CA and those flat strips of plastic

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Firefyter-emt

Firefyter-emt

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Putnam, Connecticut, USA.
OK, I am bad, I have had these flat strips of milky whiet plastic for CA application for months now and I have not even tried them yet... Until now! I am now kicking my self for letting them sit so long! They are awesome, I have not had much luck getting a good film thickness with the CA/BLO method (Yea, I have seen the videos...) I have had good luck with straight CA, but the "rings" were hard to stop on my lathe. Well, no more.. These flat strips which for the life of me, can not even remember who I got them from, make ALL the diffrence in the world! I think that I can almost buff the blanks without sanding them with this method, yet I have a great film thickness! The CA is almost 95% glass flat with almost no effort.

Please, step up Mr. Flat strip vendor so I can thank you again!
 
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delrin are what they are made of .... and I use them all the time. going to have to order a few more as I get tired of cleaning them but the CA does not stick to them at all.
 
You know, I think I did buy them from Joe... I kind of remember wishing I had seen the post for his mandrels because I bought one later on!

Ligget, these would be a poor choice because the CA does not stick to them! [:D]

But yes, they are the Derlin strips and I HIGHLY recomend them. They float straight CA on with almost no lines or blemishes. The thing I like is the film build with the straight CA. I always burned thru the BLO/CA method when it came time to make it like wet glass.
 
I have some thin UHMW strips that I used a few times, and it works like delrin strips. They do OK for me and I use less CA than with paper towels. I think that there is a change in the CA curing when using the strips versus paper towel. Friction (and maybe another reason) from Paper towels seem to help in "catalyzing" the CA, where as the strips just let it "air dry" so to speak.

On straight pens (mostly slimlines), I do this often. But with others, I use paper towels on occasion and sometimes I use my finger in a rubber glove, which to me gives a finer feel in the CA application stage.
 
Yea, I do notice that I use very little CA like this too. I apply a line about 3mm wide along the edge on the strip and then just float it onto the blank. It's almost like you can not "mess up" the finish like this, it's pretty cool. Combine this with the sander jig I made and putting the CA on without bushings between centers I have solved pretty much all my problems with the CA finish!
 
I've taken to applying CA with my right index finger. No BLO. No Delrin strip. No papertowels. Just two drops of CA, dripped on the piece and smeared on with my finger with the lathe off. I then reach around with my left hand and turn the lathe on, while my right hand is going back and forth over the piece. I keep up this motion till I feel the CA beginning to pull against my finger. Then I stop. I go watch TV for a minute or get a soda, come back, sand a little, and then do another coat. So far so good. I'm liking this NoBLO method, since there's no way for the BLO to get trapped between layers of the CA and cause a hazy spot.

I'm also cleaning with a light touch of Denatured Alcohol to remove surface dust. I'm not using very much DNA because it can soak into the wood and cause it to swell a little. The swollen part then gets sanded off and then when the DNA evaporates you get a little dip in the wood's shape. At least that's my theory for why this Holly Pen I did had a flat area.
 
Hi guys! I don't spend too much in front of the screen right now because of the eye problems I'm having. In a couple of months, hopefully, this will all be behind me.

Anyway, I do have the 1"x4" Delrin strips on my website. They're 10 strips for $3.00 and if that's the only thing you purchase, postage is 41¢. (if you pay more on Paypal, I refund the difference).

If you have more questions, just PM me.
 
Hey Firefyter-emt - You now have me wondering about the "sanding" jig you made reference to.... Do you have any details that you are willing to share? Also you mentioned putting on the CA with no bushings between center - Do you do one barrel and a time?

Thanks for sharing your expierences.
 
Yes, I mostly turn all my pens between a dead center and the live center in the tailstock. I have found that this pretty much ended any "mandrel whip" or bent mandrels. I also like the fact that it takes me like 2 seconds to remove the blank so I can measure it with calipers. To turn the pen, I use the proper bushings held between centers. Once properly sanded, I then turn the other half. (BTW, a great tip for all is when you make a pen, mark inside the tube with a sharpie where the ends match. This will survive the bushings and stop the problem of mixing up the wood grain.)

Once it is time to apply the CA I carefully hold the pen between centers without the bushings. I do not wax the centers because I do not want to take the chance of the wax getting to the blank. There are no problems with it sticking because it's only touching to a small point. Right now I have found that straight CA applied with the Derlin strips work awesome. I run a small line on the strip and apply it from the bottom of the blank and then let the lathe run for about a minute. I am not getting any "lines" or "drips" this way. I apply about 3 coats and then wet sand with 400 followed by cleanning with DNA. If all looks good at this point, I will give it 2 more and polish. If I have any imperfections I will add 3 more coats, 400 wet sand and then add the 2 last coats.

