More CA Trouble

[tomwojeck]

All,

I made some pens this weekend, but had a devil of a time with the finish. I was trying to do the CA/BLO method, but was having absolutely no luck. I've attached a picture that illustrate the mess that I was making. Another odd thing is that when I would try to level the finish, I'd start with 1500 MM. With very little effort, I had removed a good bit of the finish and was down to the wood. I could tell because I was working with Padauk, and the MM pad would quickly take on the rust hue that Padauk produces.

This is pretty frustrating, since I've been able to do this successfully before. My CA is pretty new, so I don't think that's the problem. The only thing that is different is the fact that it's pretty cold in my garage/shop. I'm not sure if that would make a difference or not.

Thanks for any advice,

Tom Wojeck

 

[Daniel]

Tom,
I have noticed a difference in the time it takes the glue to dry when it is cold. sometimes it takes a long time.
were you using accelerator?
Wet glue would have gotten all over your sandpaper though. Not to sure but I can tell you I have had CA get weird one day, and the next all is fine again.

 

[tomwojeck]

Originally posted by Daniel
<br />Tom,
I have noticed a difference in the time it takes the glue to dry when it is cold. sometimes it takes a long time.
were you using accelerator?
Wet glue would have gotten all over your sandpaper though. Not to sure but I can tell you I have had CA get weird one day, and the next all is fine again.

Daniel,

I did use accelerator on this, thinking that the cold might require it.

I think the thing that bugs me most is how easily the CA came off of the blank. It didn't appear wet on the sandpaper, it started off to be white, like usual. It just seemed weird. There have been times when I wanted to sand it down to the wood to start over, and it would take a while using 220 grit sandpaper. On this one, a brief time with 1500 MM had me getting the tell-tale rust color from the padauk.

--Tom

 

[Mac In Oak Ridge]

I don't think you were sanding down to the wood. Paduk has a very nice dye effect. I think that your CA coat was dyed red by the stuff in the Paduk that makes everything turn red that gets near it. The solvent in the CA disolves the dye.

 

[tomwojeck]

OOOOOHHHHHH!

That makes alot of sense.

 

[DCBluesman]

Tom...if your shop is unheated and you're working in evenings, the temperature will definitely have an effect on the curing of CA. Optimum conditions for CA curing are 65-85 degrees and 55% humidity. The evenings in our area (I'm in Woodbridge, VA) have been cold and, therefore, drier than that. If you are use to the 5-7 seconds of normal drying time, you may find out that at 45 degrees and 30% humidity, CA may take as long as 5 minutes to cure to the point of sanding. Just some thoughts, experience and quick research. [8D]

 

[tomwojeck]

Lou,

Thanks for your input. I may have to invest in some sort of heater for the garage then. I really enjoy penmaking, and would hate to give it up for the winter.