Wax sheets

[woodspinner]

I have been a turner for ten years and had never done pens. Started this week and I am hooked.
I have been reading the forum and you all talk about wax sheets for the barrel ends when gluing. Where do I purchase them.

Great forum site

Good turning and be safe
Bill

 

[C_Ludwigsen]

At the grocery store or nearby Walmart. Wax paper!

 

[woodspinner]

Thanks I thought you were talking about thin sheets of a wax that was pressed in to the barrel.
Bill

 

[wdcav1952]

Bill,
I use dental baseplate wax to seal the ends of the barrel before gluing. Being a dentist, access for me is easy. I seem to remember that Bill Baumbeck at Arizona Silhouette sells sheets of baseplate wax. If not, PlayDough or similar materials rolled in a thin sheet should work. Use a "cookie cutter" motion to seal the ends of the brass tubes.

William

 

[C_Ludwigsen]

Sorry Bill. Guess I misunderstood the wax sheet reference too. Yes, some of the folks here have said they get sheets of beeswax to plug the ends so the glue doesn't run into the tube.

I am using Polyurethane glue now for the tubes and it will both run in and faom into the ends. But instead of the beeswax, I'm using a votive candle that my wife disliked the scent of. My pen barrels smell like pumpkin spice while the glue is curing. []

 

[William Young]

I don't quite understand about plugging the tubes before glueing but then I am also fairly new to pen turning and still have a lot to learn.
Would one not have to be very carefull to not get any wax on the outside of the tube which might prevent adhesion , even though the tube is roughened with a little sandpaper to give it "tooth"?
I use thick CA if in a hurry but prefer 2 part epoxy so I usually glue up mine the night before I am going to use them.
With either method I sometimes get a little glue in the end of the tube but I just twist my barrel trimmer through it by hand after it is set up and so far that has worked well for removing it for me.
W.Y.

 

[Mac In Oak Ridge]

Haven't done it myself but read that you can slice a potato about 1/4" thick. Punch the pen tube in it and that cuts a disk of potato that stays in the tube until you push it out after you put the tube in the wood blank. Sounds cheap, wouldn't have to worry about waxy build up on the outside end of the tube.

Anyone use this?

 

[jimr]

I use polyurethane glue on all my pen barrels. Like William said, it foams up around the barrel end but it does not extend into the barrel but a very little, then I use a small knife blade to cut/scrape away most of it and then use the barrel trimmer to ream it out clean. I really don't understand the need to plug the barrel ends. Maybe it is related to the way the glue is applied to the brass barrel. I apply two thin beads to the barrel and then spread it with a small screwdriver. When I insert it in the blank I twist and move the barrel back and forth. So far I have had no problem with glue getting inside the barrel.

 

[woodspinner]

Thanks to all for your input.

Bill

 

[DCBluesman]

I've used Arizona Silhouette's product with excellent results. I use Gorilla Glue for tubes. This stuff keeps em clean as a whistle and it pushes straight through with the pen mill. I am sure there are other fairly easy methods out there, but when I order from Bill I always add a sheet or two. The price is right and it works...what more could you ask for?

 

[William Young]

That explains it. Thanks;
I have used very few 10 mm tube kits so far and was probably just lucky with the ones I did do so that's why my barrel trimmer did the trick for me. It fits good in a 7 mm tube. I have the universal barrel trimmer with 4 different sizes but was not aware that the 10 mm one doesn't fit snuggly in a 10 mm tube.
Just received an order today with some cigar kits and secret compartment keychain kits with 10 mm parts and some slimline pro with 8mm . So I'll try out some of the suggestions posted here.

Down with a horrible cold. ;-( Can't wait to get back in the shop.
W.Y.

 

[ashaw]

I tried the potato once with CA glue. The tube is hanging in my shop reminding me not to do that again. The CA reacted to the potato and cured right away. Thanks for rubber gloves otherwise my finger would also be hanging up there to.

 

[wayneis]

Some kits are especially sensitive, size wise, and if you get any glue inside the tube it can restrict the mechanism. CA glue is especially hard to see if you use that, one kit in particular is the Berea flat top pencil. You have to insert a tube into another tube after you have pressed the centerband on. If you have any glue in there at all you can ruin a nicely turned blank, I speak from experence on this one. After that little episode, I always use baseplate wax to plug one end. My .05 worth.

Wayne