Pastel Party Pens

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Bob in SF

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Feb 15, 2016
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A few pastel painter friends requested pastel-themed stylus and fountain pens - fun little adventure.

Steps:
Colourfix pastel multimedia primer is a great Australian pastel ground - just the right amount of tooth - and it comes in a variety of colors.
Sand brass tubes to 400 grit, clean with acetone.
Prime the tubes with 2 coats of Colourfix, dry each coat for 2 days.
Use CarbOthello or similarly fine quality pastel pencils to paint lathe-mounted tubes.
Fix with a light spray of Lascaux Fixativ, let dry for a day.
Cast tube-in with Douglas and Sturgess Clear Casting PR, mixed with dichroic film and metal flake fragments, pressure pot at 50psi.
Turn and finish as usual.

PastelPartyPensStepsMarkisonFeb2020sm.jpg


PastelPartyPenFamilyMarkisonFeb2020sm.jpg


My pals are happy with them, so I'm happy too.

Warm regards to all - Bob
 
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magpens

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Feb 2, 2011
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Canada
I like 'em, Bob !! .

Thanks for showing these and describing your processes !!!
 

Fred Bruche

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Feb 11, 2018
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Philadelphia 19146
If one was to skip the dichroic film/metal flake fragments/casting step, could they be finished with coats of CA? I'm guessing that could work for some pens where the blank gets thin (slimline for example), might get tricky for thicker pens.
Thank you for sharing, uber inspiring as usual!
 

Woodchipper

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Mar 15, 2017
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Cleveland, TN
Very creative! Thanks for sharing the steps. Like the Tinker Toy drying rack. Used to have TT set plus a bunch of other toys of the 50s and early 60s. Lincoln Logs were real wood! Wonder what the toys would be worth now?
 

David350

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Sep 10, 2017
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Dallas, TX
Bob, those are amazing, great job!!! I bet there is a business to be had in making those as premade blanks, ready to be turned. I'd be a customer for sure....
 

Bob in SF

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Feb 15, 2016
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Location
San Francisco
Humble thanks to all for the kind responses!

These pens were the first run using this technique - more fun ahead.

Mark - I'll return your Tinker Toys just as soon as I'm done - depending on the what the meaning of done is.

Fred Bruche - Good question about skipping the casting step. It would be interesting to try a build up of various coatings and finishes -
Maybe CA glue or UV resin or a thin layer of clear polymer clay (baked carefully at a lower-than-usual temperature under a dome of aluminum foil for even heat distribution and to avoid scorching). Best to keep the tube turning slowly while applying coating(s), which is why I like the single and multiple Penn State slow drying systems, as used in my earlier post about Color Poured Holiday pens - here:
https://www.penturners.org/threads/color-poured-holiday-pens.162928/#post-2055395

Warm regards to all - have a fine week in and out of the shop - Bob
 
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