Not shiny

[qquake]

I have a friend who prefers satin finish pens. I've made him a couple that I dulled with steel wool, that he was very happy with. I decided to make the ultimate not shiny pen for him. It was a fun experiment, but didn't turn out as I had envisioned. I didn't polish it at all, just dry sanded it with 100 grit. I also tried sanding the chrome parts with 220. The clip looks pretty good, the front of it looks like a satin finish. But the rest of the parts were too hard to sand. Oh well, I had fun with it.

 

[bsshog40]

Yea I would think that acrylic would be hard to remain satin. You may have been able to polish it as normal and then try a low satin finish on top to dull it down.

 

[leehljp]

That looks GREAT! I really like it.

 

[Dale Allen]

Try matte spray from krylon

 

[1080Wayne]

Not sure what you were envisioning , but I think the 100 grit finish looks excellent . The totally flat finish contrasts perfectly with the shiny chrome . If you want a little bit of shine , maybe try 320 grit . Could be wrong , but I don`t think the finish appearance will change much even with heavy use . The other benefit of your approach is that it counters the extreme translucency of some blanks , showing their colour better , and should help to mask the tube .

 

[1080Wayne]

Forgot to say in my previous post that platings on pen components are very thin , so I dont think it is practical to change the shine by sanding or polishing . My advice would be to replace the components with a new set ,and show it to your customer . I think he will like it .

 

[Ted iin Michigan]

Well over 99% of my pens are "glossy" finish. BUT - every once in a while I have the need to do one that's "satin". I've found that I can sand well over 100 (say to 800 or even 1000) and still keep a real nice, durable satin finish. Agree with 1080Wayne about the platings. Typically they are super thin.