Andy
Just because you asked.
I have a few videos on YouTube. The first one is 20 years of pen making. One from the AAW and a few on finishing techniques. Feel free to view them all. Goal is to catch Ed someday on quality videos.
Hey Mark. I've been a subscriber to your channel for a while now. I learned about GB watching the demo you did at one of the turners assn meetings. I basically follow your method but I'm lazy and also got sick of the mess that the m mesh made so I tried using the EE. Been happy with it so far. Funny thing is I sometimes forget which one you start with (orange or blue) as evidenced by the fact that I now realize I don't start with orange. I usually start with blue like you taught me.
I notice in this video you aren't using the steel wool between the orange and blue like I think you did in the video I saw. Saves another step. Glad to see Rockler carries it now. Still experimenting with the dye I got with my first order. Doesn't seem to bring out the chatoyance like it does with water based dye under the GB.
Thanks for the definitive answer on painting the blank vs the tube, although a full 16th scares me. If I need to I use a little flapper piece of sandpaper on a dowel just to the point where the tube will slip through the blank without getting stuck before adding the glue. There seems to be some variation of a few thousandths in the tube size depending on the manufacturer.
For better vids might i suggest using a camera or lens that doesn't give you that fisheye look as well as better lighting and a few close-ups. In your acrylic vid with your black shirt on you can't really see the difference in the 2 purple pens. You can grab a couple of 1080p USB webcams for less than $20 on Amazon then you can use your computer as a monitor so you can see what's happening as you film it. I used one when I made this vid.
I use one thin coat of orange GB on pens before I laser engrave then as it seems to give a sharper image, then go back and use the blue until I can't feel it and then the orange.