Giving up on CA BLO, what else, HELP, totally frustrated.

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drjpawlus

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Mar 14, 2009
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Thanks John. I have used Minwax Poly and like how that comes out. I have been applying 6 or 7 coats by wiping it on with a small piece of folded paper powel. I really like the ease of application and the final finish. On oily wood I still use CA so I was interested when you said it works on Oily woods. I'll need to look into buying some of this to try it.

If having trouble with an oily wood, first wipe down with acetone. Try this and see if you are still having problems.
 
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jyreene

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I'm going to have to save some of the packing foam from my next electronics purchase now. Thanks John, you pretty much described one of my main problems. I finally had a good CA finish yesterday and now I just have to find my camera to post a pic of it. Still needs some work but it is rockin. I bet I can do better with the packing foam.
 

JimB

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Mar 18, 2008
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West Henrietta, NY, USA.
Quote:
Originally Posted by JimB
Thanks John. I have used Minwax Poly and like how that comes out. I have been applying 6 or 7 coats by wiping it on with a small piece of folded paper powel. I really like the ease of application and the final finish. On oily wood I still use CA so I was interested when you said it works on Oily woods. I'll need to look into buying some of this to try it.

If having trouble with an oily wood, first wipe down with acetone. Try this and see if you are still having problems.


I'll need to try the acetone. I've tried DNA but that didn't help. Thanks forthe suggestion.
 

Moosewatcher

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Feb 8, 2009
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Blue Bell, PA
Jason,
I'm feelin your pain.:frown: I went through the same thing. Finally watched a video on the Australian version of IAP and after some trial and error finally got it. It does'nt use BLO, straight CA. I put six coats on. It takes about 10 minutes if nothing goes wrong. I can send you the link or your welcome to come down one day and we'll go over it. I live in Horsham PA. It's about 70 miles or an hour and 40 minutes from you.

Ken

Below are a couple of examples. You can see a bigger pic on my IAP photo album.

1_P504Int.jpg

1_P551Int.jpg



I have tried a ca/blo finish on about 14 pens now and I can't get it right. It takes me like an hour+ to do one and the finish is nice but still has some streeks, or if I use enought plastic polish to take the streeks out I alwas ware through an area. eventualy I get it ok but the road to get there is topainful and not making this fun at all.quote]
 

GouletPens

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Ashland, VA
I'm a huge CA fan and it took me a couple of 'give up and come back to it later' cycles before I found a method that works for me, which is different than what everyone else is telling you to do. The fact is the CA finish will be influenced by the wood you have, the type of cloth you use to apply it, the humidity in the air, the age of the CA, the lathe speed, CA thin/med/thick, the amount you put on, the number of coats, your sanding method, etc. etc. Once you get a technique down, it will be very consistent. Under the stressful time of having an order backlogged is NOT a good time to experiment with these techniques. I would suggest using lacquer or poly to get through this order, then try to get a CA process down when you are able to think clearly and not be frustrated about 'failing'. You will most likely need to read everyone's suggestions and pull out different suggestions to compile your own process. That's what I did and I've been loving CA ever since.:wink:
 

GouletPens

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Lacquer can be easy to apply too....especially since you don't have to sand in between coats if you recoat every 10 minutes or so. If you're doing a lot of them you can spray them or dip them. I haven't used it a lot, but on the couple I've done it comes out nicely.
 

jkeithrussell

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Oct 20, 2008
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When you sand your first coat of CA do you sand it until it shines or do you just knock off the high spots?

I don't sand at all until I've got 4-6 coats of medium CA on the blank. Again, you need to practice and see what works for you. In my opinion, if you sand after one coat of CA, you are just reversing the work that you did in putting down the CA. Try it and see how it works. If it doesn't work, then put down a few coats without sanding, and see how that works.
 

Mack C.

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I'm going to have to save some of the packing foam from my next electronics purchase now. Thanks John, you pretty much described one of my main problems. I finally had a good CA finish yesterday and now I just have to find my camera to post a pic of it. Still needs some work but it is rockin.
I bet I can do better with the packing foam.
Don't forget the packing foam is porous, thus allowing the BLO/CA to leak through. So be sure to wear a glove on the hand you are applying the finish with. That didn't occur to me until it was nearly too late!
 

jfrantz

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Sep 13, 2008
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Woodstock, IL
Does this person want a high gloss coat? I personally like a more natural feeling wood. All I hear about is CA. One product that a wonderful turner and turning instructor from Indianapolis, Jim Dupler, got me hooked on is Kwick Kleen fast drying polyurathane. It is also water resistant, which for what I do is imperative. CA is not. I sell CA and wonder if anyone knows what CA looks like after 20 or 30 years. I have seen tons of CA pens, and some have really mastered this process and results are amazing. I just want to have a more natural look and feel, it is my personal taste only. If I were turning plastic, I would want it to feel like plastic. Wood like wood.

Anyway, this stuff is fast, beautiful, durable and easy. I showed a master violin maker, Harold Evans, this product ( sells them for up to $40,000 and is known for his finishes) and he was blown away. We both then experimented with about a half dozen products I have heard about on this forum, and this product was the easy winner.

It comes in semi-gloss, gloss and satin. I let the wood choose the gloss. Works on oily woods as well. I will post some of what I do here in the next week or two.

A good finish to me is one that is predictable, durable, beautiful, fast and easy. Nobody says this has to be hard. The actual application takes me about 20 seconds and I can handle it in about a minute. It is often used by makers of high end bows because of its durability, ability to flex, and water resistance.

Did I say I liked this product?

Thought you might want to hear something other then try harder.



John,
Where can you buy Kwik Kleen?
Thanks,
Jeff
 

jfrantz

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Sep 13, 2008
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Woodstock, IL
Hello Jerry,
I ordered mine direct from Restoration Chemicals, the maker of Kwick Kleen. You can buy it by the quart to avoid the Hazmat fees. I put it in those little plastic bottles that you can by at woodcraft, or better and cheaper yet at hobby lobby. I label em satin, gloss, or semi-gloss and choose based on the wood. Their number is 812-882-3987. Would love to hear what you think after you try it.
John
Got RC's website?
 

jfrantz

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Sep 13, 2008
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Location
Woodstock, IL
Thanks for the offer, John! I'm not a friction polish fan, thought this
was maybe something different.
I think I'll stick with my CA and may try the Kwick Kleen you showed me.
I found it online for sale, thanks for the tip.What you showed me that you
had used the Kwick Kleen on, looked superb. And for the quickness of
it as you say, I'd be a fool not to try it.
Online, where? Thanks
 

drjpawlus

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I think the website Johnnycnc gave is the only place to get it. Haven't seen it anywhere else, so they may only sell direct.
 

glycerine

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Fayetteville, NC
I just used regular super glue, no BLO. Squeeze it on your blank, spin the lathe by hand while holding a paper towel under it to spread it out. Do this quickly. It will be ripply, don't worry about getting it smooth. Give it several minutes to cure, then continue. Put on several coats, I'd say I usually put on 4 or 5 coats. Then sand it down with micromesh and finish with plastic polish.
 

randyrls

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Feb 2, 2006
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Harrisburg, PA 17112
Does this person want a high gloss coat? I personally like a more natural feeling wood.

John; I like the natural look on woods too! Kind of a satin finish.

I still use a CA finish, but I "knock down" the shine with 0000 steel wool. It feels like bare wood, but the CA will still protect the surface.
 
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