Now the sanding jig was started out in a post by Julia a few days ago and I took it a couple steps in another direction. I have since changed it a bit again.. The pdf file can be downloaded here www.yankeetoys.org/lee/pen-mill.pdf
It works awesome to just knock down the CA on the edge prior to final sanding (which by the way is done with the bushings on the blank) Plus, it can end mill kits like the Gent and El-Toro that is too big for a normal pen mill.

Here is my latest version built from Hickory with a spare mandrel. [:D]

815071.jpg

815072.jpg
 
I read the original post about the white strips of Delrin... didn't get in on the trial, but noted the thread.... I have found the thin foam sheet that coms packed around computers and other electronics to work very well to apply CA... I cut it into 1/2 to 3/4 wide strips about 2 inches long and then fold and use the creased edge.. glue doesn't appear to stick to the foam and it's relatively cheap... and since I have saved it for a couple of years, probably have about 1/2 an acre of the stuff stashed in my shop. Don't have to clean it, and it's soft and won't scratch or mar the wood. I also use it to apply BLO... same as you guys use the delrin strip... a drop or two and touch under the blank, gently rub back and forth the length of the blank... I haven't actually used it on pens, but did a bang up job on the last batch of game calls I did.. about 25 of them.
 
Lee - on your sanding jig, how do you make sure the face of the jig (where the sandpaper is mounted) is exactly perpendicular to the mandrel? I can't seem to ge things cut at a real right angle to save me. Of course, it would help if I'd bit the bullet and by some proper power tools! I have a lathe, a hand-held drill, a really cheap Harbor Freight drill press (which I don't use) and a bunch of hand saws and a miter box.
 
Just to recap an e-mail to Julia for everyone else. I drilled the hole first and mounted the square block onto the pen mill. I turned the block to while centered on the mandrel. Think how a pen blank turns if the hole is off center, the turning will center itself. On mine, the fit to the nut on the mandrel is the main thing that lines it up. As long as the face is flat (check with a ruler accross the surface) all will work good.

I am also playing with one made from steel or brass on my metal lathe. This would have a metal turned morse taper and a 1/4-20 threadded hole for a mandrel to screw into. This way if it gets dropped it's easily replaced, plus it will be easier to replace the sandpaper.
 
Well Lee, You are very accurate with your description of the little strips. I got mine today and just had to try them out.

I grabbed a scrap blank and put a few drops of medium CA on the strip and presto... a nice even, smooth coat of CA. I let it dry and put on a little heavier coat just to see if I would get the standard "ridges" normally associated with a coat of medium CA but again, a smooth layer which almost didn't need sanding.

I can see right now my shop won't be cluttered with little strips of CA soaked paper towels anymore. I think everyone using paper towels owes it to themselves to give these things a try. All they are going to be out is a dollar for strips and a postage stamp.

George
 
Mostly one pass, but back and forth, heck I can even just drop right in and "dab" in a thin spot and remove what looks too heavy and it still flattens out just fine.

Tell you what, unless it goes nuts, if someone wants to try one send me a PM and I will mail one out to you. ( I seem to have a few..) If you like them, then go buy a set from Joe.. (and I have no affiliation with Joe, I just love how good these work)
 
Well, just ordered mine and some other plastics for laminates. Looking forward to this as I am having some trouble getting motivated to get my CA finish perfected since my first rounds with BLO and such yielded mediocre results. I was able to take them to the buffer and get a good surface running through tripoli and white diamond, but it took extra time I dont have. Good thing it was a test pen.

Kirby
 
I will be trying this out in a day or so. I am going to try the 220 grit sandpaper/slurry method to seal the pores. Then sand to 12k with Micro Mesh, then float the ca on...I guess you dont need to sand between coats?

On the Stablized stuff, I was thinking 2 coats of mylands sanding sealer would fill the pores.

How does this sound for technique?

Kirby
 
You can go either way. I had some crib dam oak that just WOULD NOT take CA no matter what I did to it. Very strange, but it would "walk away" in areas even after a sanding slurry was done. I had to spray lacquer on that one??? Oh well... If the CA looks good you can add a coat or two before sanding. This will not give you a mirror flat finish untill it's sanded. I found that 3 coats followed by wet sanding with 800 until "just about" all the imperfections are gone followed by hand spot sanding to remove the rest works great. If you burn thru just add a couple more coats and repeat. If it looks "perfect", I add one more coat at this point and once dry I wet sand with 1000 to smooth and then up thru the first 5 MM steps. I use a 3M auto compound which will bring it out like glass from there.
 
I tried the stabilized dyed BEB last night and took it to the buffer after 2 coats of sanding sealer. The results were glossy, but still has ripples in the surface due to the wood. Soooo, I am going to try this tonight for sure on it. However, there is a couple of coats of sanding sealer now underneath and a glossy surface. So I wonder if I should rough it up a bit with some 1000 grit MM before CA finish?

Kirby
 
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