Can this be fixed?

[james1725]

Is it possible to fix this and how? I'm so disappointed.

I think I'm not seeing like I should.



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Also the blank was marked TM on the end and I would like to know what it is. I really like it

 

[magpens]

Please tell us what we are looking at . Are those gouges, chips, flaws in the wood, flaking off CA finish, or what ? . TM could mean some kind of maple

 

[lorbay]

Yes it can.
Either with a barrel trimmer or sanding on a mandrel, but with some of that style of kits is how much you can take off. Some will not allow much at all.
Lin

 

[1080Wayne]

Possibly a maple of some kind . Best fix is probably not to turn any more that look like it , unless you really like it .

 

[james1725]

I thought I had this exactly flat where the blank meets the band on that pen. I don't have a barrel trimmer so i used my disk sander. I guess that was a mistake and left that ragged edge.

 

[1080Wayne]

If you are referring to the lower barrel end and it is a Sierra or some of the clones , you can sand off up to nearly 1/4 inch before the pen won`t work .

 

[james1725]

Yes that's exactly what I was talking about. Thank you Wayne. I had not Idea I could take anymore off.

 

[1080Wayne]

For that problem I would use a sheet of about 150 grit on a dead flat surface , holding the barrel absolutely vertical as I draw it towards me , rotating 1/4 turn between strokes . Shouldn`t take more than 5 minutes to cure that problem .

There may be some Sierra look-alikes that are not so forgiving . I just stick to the originals .

 

[jttheclockman]

I would leave it alone. You do not say what the blank is so I think it is bone or antler of some sort. It is a rugged pieces as it is, so that defect as you call it fits right in with the blank. When you say you used a disc sander maybe you can explain that part so you can learn from this. What grit sandpaper??? Did you have a jig to hold it parallel to the sander?? What type of paper?? ( is it a hook and loop system or sticky back??) there is always more to the story than gets reported. Trying to help.

 

[james1725]

I bought a box of blanks from a fellow pen turner in Washington from this site. . That blank was in the box marked TM. That's all I know about it. I don't have a holding jig for my disc sander so I turned the blank round and removed it from the Lathe and just used the miter to hold it straight I thought. I'm using a delta 8inch disc belt combo with stick on 120 grit. The kit is CSUSA version of the Sierra. No problem at all with the kit

 

[jttheclockman]

Go with at least 220 grit and it should solve the problem. Looks like some chippy material.

 

[robutacion]

I thought I had this exactly flat where the blank meets the band on that pen. I don't have a barrel trimmer so i used my disk sander. I guess that was a mistake and left that ragged edge.

The answer to your question has been answered however, no one mentioned the various jigs that you can make with ease to assist you with preventing your results.

If you would be so kind to do some searching on our rich library, you will find a number of threads where other members show what they done and how they did it to solve that problem. You don't need to spend much money, possibly a few bucks for a set of pen dismantling punchers where you get all the sizes of all the tubes you use, this is for the system where a round sanding pad is attached to the headstock and the puncher on the tail stock via a Jacob chuck, this is to me one of the great ways to solve that problem.

Hope this is of some help to you.

Cheers
George

 

[KBs Pensnmore]

When using blanks with a doubtful/curly grain, I always soak the ends in thin CA. I found that it holds the bits together while using the pen mill and also turning the ends.
Kryn

 

[Curly]

Since you already have the disc sander and mitre gauge all you need are the transfer punches robutacon mentioned and a block of wood with a "V" groove cut in it and a clamp that you make or bought. You can put the "V" groove on the front of the block and use any small clamp in the shop. Adjust the table and mitre gauge to get a perfectly square end on the blank.

http://www.penturners.org/forum/f14/how-get-perfect-length-tube-blank-every-time-142649/#post1870227

 

[JimB]

This is how I square the ends of my blanks. I am usually using 220, 320 or 400 grit depending on the wood and how much I need to remove. I don't use my disc sander because it seems like too much work to get it perfectly square and if I ever move the table I need to do it again.


View in Gallery

 

[james1725]

Thanks for all the excellent advice. I was able to clean it up some with the sandpaper on a flat surface method. It's still not square like I want it and I'm thinking about a jig or the method Jim uses

 

[D.Oliver]

Just a guess, but TM may stand for Tiger Maple.

 

[james1725]

Thank you Derek!!

 

[james1725]

Ok, made me one of these and gave it a try. Very happy with the results!! Thank YOU!!