African Blackwood Majestic

[mwildes]

This may not be the correct section to pose questions. If not, just let me know and I'll move this.

a) I completed a very nice Majestic fountain pen about 6 weeks ago. Yesterday, it came back to me with several splits in the wood. I used African Blackwood that appeared to be and turned as if it were dry. Has anyone had any similar experience using this wood? It was my first time using this species.

b) What is the best method to disassemble a Majestic? Does anyone have experience with this? I need to turn and replace the barrels, then reassemble.

c) Does anyone have data or experience with the durability of the different finishes discussed in these forums? Some of my very first pens were finished in Behlan's Woodturner's Finish and given to family. With about 6 months of use, the finish is dull (really quite unattractive) and needs to be redone. Do CA, WOP, Waterlox, canuba wax, etc each have a durability limit? Or, will some last the life of the pen?

Any and all input is appreciated.

 

[gwilki]

Marty
A) It may be that you overheated the blank while turning or finishing it. When it finally cooled, it was glued to a non-flexible tube, so it cracked while it contracted. I've done pens in African Blackwood without any problems, so I don't think it's inherent in that wood.
B) Get a set of transfer punches from harbour freight. Using them, taking a kit pen apart is quite simple.

 

[leehljp]

Marty,

Harbor Freight has a punch set that is used by many to disassemble pens.
Item # 3577-2VGA
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=3577

As to the durability of finish - CA does have that durability you are looking for, but it takes time to master for many people. Similar to CA, Plexi/acrylic dissolved in acetone to the right consistency does a good job for many. I haven't mastered this one yet but others have. Of course it has long term durability.

Lacquer, Deft, Enduro and a couple of others do well also but they take longer to cure before using. I am sure some poly's will work well but I would caution that not all poly's are equal. One test is to go into a kitchen and look at the nice finishes on the cabinets. See finger prints and dark spots after a few years? Some Poly's, some lacquers, shellacs, varnishes will be worse on pens, similar to what you experienced already.

Hand oils and shirt pocket moisture are caustic to what many people consider fine finishes. These finishes work well on tables, furniture and cabinets but not on pens that are subjected to caustic humid environments beyond what house hold items are.

On your blackwood: Blackwoods and ebonies that develop crack "lines" can usually be fixed just by sanding down and re-applying the finish - especially if using CA. This is what I and others do. Usually the crack lines are lines only, so no damage is done. Refinishing covers everything up well and brings it back to "new".

 

[thewishman]

Cracks in pens can usually be filled with sanding dust and CA slurry. Snakewood repairs beautifully. My African blackwood pen cracked, too. It was a closed end - that made it impossible (for me anyway) to fill in the cracks in the endgrain properly.

Plexi and CA seem to be the most durable finishes.

 

[marcruby]

African blackwood and a few other hard, dense woods (Brazilian rosewood, for example) can crack for a number of reasons. No the least is that it is actually a fragile wood. And very sensitive to temperature and moisture changes.

What works for me is to drill the hole very slightly larger than normal and us epoxy as the glue. This gives the blackwood some room to move. If a blank is overheating it's because you are turning too fast. For woods like blackwood I come down to about 800 rpm.

Saturate the blank with thin CA a few times when you have it close to size. There's a very good chance that and cracks have already formed (or were there from the begining) in turning and this gives you a chance to treat them early. I use the same trick on ornate vessel finials as well. Now build a heavy finish. I use CA, but I suspect that lacquer or poly might work better.

Last but not least, is don't assemble the pen right away. It seems to take a few weeks for the cracks to surface if they are going to. My house is dryer than my shop and this seems to bring out any cracks. After all this abuse I stopped having problems with blackwood pens.

Marc

 

[mwildes]

Thank You

I want to thank everyone for their wealth of information. The time you offered for a response is greatly appreciated.

 

[Daniel]

Man it seems like a very long time since I learned this. I had almost forgotten about it. I am used to dealing with wet wood etc in everything from building decks to furniture. But I quickly realized that what is dry wood in just about any other craft or application. Is not dry for making pens. Even here in the very dry dessert I have learned to let a blank set for a month or so in my shop before turning it if there is any question at all about moisture. the materiel is being turned so thin that it simply has no give at all to shrink as it drys. And I am not talking about moisture you can feel either. I simply noticed that many pens I turned from blanks that I had just gotten would crack. blanks that had been in my shop for a month or so did not. even one of the first Amboyna Burl pens I ever made warped all over leaving a rough feeling to it.