cwasil
Member
For so long I've been wanting to buff all the blanks I turned down thinking that it would be the magic cure for small finishing marks, light swirls, etc. I got Boones MT#2 setup (extremely fast I might add)for my jet and went out and bought $7.00 wool paint rollers from Menards and gave it go last night buffing every blank I could get my hands on. I found some interesting things and, as usual, I want to see if experienced folks have seen the same things or if I'm doing something wrong.
Polyester resin - I go to MM12000 and then use Hut's plastic polish. My finished blanks look pretty good although if you get them in the right light and have really good eyesight you can see the faintest of scratching. After buffing (brown & white compound & Ren wax) it looked a little better but you could still see some of that faint scratching. For the extra amount of work I did not really see the reward in buffing PR. To me it's just an added step with little value (assuming I'm buffing correctly)
Wood - On all wood blanks my finish is MM12000 and then Behlens. The problem with Behlens is, being a friction finish, you have these little swirls that are noticable in good light. There not necessarily small either...one of those things that if you know what you're looking for, you'll see them. What I noticed, after buffing, is this, buffing knocks down the swirl marks to where it looks like the PR swirl marks...hard to see in good light only. I'm leery about buffing these also because the thickness of the friction finish can't be very much and I'd hate to go through it into the wood. I also noticed that buffing seemed to have a much better effect on darker woods rather than lighter. I did a cocobolo, afzelia burl and ebony blank and they looked alot better than the holly and maple that were also done. Just a trick on the eye I suppose.
In conclusion, my brief first step in the buffing world has led me to this...don't bother with PR (if you go to MM12000 and Hut's plastic polish). Everyone has their own wood finish as I've read about 100 different ways people finish this but I would say it has some value to dark woods, it brings out the depth and, possibly, chatoyance in it.
Disclaimer: I'm not a perfectionist. I enjoy making nice looking pens but am not willing to spend 2-3 hours on the same pen. I figure I'm somewhere between a craftsman and a production worker as I try to make each pen a piece of art but feel that if I'm the only one that can see the minor flaws (I'm sure you folks could see them too)then that's something I feel comfortable giving to friends and family or selling to customers.
Buffing adds value to each pen, it's just how much time vs. how much value that everyone needs to answer.
Polyester resin - I go to MM12000 and then use Hut's plastic polish. My finished blanks look pretty good although if you get them in the right light and have really good eyesight you can see the faintest of scratching. After buffing (brown & white compound & Ren wax) it looked a little better but you could still see some of that faint scratching. For the extra amount of work I did not really see the reward in buffing PR. To me it's just an added step with little value (assuming I'm buffing correctly)
Wood - On all wood blanks my finish is MM12000 and then Behlens. The problem with Behlens is, being a friction finish, you have these little swirls that are noticable in good light. There not necessarily small either...one of those things that if you know what you're looking for, you'll see them. What I noticed, after buffing, is this, buffing knocks down the swirl marks to where it looks like the PR swirl marks...hard to see in good light only. I'm leery about buffing these also because the thickness of the friction finish can't be very much and I'd hate to go through it into the wood. I also noticed that buffing seemed to have a much better effect on darker woods rather than lighter. I did a cocobolo, afzelia burl and ebony blank and they looked alot better than the holly and maple that were also done. Just a trick on the eye I suppose.
In conclusion, my brief first step in the buffing world has led me to this...don't bother with PR (if you go to MM12000 and Hut's plastic polish). Everyone has their own wood finish as I've read about 100 different ways people finish this but I would say it has some value to dark woods, it brings out the depth and, possibly, chatoyance in it.
Disclaimer: I'm not a perfectionist. I enjoy making nice looking pens but am not willing to spend 2-3 hours on the same pen. I figure I'm somewhere between a craftsman and a production worker as I try to make each pen a piece of art but feel that if I'm the only one that can see the minor flaws (I'm sure you folks could see them too)then that's something I feel comfortable giving to friends and family or selling to customers.
Buffing adds value to each pen, it's just how much time vs. how much value that everyone needs to answer.