When and how long after to assemble

[bedangerous]

Just curious after making the pen with a CA finish how long do you wait to assemble the pen? Is this different that you would wait for a Dr's pen finish and how long to wait for a friction finish.
Thanks,
Mitch

 

[keithbyrd]

I rarely wait more than 5 minutes after polishing!

 

[Dan Masshardt]

For CA: I used to argue that 5 min was just as good as anything After some experimenting I feel as though waiting longer may result in a harder finish which is ultimately just a bit smother over time I now typically wait until the the next day up to several days depending. If I need it done I'll still polish the same day

My suggestion is experiment and see what you like

Doctors is friction finish It's basically polished as it's applied No point in any wait time here.

 

[plantman]

I think the guys are forgetting one important part of a CA finish. After you apply the CA you either stop the lathe and hand sand the blanks as I do, or micro mesh the 9 different grades to smooth out the surface. Than you clean off your blanks with a tac rag and apply a Plastic Polish to make it shine. All this may take you from 10 minutes to an hour before you are ready to take your blanks off the lathe. Now you clean up the ends and reseal them to keep any moisture from entering. Only than are you ready to insert your fittings into the blanks. Time passed from finishing to assembly, probably an hour. There is a reason they call CA instant glue. By itself it hardens in less than a minute, add accellerator and by the time you put the bottle down it is hardened and can be sanded and polished. It may get harder over time, but I have never noticed any difference. Jim S

 

[The Penguin]

how long does it take to walk from the lathe to the workbench?

 

[plantman]

how long does it take to walk from the lathe to the workbench?

Enough time for the CA to set up !!!! Jim S

 

[toddlajoie]

I'm with Dan, I wait usually at least 24 hours after I'm done with applying CA. Once I get the CA on enough to sand smooth with 800 grit paper, it sits for a day. then I go back to MM pads and then buffing. I find that if I finish the CA right after I'm done applying it, it looks great when I'm done, but will dull a bit and often form slight texture, especially if the wood has voids and such.

I also wait overnight at least after polishing before I assemble the pen, simply because I'm not at 100% success rate with CA, so if I happen to have sanded or buffed through the CA at some point, it will be nice and shiny off the lathe, but the next morning there will be a dull spot where there is no CA. Much easier to fix this before you assemble...

CA may dry to the touch very quickly, but how long it takes to be completely hardened and stable is affected by the total thickness it is applied, temperature/humidity, time, brand, viscosity, and several other factors.

 

[Pitoon]

For me all depends on the situation. If i don't have to wait i prefer not to as the risk of damaging the ends on the finished blanks are a lot higher. Once the CA is dry it's dry....waiting another day is not going to change anything in my opinion.

Pitoon

 

[StuartCovey]

I think the guys are forgetting one important part of a CA finish. After you apply the CA you either stop the lathe and hand sand the blanks as I do, or micro mesh the 9 different grades to smooth out the surface. Than you clean off your blanks with a tac rag and apply a Plastic Polish to make it shine. All this may take you from 10 minutes to an hour before you are ready to take your blanks off the lathe. Now you clean up the ends and reseal them to keep any moisture from entering. Only than are you ready to insert your fittings into the blanks. Time passed from finishing to assembly, probably an hour. There is a reason they call CA instant glue. By itself it hardens in less than a minute, add accellerator and by the time you put the bottle down it is hardened and can be sanded and polished. It may get harder over time, but I have never noticed any difference. Jim S

I agree, I have never waited a specific time. When I finish applying the CA to the time I finish turning the CA to size and sanding, it's been at least 15-20 mins.
Also if I'm doing a two tube pen, the first tube will sit through the second tube being made so I will usually do that tube first. Gives them an even amount of time each.

 

[plantman]

There is no one perfect way to make or finish pens. As Todd said, it depends on a lot of factors. Heat, humidty, shop temp, brand of CA, and how it is applied. Everyone does it in a different manner. It comes down to what works best for you under your conditions and working habbits. Check out the library for hints and methods used by others. Jim S

 

[CrimsonKeel]

I randomly wait or do it right away. however saying that its totally cured in 20 seconds is not true. I work in a coatings field and most of our testing requires 24 hour wait after coating to allow final cures and cross linking to take place. sure its hard to touch and seems good but if you have the time to wait I would recommend it

 

[southernclay]

I'm usually too excited to wait more than a few minutes

 

[kovalcik]

If in a hurry I will wait a minimun of 1 hour after applying CA before I sand and polish.. Normally I like to let it sit overnight After polishing I assemble immediately.

I don't usually use friction polish on pens, but when I use it on other items, I give the shellac time to cure before buffing it out. Usually a few hours.

I had a teacher who always pointed out that as far as finishes go dry does not mean cured. You want the finish cured before doing anything that will stress it.

 

[plantman]

I randomly wait or do it right away. however saying that its totally cured in 20 seconds is not true. I work in a coatings field and most of our testing requires 24 hour wait after coating to allow final cures and cross linking to take place. sure its hard to touch and seems good but if you have the time to wait I would recommend it

I think you may have misunderstood me. I said that you could work with it wright away if you use accelorater to speed up drying and hardening the surface. It may take much longer to cure completely. You could put your pen together after finishing the blanks without worry, as it will be almost an hour from application to putting the fittings on. I have used a lot of fiberglass and realize that a bonding and chemical reaction must be allowed to take place before trying to work with it. This reaction also gives out quite a large amout of heat while taking place. Than again, you are using a resin/hardner mix and saturating a glass fiber cloth, not CA, that reacts with air and finges. Jim S

 

[Sylvanite]

I used to sand, buff, and assemble right away, but I would sometimes notice that the finish wasn't quite as smooth a few days later. Now I wait at least a day after applying CA before sanding.

I hope that helps,
Eric