That little "tick" sound

[jsolie]

Oh, the fun of pen turning...

I was turning this piece of lace sheoak tonight. Everything was going well, the skew was behaving. The I heard this little "tick" sound.

I stopped the lathe and lo and behold, there was a little void in the piece, and part of it went flying into parts unknown. :bulgy-eyes: So, I'm trying a little bit of medium CA and we'll see how things turn out.

 

[jaeger]

That piece is done. My advice is a two tone pen unless you have more of that wood.

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[Sataro]

That little blow out just needs some filler. Put a little turquoise powder in there. OR some ground up coffee beans...you can save it with some effort.

 

[johncrane]

That void would look Awesome filled with Malachite! definitely nothing to worry about once its filled.

 

[kyaggie]

Yep, filled with wood shavings, coffee or colored filler that area will be the highlight of the pen!

Mike

 

[BSea]

My usual method is to accentuate the flaw when ever possible, not try & hide it. I know many will hide a small flaw under the clip. And depending on how small it is, I will too. But more often than not, I will either fill like most others here suggest, or I'll segment the piece with an accent. But your catch would look best filled with some type of crushed stone IMHO. I might even try & do something similar to the other barrel. Lots of possibilities. Sometimes the most interesting pens come from saving something like this. Even a two tone like jaegar mentioned is a possibility, but that would not be my choice.

 

[Akula]

That little blow out just needs some filler. Put a little turquoise powder in there. OR some ground up coffee beans...you can save it with some effort.

That is usually what I do in a pinch and looks better finished. IMO

 

[sbwertz]

That's not a flaw, that's a FEATURE!

 

[jsolie]

I really need to get some crushed stone for just these situations. I've got it filled with CA, and it'll be rock hard when I go back out to the shop and assess the blank.

I was thinking about the two-tone, but I'm not certain how to go about it since there's a brass tube glued in there. Am I correct that this involves cleanly turning the damaged blank down to the tube then gluing another drilled piece on?

 

[BSea]

I really need to get some crushed stone for just these situations. I've got it filled with CA, and it'll be rock hard when I go back out to the shop and assess the blank.

I was thinking about the two-tone, but I'm not certain how to go about it since there's a brass tube glued in there. Am I correct that this involves cleanly turning the damaged blank down to the tube then gluing another drilled piece on?

If the catch was down a little lower, I'd just part off the bad area, and then glue on a complementary piece. It could be wood or resin depending on what you're looking to do. But because it's about half way into the barrel, I'd think the 2 tone won't be the best idea.

What you could do if you have a bit more of that original blank is part of all but about 1/4". Then use a complimentary piece of wood like ebony, or maple, then do another 1/4" ring on the opposite end of the barrel. Maybe separate the wood with aluminum. Again, lots of possibilities.

But I have lots of "Possibilities" in a box waiting on me to fix.:redface: I never throw them out, I figure someday I'll be able to come up with something. And at times I have.

 

[LL Woodworks]

An opportunity to add character to the piece.

 

[JohnGreco]

I keep Ebony scraps on hand for times like this. Ebony + some 80 grit sandpaper makes a nice filler (especially where the edges are already blackened). Tape off around it, fill it in, add a drop of thin CA and peel off the tape. Might need to repeat it once or twice as you turn it down further but it will look beautiful once it's finished.

 

[plano_harry]

Since you have already plugged the void with CA, if you have a dremel tool you could put a small burr on it and carve out a random shape or a design and then fill with stone. Or slap on a cigar label and show it off!

 

[mdm0829]

I use embossing powder from Michael's as a filler. Inexpensive and wide clor choices. Even some with glitter

 

[rogerwaskow]

I have a jar filled with mixed saw dust. Light, medium and dark. Works a charm when you drop a drop of CA onto the blank and thin spin it with saw dust on your finger. Becomes a great feature as my other friends say. Once the hole is filled spray with accelerator and carry on as normal.