New AA blanks from BB

[Julie]

Has anyone tried the AA pen blanks from BB? I bought some mandrine Orange blanks and proceeded to get them ready to make a pen.. Well, when I drilled it had a melt down... It deformed. then on the other one , it melted a little and now the hole is to large for the 10mm brass tube. Also what glue do you use???

I only have one left and I need to make this pen soon.... Clemson Fans love their ORANGE

Also any tips on turning and finishing, hopefully I'll get
that far... [8D]

THanks

 

[Scott]

Hi Julie,

I haven't tried any of the new ones, but if it's the same composition as the old ones I know what it's like! I drill very carefully, no more than about a quarter of an inch at a time, then retract the drill bit. I even keep a squirt bottle of water around to keep things lubricated and cool. I hope this works for you, because I really want to see your Clemson pen!

Scott.

 

[YoYoSpin]

Try using the new orange dye carried by Crafts Supply. Its alcohol based so it won't raise the grain, and can be applied after sanding.

best regards,
Ed D.

 

[Julie]

How about turning these blanks and finishing them.
Any tricks??

thanks [][8D]

 

[timdaleiden]

Originally posted by Julie
<br />How about turning these blanks and finishing them.
Any tricks??

thanks [][8D]

I have done some acrylic pens, and it is a lot different than wood.

Number one thing, be careful when roughing them down. There may be a lot of chips flying off that could end up in your eyes. Wear eye protection. I made a shield that protects me. For shaping them, I used the back side of my chisels, to avoid mini blow outs. For finishing, I used small wet sanding pads I got from craft supplies, they go down to 12,000 grit, just like MM. I then polished them on the lathe with some auto finish swirl,scratch remover. Good luck, and be careful.

 

[Scott]

Hi Julie,

I do mine about the same as Tim. I use lighter cuts than I do on wood. It has a tendancy to come off in strings, which looks real neat at first, then you realize they are annoying! ;-)

I sand pretty much the same as I do any other pen. Because it's acrylic, you can wet sand with water if you wish, but I don't. I go all the way through the Micro Mesh, then finish off with HUT Ultra Gloss, which is a polishing compound, like Novus, etc. That's it, no finish needed. I do top it off with Rennaissance wax after I assemble the pen.

Good Luck!

Scott.

 

[Julie]

Thanks guys for you help.
I'll post the pic when its complete...

 

[timdaleiden]

Originally posted by Julie
<br />Thanks guys for you help.
I'll post the pic when its complete...

It looks like you did a really nice job with those very brightly colored blanks. Thanks for posting the picture.