Yes, another CA issue

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Josh_

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Feb 20, 2011
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Hello, first time post here so be gentle :) i am fairly new to pen turning, just a few months. I am doing my pens with CA finish and every so often i get some separation? don't really know what to call it. Maybe from when i remove the finished product from the bushings? its usually in the middle of the pen and not the ends. I am using a thin CA and do around 10 coats. Any thoughts?

Thank you.
 

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Josh, I usually take my skew and very carefully take a light cut at the end of the blank on the bushing. This gives me a break point away from the wood. It leaves a small amount of CA on the end of the blank which I then sand off either with papdr on the lathe bed or a sanding jig on the lathe. The jig is simply the blank squaring tool with the head turned around and some paper stuck to the flat cutter head. Other than the small glitch, your finish looks good.
Charles
 
I had that in the past and now I run an exacto knife with the lathe off! on the edge of the bushing.
personally, id be scared to put wax on the bushing, what if some of it gets on the blanks?
but I might be wrong
 
I'm with Alex - I don't like the idea of getting wax anywhere close to unfinished wood.

I've made some HDPE finishing bushings. The CA will stick and dry, but it won't adhere, so the plastic bushings pop off more easily than steel bushings. I still find that it's helpful to carefully (VERY carefully) cut through the finish right at the end of the blank. The ends remain a bit rough, but can be smoothed with a sanding mill.
 
all good ideas. i use UHMW??? (old cutting board material), but I also "cut away" the bushings after every 2nd or 3rd coat ... much less sticking, much less sanding/cleaning up at the end.
 
all good ideas. i use UHMW??? (old cutting board material), but I also "cut away" the bushings after every 2nd or 3rd coat ... much less sticking, much less sanding/cleaning up at the end.
old cutting board is most likely HDPE, or high density polyethylene.
this will will work great as bushing, easy to turn, practically no consumer glue will stick to it, however it's probably a bit more slippery than your metal bushing, so you might need to tighten the nut a bit more.


UHMWPE is ultra high molecolar weight polyethylene, which is denser, heavier, even more resistant to abrasion (although I'm sure a gouge will cut it easily -have not tried-) . it is however even more slippery.
slippery is not necessarily bad: it can save your blank in case of a catch, but some might be bothered by it.
 
Thanks alex ... that explains how I can get a cutting board that LOOKS like UHMW but costs about $3 !!!

Makes sense. Appreciate the insight!
 
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