Buffing ?

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NO. Think of a buffing wheel as nothing more than very very fine sanding, which actually is what you are doing.

Tripoli is an abrasive and you apply it to the wheel to give the wheel some grit. Once you buff the pen with tripoli move over to another seperate wheel and load it whit "White Diamond" compound which is just another finer grit abrasive. Once you have buffed the blank with both the courser tripoli then the finer white diamond you will see a nice shine which you can wax if you choose but it's not necessary.
 
1 wheel for TRIPOLI
2nd wheel for WHITE DYMOND
3rd wheel for CARNUABA
-sequence must be followed in this order and your end result = 1 shiny pen



200822205644_PC230003.jpg
 
I don't worry about a wheel or carnuba wax, just buff with tripoli, then white diamond while still on the mandrel (loosen the retaining nut a little so the blanks can spin), then put the mandrel back in the lathe (tighten the nut) and apply a tiny bit of ren wax or tsp to the buffed wood at low speed, wait 30 seconds so it can haze, then crank the speed up to max and buff off with a clean paper towel or soft cloth.

Pure carnuba wax is so hard it can only be applied to a pen after being heated by friction, either of wax bar on wheel, then transfered to pen, or by bar on pen, which is then buffed with a clean wheel to remove excess. Ren wax on the other hand is soft enought to apply at room temp, and uses a chemical reaction on exposure to air to cure into a harder coat. That's why it smells like solvent. Don't know how TSP works, I'm too cheap to pay $17 an oz for it. Neither is a permenant coating and will wear away in time unless reapplied, allowing air and body oils to penetrate the wood and discolor it. On ivory, bone or antler this is called patina. On wood it is usually just called dirty. YMMV
 
Andrew,
Depending on the size of your buffing wheels and the speed of your grinder it pays to be extremely careful when buffing.
Here are some examples:
3450 rpm grinder- 8" wheel speed is 82 mph at the grinding/buffing surface- 6" wheel 61 mph- 4" wheel 41 mph
1725 rpm grinder- 8" wheel 41 mph- 6" wheel 30.5 mph- 4" wheel 20.5 mph
As you can see you need to use a 4" wheel on a high speed grinder to get the same surface speed as an 8" wheel on a slow speed grinder.
Getting hit with a mandrel coming off the wheel at 82 mph would not be a good thing. Make sure you use safety precautions when using the grinder/buffer.
 
Originally posted by tas2181

Andrew,
Depending on the size of your buffing wheels and the speed of your grinder it pays to be extremely careful when buffing.
Here are some examples:
3450 rpm grinder- 8" wheel speed is 82 mph at the grinding/buffing surface- 6" wheel 61 mph- 4" wheel 41 mph
1725 rpm grinder- 8" wheel 41 mph- 6" wheel 30.5 mph- 4" wheel 20.5 mph
As you can see you need to use a 4" wheel on a high speed grinder to get the same surface speed as an 8" wheel on a slow speed grinder.
Getting hit with a mandrel coming off the wheel at 82 mph would not be a good thing. Make sure you use safety precautions when using the grinder/buffer.
Click to expand...
I may have missed something, but my buffing wheels that I use on the lathe and I think my grinding wheels on the grinder both turn towards me... whenever I lose the piece I'm buffing, which I've done often, it always goes behind the lather or under it.. after I've made my usual comments and statements,[:I][:I], I have to get down on my knees and climb around the lathe stand and try to find my turning in the sawdust behind the lathe.:(
You do want to watch your fingers too.. sometimes the get slammed into the ways on the lathe or in the case of the grinder maybe into the table... dahikt
 
Chuck,
You are right about the place the the piece you are working on usually ends up- I was just trying to emphasize that precautions should be taken and the speeds involved are quite extreme especially when using a higher speed grinder.
 
Aderhammer, let me say from the outset that I haven't turned any acrylic pens yet and haven't used buffing wheels yet (waiting on both to arrive)

However, I was watching a video on turning a Sierra by Ed Davidson (in the IAP library) and he only buffs with Tripoli, then White Diamond. No Carnauba is used by him.

Great video, I learned a lot from it, thank you Ed[^]
 
FWIW, I use buuffing wheel arbors and hold them in my 12" Craftsman drill press. In fact, I have even taken off the handles because it's the only time I ever use that drill! It is nice to have the five speed ranges!

Personaly, I would not want to place a pen that I just finished on a 3450 rpm grinder / buffer.
 
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