thought.
I have had the tips of blanks crack when the Blanks are not "plumb" while pressing, but this is a problem you might experience with any kit not just Corian.
One more question,
What are you using to glue your tubes in the blank?

 

[Bev Polmanteer]

I've turned several corian and if the ends are too thin when you press them too hard they will crack. Do NOT try reaming out the brass because the brass will stretch and the corian will not and it will crack for sure. Been there and done that, didn't get a tee shirt tho!

 

[knottyharry]

What I have been using the corian for is the slimline pens. But like I said most seem to do ok, but some crack and I'm at a total lose in the whole thing.
Thanks for the replys.
Harry

 

[Daniel]

Harry,
Reaming thetubes just a nit is not a bad idea. any burr from milling the end of the blank can cause the tube to be expanded just a bit during assembly. keeping the parts square will also help. and make dure the tube has been cleaned af any glue or other residue. I have had more pdoblems like this from just the slightest layer of glue still being in the tube.
other then that. trying to keep the corian as thick as possible will help. a straight cut slimline gets the material pretty thin. Corian will not have the flexability of wood so any movemnet for any reason will crack it I have also noticed that corian does not do well as a band. not for me anyway.

 

[Fred in NC]

My straight cut slimlines are a little thicker than the bushings. I just taper the ends a bit to the bushing size. Actually, one the end of the barrel that meets the tip needs to be accurate. The parts of the barrels that meet the center band can be a bit oversize if you round the ends a bit, and same with the part that takes the clip. You will be surprised what an extra 1/64" or so can do for the strength of the wood.

 

[Daniel]

Fred, It was just this sort of thinking that lead to my favorite Slim Line design. I call it the sculptured Slimline. The main body of both the upper and lower barrel are much fatter than the bushings call for. the idea of keeping the barrels just slightly large for even a straight barral slimline is a good one.

 

[Guest]

"turks heading" the nib end gives it a "classy look" and will definately strengthen it.