EEE Ultrashine vs MicroMesh on CA finish?

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patmurris

patmurris

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I'm rather new to pen turning and only started to get decent results with my CA finish recently.

So far, i've mostly used wet MM up to 12K after applying at least ten coats of thin CA, then buffing. But it occurred to me that Ubeaut EEE Ultrashine could do the job as well as MM and as far as i can tell it does work rather well and is very quick to apply. Still buffing after that. Here is one i did like that (HRB on a Vertex RB):

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The only issue i've had on some pens is that the EEE compound tends to gather in any small pit leaving tiny white spots if the surface is not perfectly smooth - with some cracked burls for instance.

What do you think?

Thanks for your comments and suggestions. :smile:
 
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my only thought is that the EEE is a cutting paste and wax combo, so it
depends on what you're going to do for a finish. If you use it after the
12.000 micromesh, you're cutting back the gloss. But a wax fills in scratches
(and tiny holes, as you mention) .. but that is temporary. That's why you
need to keep replacing the wax.
I like the EEE for other turnings, but not really for pens. That's just me.
 
I am still learning how to do a CA finish, so I understand what you are dealing with. I believe the white you are seeing in the cracks is actually dust from sanding the CA as it polishes out. The same stuff that gets on the MM gets packed into those little holes and cracks. Try using a soft paintbrush in between levels of MM to get it out of the holes and cracks. I hope that makes sense. Initially, I thought it was the wax I was using.
 
I've never used teh EEE, but what I do is make sure there are no cracks or pits to collect white debris. I put on enough CA so I can sand all of them out with my first grit. If the pits/cracks in the wood are non-trivial, I use Russ Fairfields technique of wet sanding with med CA to fill them, re-turn just enough to get smooth, then proceed with the finish.

I just hate those little white dots.
 
Dennis,

Thanks for the tips. My first experience with those tiny holes was making a pen out of wormy maple, I would never suggest that wood for someone learning how to use CA (someone please learn from my mistake). You never realize how many little worms go through that maple until you have to clean out every hole they make.
 
Thank you for your comments. I understand the best is to have no cracks or pits at all before applying the CA and that can be fixed in various ways - sanding filler, RF 'wet' sanding with CA...

My question here is to determine whether using EEE instead of MM for polishing the CA finish is a good idea. Based on my short experience it seems OK and much faster, but i'm curious to know if any of you tried it, or if there are any obvious incompatibilities i'm not aware of.
 
If you are buffing... you are wasting your time with the MM. You should only need to sand through 400-600 grit and then to the wheels.:wink:
 
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