Silly newbie question....

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stonepecker

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Was just reading again where someone said "I tinted the glue." And I have seen the postings about painting the blanks before glueing in the tubes.

So my question is when it comes to wood. How about painting or staining the inside of the wood before glueing in the tubes? Will this change the coloring of the wooden blank? Either darkening or brightening them by the color inside the blank?

And I did a search before posting this and didn't find anything to this question. I am not thinking so much of the dark woods but more of the lighter/plain woods we play with.

Thanks for any help.
 
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Thats a good question. I suppose it might change the color a little right close to the tube depending on the density of the wood used and the penetrating properties of the stain or other colorant you apply. Experiment with different things and let us know his it goes!
 
Interesting question. Here's my thoughts.

Short answer: It won't make any difference in how the wood glued to a brass tube will look.

Longer answer: Wood is sufficiently opaque so that without back lighting you won't see any difference however the back of the wood is treated. When turning really thin translucent bowls / vases, I can get very dramatic effects with different treatments of the wood (use of oils, pigments, dyes, etc). But it's all associated with how the light passes through the thin wood. If you found a way to introduce a light source into the interior of your pen, you might really have something special.

You can test all of this by using wood veneer or a popsicle stick. Paint the back of them, set them on a table and see if it makes any difference.

The only one of your ideas that might show through would be the use of a stain on the interior of the blank. It might penetrate far enough to be visible on the exterior of the pen, but that's not likely to give you the results you are looking for.

Ed
 
sounds fun to try. I have some blue dye. Sometime this week(or next)I will mix some up and stain the inside of the blank and turn a pen to see what happens. Might try several different woods.
 
According to the Universal Guide to Acceptable Methodology, Vol. 1, Chapter 17, Para. 17.34 (Pen Assembly). Epoxy is the only allowable adhesive for pen construction.

Ok, joking aside. I often color my epoxy. System Three has different colors available. Woodcraft carries black, haven't seen any of the others, I had to order others directly from System Three. One application is for inlay pens. I'll liberally coat the inside of the blank with the black epoxy prior to gluing the tube in. This fills in the gaps from behind and adds good definition between components. Before anyone asks, I do not let this cure prior to tube insertion. Coat the inside, insert the tube, let cure, turn as normal.
 
You paint the inside of acrylic blanks because of transparency and the desire to not see the brass tube or the ugly lines of the glue that is used. With wood it is not transparent and if you want to change colors of the wood then stain it from the outside in. Anything else will give you inconsistant coloring because of the thickness of the blank. Not sure what look you are going for but if you want to try you have nothing to lose. Go for it.
 
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