Turning sterling silver pens?

[drferry]

I read with with interest the recent post on casting sterling silver, and it confirmed to me that I did not want to take that approach. However, I recently bought a FoxPro 20" metal lathe, and am considering turning a silver pen out of silver rod.

I know the rod will cost an amazing amount, so I want to find out if anyone else has done this sort of thing. I tried searching on this topic, but probably I didn't use the best search parameters and I didn't come up with anything. Does anyone out there have any advice or experience?

Thanks!

 

[btboone]

I would imagine it turns very similar to aluminum. It would be a good idea to dial in the process for an aluminum bar before attempting silver. All the same speeds and processes should work.

 

[Firefyter-emt]

You may want to speak to John (johnycnc) about maybe having him mill the holes for the kit you want. Not sure if he has time, but if he can mill the holes like those aluminum blanks you will not have to mess around with poor holes or tubes.

 

[DCBluesman]

I've made pens using silver tubing from http://www.metalliferous.com/pdf/silver/SS Round Tube.pdf . It's not all that expensive and their sizes are reasonably close to what we need to match with the components.

 

[dbriski]

I wonder if you could clean up real good before hand and then collect all the shaving and melt them down into another rod for later use?

 

[DCBluesman]

I definitely collect the scrap, but at a spot price of $14 an ounce, it takes a while to get a fair amount to sell back.

 

[luke39uk]

Hello from the UK,perhaps I can offer some advice.I turn sterling silver on my metal lathe for some of my pens.I use the "hard rod silver" as normal sterling silver is too soft.Silver behaves very similar to copper when it is turned,it has a soft waxy feel on the lathe as opposed to a hard feel while turning brass or steel.In my experience you need lots of coolant,high rake angles and very sharp edges on your cutting tool.Use speeds and feeds as if you are turning copper.I have a deal with my silver suppliers and I get a high value back on my scrap.You can see some examples of my pens with English hallmarked silver nib sections and cap bands in my photo album.Hope this helps,and if you need further advice feel free to get back to me.
Luke