Blanks with worm holes

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PSU1980

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Joined
Sep 21, 2011
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282
Location
Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania
Good evening fellow pen turners,

I hope everyone has a wonderful and safe holiday season. I'm looking for some opinions on worm holes. Should the holes be filled with sanding dust before applying the ca finish or just leave the holes empty and finish with ca. I know it is personal preference, but I just finished a pen with buckeye burl with a worm hole in it and I didn't fill the hole before applying finish. I can't decide if I like it or if the hole looks like a defect in the wood. Any suggestions or opinions welcomed.

Thanks, Tim
 
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renowb

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May 27, 2009
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2,241
Either way, fill it or leave it alone. I like the au natural effect myself.
 

Bellsy

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Joined
Jun 26, 2008
Messages
385
Location
Elora, Ontario, Canada
Brass powder, glitter or even pigment and some epoxy. Mix the powders into the epoxy until it becomes a thick pasty consistency and then apply into the voids. Let cure and turn or finish normally.

Dave
 

DMGill

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Joined
Jul 14, 2011
Messages
92
Location
Midlothian, Texas
I use crafting sand to fill large holes and cracks. It comes in a variety of colors, with or without glitter. Here is a pen made from mesquite wood with blue sand fill in the holes (it looks like lapiz stone), and a cedar bottle stopper with white fill.
 

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dankc908

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Joined
Mar 24, 2009
Messages
576
Location
Council Bluffs, IA
I had some figured ambrosia maple that I have made pens with. While on the lathe I, simply, flood the hole with thin CA and keep working it down. IMO the worm holes lend character to the wood and the resulting pen.

Dan
 

SDB777

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Joined
Feb 6, 2010
Messages
6,620
Location
Cabot, Arkansas USA
Had this nasty looking chunk of wormed out persimmon wood laying around, so I contacted Eugen(Elmostro), and had him work some magic on it....few weeks went by and I received a big old box packed with blanks!

Here's what they ended up as:
Sedonax4.jpg






Scott (wormy is awesome) B
 

Gary Beasley

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Joined
Sep 18, 2009
Messages
1,326
Location
Marietta, Ga. USA
I like to fill mine flush with thick CA so I have a clear plug in it, if the worm hole doesn't show brass. If it does the sawdust trick gets used.
When doe the curved clear surface brings the color to the surface and you have to look close to tell it has a void there.
 
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