I Made Fire!

[jkeithrussell]

Remember the scene from Castaway where Tom Hanks finally got a fire going and he danced around yelling "I made fire!" That's about how I feel after my HF pressure pot has been sitting on 55 pounds of pressure for the past 16 hours. It took me the better part of 2 full days to get it right. Now I just have to figure out how to use it.

 

[GouletPens]

Haha..I thought with the title of your thread you meant you ACTUALLY made fire! There are certainly ways to do it with the heat and high temps that the casting materials get....I'm a little disappointed but still congrats on the pot :wink:

 

[workinforwood]

I have to agree with Brian 100%. I was waiting for the story of either fire colored blanks, or blanks on fire...and hate to admit was looking forward to hearing about the latter!

 

[jkeithrussell]

I'll do some casting tonight -- maybe I'll get an explosion to provide better entertainment.

I'm so excited to have finally conquered the pressure pot that I may never release the pressure. It's been holding steady at 55 pounds since yesterday afternoon.

 

[ed4copies]

You'll find if you drill a 10" peppermill with a rather dull forstner................................

About 2/3 of the way through, the sawdust will start on fire when it comes out.

VERY EXCITING!!! And, it will keep everyone tuned in for your next "continuing adventure"!!


Glad to hear your pot is doing better!!!

 

[PTownSubbie]

Keith,

I am glad you didn't give up. How did you conquer it?

What did you remove?

 

[rlofton]

My HF pressure pot has gone from 45 to 55 this afternoon. Think I ought to get it out of the sun?

 

[jkeithrussell]

Keith,

I am glad you didn't give up. How did you conquer it?

What did you remove?

I stripped it down to the bare lid three separate times. The last time, I replaced the shut-off valve and used as much teflon tape as I could get on the threads and still get the pieces to turn. I think there was a pin-hole type leak somewhere on the shut-off valve itself. Close to 24 hours now and it hasn't lost an ounce of pressure. The regulator does not agree 100% with the regulator on my compressor (it's off by about 2 pounds), but otherwise everything is great. I'm going to try it out tonight on a PR casting.

 

[jkeithrussell]

First batch of PR blanks cured under pressure was completed yesterday. The blanks are noticeably more dense and drilled and turned a whole let better than previous attempts without pressure. BUT, I still have pinholes -- a lot of them. I'm starting to see why people just buy their PR and Alumilite blanks from others who have already spent a fortune figuring it out. I've gone through about 2/3 of a gallon of PR and don't have a single pen to show for it. (boo hoo).

 

[ed4copies]

Would it be rude to suggest "exoticblanks.com"???

 

[Rollerbob]

Would it be rude to suggest "exoticblanks.com"???

I certainly don't think it is rude............heard they are making some really nice stuff.:wink: The lady that runs the place is real pleasant to work with but I understand her live in can be a bit of a pill!:biggrin:

 

[jkeithrussell]

Would it be rude to suggest "exoticblanks.com"???

You know I've bought blanks from Dawn, and will continue to do so -- even if I figure out how to make them myself!

 

[Paul in OKC]

I have to agree with Brian 100%. I was waiting for the story of either fire colored blanks, or blanks on fire...and hate to admit was looking forward to hearing about the latter!

Me too. (sadistic bunch, aren't we!)

 

[glycerine]

Are you guys saying that the PR poured in a normal environment will not turn well? I poured a few blanks several days ago to try out. No air bubbles that I can see, they cut well on the bandsaw and sanded well, but I haven't turned them yet...
Am I in for a surprise???

 

[cnirenberg]

Would it be rude to suggest "exoticblanks.com"???

Yeah, this is beginning to ring true in my world. I thought I was a pill.........

 

[jkeithrussell]

Are you guys saying that the PR poured in a normal environment will not turn well? I poured a few blanks several days ago to try out. No air bubbles that I can see, they cut well on the bandsaw and sanded well, but I haven't turned them yet...
Am I in for a surprise???

I wish I knew. Let us know how it comes out.

 

[ed4copies]

There are few guarantees in "the early life of PR Pourer"!

Different combinations of temp, humidity and luck will make your turninig experience different from time to time. I turned resins for 12 years before Dawn started making PR, so all her early stuff was "turnable" to me. But, I sure like the technique she uses NOW better than the early tries.

It really is NOT a science to her, she sticks a popsicle stick in sometimes and makes judgements on the next step, based on prior failures. But, for HER, this is FUN and so far, I have been able to make them into pens for our shows, if they fail for "exotics".:biggrin::biggrin:

Also we have used at least three different manufacturers - each one turns a little "uniquely" to itself. :redface:

So many variables, keep good records (at least mentally-that's what she does).

Good pouring!!! As you run out of the first 55 gallons, it does become more predictable :bananen_smilies022::bananen_smilies022:

 

[glycerine]

I wish I knew. Let us know how it comes out.

Well, I turned them last night. It went ok. To be safe, I sanded them down first on the belt sander to get them close to size. I DID have alot of chipping when I first started turning with the gouge, but then I altered the angle and did better. Then switched over to the skew and scraped a bit. Then I took the rest off with sandpaper. I was very careful with this one because it's for a birthday present for a friend on Sunday.
The PR that I have is the "Casting Craft" I think it's called that I picked up from Michael's. I'd say it turned well, but when it chipped, it chipped alot more than the acrylic balnks that I buy commercially. Being my first time, I'm sure things will improve for me.

 

[Bree]

I have been very reluctant to dive into casting. I would like to be able to pressure stabilize punky blanks. I would also love to be able to make the kind of cool blanks that I see here but I figure that it is going to cost at least a couple hundred dollars to get started and probably $2 a pop once I am started... not counting learning curve losses! The cost to buy from people who have good equipment and know what they are doing is not all that much more. So I am more inclined to buy than cast.

 

[GouletPens]

I have been very reluctant to dive into casting. I would like to be able to pressure stabilize punky blanks. I would also love to be able to make the kind of cool blanks that I see here but I figure that it is going to cost at least a couple hundred dollars to get started and probably $2 a pop once I am started... not counting learning curve losses! The cost to buy from people who have good equipment and know what they are doing is not all that much more. So I am more inclined to buy than cast.

The best way to stabilize is with vacuum, not pressure. I agree with you that if you have a way to get stuff stabilized, which shouldn't be all that hard to find someone on here who can do it with Ultraseal with satisfactory results, it's not really worth messing with yourself unless you're doing significant quantities.