How translucent is cebloplast?

[panamag8or]

I have a black granite blank drilled (drilling went flawless, whew), but the tubes are a (very tiny) bit loose. I'm thinking about reverse painting the blank to give the tubes a tighter fit. I was wondering how translucent the ceblo is, as that will help determine the color I use.

 

[MarkD]

I have used the Cracked Ice Ceboplast and I have found it to be quite transparent. I always reverse paint them.

 

[randyrls]

Lee; Ceblo is not very translucent, but I make it a habit to reverse paint ALL synthetic materials.

My worst problem is drilling these blanks, so glad to hear you didn't have this problem.

 

[panamag8or]

Lee; Ceblo is not very translucent, but I make it a habit to reverse paint ALL synthetic materials.

My worst problem is drilling these blanks, so glad to hear you didn't have this problem.

I was super careful while drilling... plenty of water spritzing and cool-down time allowed. I'll be honest, though... I used a 10mm instead of the 25/64. Funny thing is, that hole is a perfect fit.
It's the required 15/32 that's a little big... next time, I'll go with the 29/64 that Exotics recommends.

So, seeing as how I want the blank to pop, I suppose I should use a light paint.

 

[JohnU]

I would try to pick a medium tone to the blank, but that's just me. I find when I reverse paint with lighter colors, it changes the constant color of the blank from thin areas to thicker areas. I like to try and keep the constant color and not to show the inner paint color showing through the thin areas. Also, if your tubes are a little loose, reverse paint the hole and paint the tubes. That will help take up some of the slack. When I drill cebloplast, I start with a bit about a quarter inch smaller than the finished hole and drill a pilot hole, then step up to the finished size. It doesn't get as hot on the second drilling and if you melt some in the first hole, its still smaller than what you need and not ruined. I'm sure you will get plenty of advice from others on this also. Good luck!

 

[SteveG]

The drilling technique described by JohnU (Post 5) is the same that I use on Cebloplast. It works well. I do not use cooling water, and rarely loose a blank when drilling. Of course, dull bits are the only way to go. (Are you paying attention???:wink Yes, SHARP bits are the only way to go.:biggrin:

 

[randyrls]

I was super careful while drilling... plenty of water spritzing and cool-down time allowed. I'll be honest, though... I used a 10mm instead of the 25/64. Funny thing is, that hole is a perfect fit.
It's the required 15/32 that's a little big... next time, I'll go with the 29/64 that Exotics recommends.

Lee; I always drill a new pen kit undersize, then write the correct drill size on the instructions that go in the kit binder. I sometimes use different bits for wood and acrylic. I like tubes to be a close slip fit. The kit manufacturers specs state the closest COMMON size of bit, but not always the closest fit. I even have some "odd-ball" bit sizes like 11.70mm and 13.3mm. MSC has metric bits in mm.xx sizes

 

[butchf18a]

Very!! Have turned numerous Cebloplast, all required reverse painting tubes. Lathe drill, slow, water with dish soap for cooling and lube. Spray bit with Pam. Works well for me.

 

[panamag8or]

Wow, turning this stuff was no fun. I had a freshly sharpened carbide tool and ran the lathe fast. It felt like I was just redistributing melted material back and forth. I ended up spraying the blank with water to keep it cool in between passes.

HOWEVER... the finished pen is amazing! I'll post it in SOYP, when I get a good pic. I ended up painting the tube/blank with a matte silver, and that did well.

 

[Jim Burr]

Oooo...I love silver for tubes and reversing...most of the time, it really pops the color!!

 

[panamag8or]

Posted in SOYP...

 

[MarkD]

So did you end up reverse painting the blank? If so what color?
Sorry, just noticed that you did say " I ended up painting the tube/blank with a matte silver, and that did well."