Got the decal edges to be invisible but depressed.

[Edward Cypher]

Depressed! Made 5 shimlines with decals just to see if I could completely hide the decal edges. That went well they are invisible even in bright sunlight. But every pen cracked a few days later at the nib or clip end. I used enameled parts, wondering if the added color thickness could be the problem as the press fit did not seem all that tight. They were end sanded with Rick H's sanding devise from IAP and I used a rat tail file to clean the inside of the tube and a gun chamfer for each end. The two I did with regular gold plating did not crack. Any thoughts are welcome. Once again the real test was to see if the decal could be hidden and that worked but the cracked pens are very frustrating.

Any comments and critiques are welcome that is the only way to get better. Thanks in advance.

Please note none of these are for sale they are just tests.


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[magpens]

Congratulations on your decal success !!!!!

 

[TonyL]

can't help u with the cracking ...sometimes the CA accumulated off of the barrel ends. I often re-sand lightly using Rick's system and 180 grit disk sand paper.

Would u be willing to share how you hid the decal lines? Very well done!

 

[Edward Cypher]

Tony L this is what I did.

I dry sanded to 320 then sprayed Crystal Clear Acrylic 3 coats, let cure for about a week then placed decal (waterslide) let cure for another few days then 3 more coats of acrylic spray. Let it cure for 3 days and then did the typical CA finish, sanded with MM all the way using briwax instead of water. Water tends to get in to the wood from the ends and you end up with that ugly white cloud. Someone said use wax to avoid this and cut down on sanding dust and it does work.

can't help u with the cracking ...sometimes the CA accumulated off of the barrel ends. I often re-sand lightly using Rick's system and 180 grit disk sand paper.

Would u be willing to share how you hid the decal lines? Very well done!

 

[magpens]

Depressed! Made 5 shimlines with decals just to see if I could completely hide the decal edges. That went well they are invisible even in bright sunlight. But every pen cracked a few days later at the nib or clip end. I used enameled parts, wondering if the added color thickness could be the problem as the press fit did not seem all that tight. They were end sanded with Rick H's sanding devise from IAP and I used a rat tail file to clean the inside of the tube and a gun chamfer for each end. The two I did with regular gold plating did not crack. Any thoughts are welcome.

I also have had blank cracking problems after assembly and I also have attributed it to the extra plating thickness on some component sets.

I bought a set of adjustable reamers and now routinely ream out the brass tube ends just before assembly (you have to be careful to not scratch your nicely finished blank, or you could do the reaming before the finishing process). It takes a bit of practice to ream out the "right" amount. But even if you ream out a little too much, you can always epoxy the nib and finial into the tube ends.

I have had no end cracking problems since I started doing this.

 

[wouldentu2?]

Slimline have a very thin portion of wood at the ends that might not resist the part being pressed into the blank and the CA is rather brittle.

 

[TonyL]

Thank you Ed.

 

[Edward Cypher]

Adjustable reamers??

Where do you get adjustable reamers??

Depressed! Made 5 shimlines with decals just to see if I could completely hide the decal edges. That went well they are invisible even in bright sunlight. But every pen cracked a few days later at the nib or clip end. I used enameled parts, wondering if the added color thickness could be the problem as the press fit did not seem all that tight. They were end sanded with Rick H's sanding devise from IAP and I used a rat tail file to clean the inside of the tube and a gun chamfer for each end. The two I did with regular gold plating did not crack. Any thoughts are welcome.

I also have had blank cracking problems after assembly and I also have attributed it to the extra plating thickness on some component sets.

I bought a set of adjustable reamers and now routinely ream out the brass tube ends just before assembly (you have to be careful to not scratch your nicely finished blank, or you could do the reaming before the finishing process). It takes a bit of practice to ream out the "right" amount. But even if you ream out a little too much, you can always epoxy the nib and finial into the tube ends.

I have had no end cracking problems since I started doing this.

 

[lwalper]

I also have had blank cracking problems after assembly and I also have attributed it to the extra plating thickness on some component sets.

I bought a set of adjustable reamers and now routinely ream out the brass tube ends just before assembly (you have to be careful to not scratch your nicely finished blank, or you could do the reaming before the finishing process). It takes a bit of practice to ream out the "right" amount. But even if you ream out a little too much, you can always epoxy the nib and finial into the tube ends.

I have had no end cracking problems since I started doing this.

I've been using sandpaper inside the tubes. Use an appropriately sized drill bit in the headstock with a short wrap of 240 grit paper. In just a few seconds you can take out the couple of thousandths of an inch needed for a nice loose press fit. If there's any stray glue in the tube it will get that out too. A dab of CA on the part will hold it securely in the tube -- and no more splitting.

 

[magpens]

I bought my adjustable reamers (in Canada) at Busy Bee Tools:

Buy Adjustable Blade Reamer Set Of 7pcs at Busy Bee Tools

KBC Tools (in Canada) also has them.

I would think Harbor Freight and/or Grizzly would have them.

If you are stuck, I can buy you a set and ship them to you. Let me know.

Where do you get adjustable reamers??

Depressed! Made 5 shimlines with decals just to see if I could completely hide the decal edges. That went well they are invisible even in bright sunlight. But every pen cracked a few days later at the nib or clip end. I used enameled parts, wondering if the added color thickness could be the problem as the press fit did not seem all that tight. They were end sanded with Rick H's sanding devise from IAP and I used a rat tail file to clean the inside of the tube and a gun chamfer for each end. The two I did with regular gold plating did not crack. Any thoughts are welcome.

I also have had blank cracking problems after assembly and I also have attributed it to the extra plating thickness on some component sets.

I bought a set of adjustable reamers and now routinely ream out the brass tube ends just before assembly (you have to be careful to not scratch your nicely finished blank, or you could do the reaming before the finishing process). It takes a bit of practice to ream out the "right" amount. But even if you ream out a little too much, you can always epoxy the nib and finial into the tube ends.

I have had no end cracking problems since I started doing this.

 

[OZturner]

Great Concept Edward,
Shame about the Splitting, sounds like you have received some excellent suggestions to overcome it.
Please keep us informed on your progress.
Regards,
Brian.