consider the 'Duchess' pen kit from Penn State Industries.
This pen kit is a hands down winner from ease of turning to the finished product.
In this course, we will be going back over some old territory for the new turners, and some improved upon finishing techniques using CA glue finishes.
The kit uses standard 7mm bushings. on one end, and a slightly wider one on the other. Buy two kits and you can turn two pens at once.
Depending on the make-up of the Acrylester Blank, it can also be a good idea to color the blanks with a magic marker before gluing. Sometimes the copper will show through the finished product, making it look rather strange. I don't think this will be a problem here.
I have a theory that during the milling process, tiny cracks sometimes are created and when you get down to the final cuts on the Acrylester blank, that's how the ends can crack out.
I just want to ensure the ends are well sealed.
I found that consistency in results dramatically improved.
An ideal speed for me is a bit above 'G' on the ShopSmith, which is somewhere around 1700-1750 rpm.
It minimizes adjusting the guide during turning.
This is an image of my first foray into turning an acrylester pen. The pattern is 'Molten Metal.'
And if you continue turning without correcting the problem, you can get this:
This is also a great reason for wearing eye protection. A piece of pen flying off a lathe turning at @ 1700 rpm could cause significant eye damage.
Results like this are likely caused one or all five of the following:
1. Wrong speed setting. The faster the speed, the better plastic and acrylester turns.
2. Wrong guide setting. Keep the guide close to the piece and if the lathe is not on a permanent footing or if the guide is not locked down, lock in the guide and do what you can to secure the lathe.
3. Dull tool. My tool sharpening skills are not great. If I know the speed is correct and the guide is set correctly, and I just sharpened the tool and am still getting this type of chipping....I stop the lathe and resharpen the tool. That usually cures the problem for me.
4. Wrong tool angle. The angle of the tool in relation to the work piece may be off. Sometimes it's the results of unfamiliarity with a new tool, or a bad sharpening job.
5. Turning direction. When you are getting close to the final dimensions, it helps to turn from the center out in both directions, down hill. Turning up hill produces a mixed bag of results.
I was asked the other day how much time is typically spent turning Acrylester or plastic from square blank to finished product.
When I first started playing around with these a couple years ago, it took me 20-30 minutes per blank and the end product could look pretty rough.
These days, I can turn a blank in 10 minutes or so or less, and end up with a smooth, dull shine and few if any divots.
This is the Tormek Super-Grind, a wet grinding system.
Use a medium viscosity CA glue and some Accelerant to take care of the problem.
First, spray the divot with Accelerant, which will stay on the surface for 10-15 seconds or more.
Note: you don't need to fill the divots with Acrylester flakes. Just use the glue.
Turn on the lathe and lightly knock down the repaired areas and then re-sand to 400 grit.
Continue sanding both Acrylester blanks to 600 grit to prepare for the finish.
Finishing
There are a number of methods for finishing Acrylester and plastic pens. Here is what works for me:
1. Use a medium viscosity CA glue and lightly coat both Acrylester blanks. This can be done while the lathe is turning.
2. Apply some EEE to a paper towel.
3. Work the EEE into the CA glue, one Acrylester blank at a time.
The CA glue will begin to assume a milky appearance. This takes a couple minutes.
4. Reverse the paper towel and begin slowly removing the excess CA glue / EEE mixture while using finger pressure to induce some heat and friction.
5. Phase 1 is now complete. Inspect the results. At this point the blanks should look fine.
6. Phase two involves using a smaller amount of EEE, with a drop or two of medium CA glue on top of the EEE.
7. Rub the CA Glue / EEE mixture into the blanks a second time. Remove any excess and finish by using a clean paper towel as a final clean-up.
Treat this as a friction polish and apply pressure. I consider it finished when the paper towel starts to get hot to the touch.
8. At this point, the Acrylester blanks are finished to somewhere around 2200 grit. EEE takes it to @ 1500 grit and the paper towel takes it the rest of the way.
If I want to get picky, I finish with Micro mesh, starting at 3600 and working up to 12000 grit. Use very light, touch-up type pressure with these pads.
I personally can't see or feel a difference between a finish without using the Micro mesh and a finish with. Some people claim they can.
.
Looks good! Remove the Acrylester blanks from the lathe and very lightly run the milling tool across all ends to ensure they are flat.
We are now entering the phase that most call, 'The Last Chance to Screw Up Your Pen.'
Use a chamfering tool to dress out the brass.
Useful tip: If you don't have or can't find your chamfering tool, chuck up a drill bit larger than the brass tube, start the lathe and chamfer the ends with the drill bit.
Chamfering the ends allows for easier insertion of the pen parts.
Using a pen press gives you some control when putting the pieces together. Ensure the piece is pressed straight.
The twist mechanism is next.
Inserting the twist mechanism is a one way proposition. Use some caution when pressing it in.
Screw in the ink refill and test the twist mechanism full clockwise and the reverse, checking for proper twist mechanism depth.
Put the rest of the pen together.
And there they are - two Duchess pens in Copper and Black Peacock Acrylester.
Here are a few more: Molten Metal, Gold and Orange, Molten Metal, Copper, Black Peacock. All these are Acrylester.
I like to leave some extra meat on pens but if you leave too much, the pens no longer look elegant - they look pregnant, as in the second pen from the left.
There are other materials called Aqua Pearl and Lava Bright which also can produce some spectacular results and are worth a try.
Three Favorites:
Amethyst
Cranberry
And my probable favorite, Brown and Rose.
Here is a Stylus made from same.
Stylus's are gaining popularity as well.
These Aqua Pearl and Lava Bright blanks are available from Penn State industries.
Here's another example of leaving too much meat.
That in conjunction with the loud design, reminds me of a character wearing an elegant top hat and coat..........and a really cheap pair of pants.
I'd pay some attention to the design of the acrylester or plastic blank you choose. Remember, it's an elegant pen. It deserves an elegant blank.
This is the most meat I would leave on a Duchess pen. The material is Red Mallee Burl.
Here's a couple more links dealing with Acrylester, Plastic, Spalted Wood and CA Glue finishes.
Acrylester and Plastic Pens
Coffee Beans
Cigar Pens / Spalted Wood / CA Glue Finishes
Closing Comments / Notes:
Speed:
Crank it up. Acrylester seems to turn well at 1750 rpm. Acrylic and Plactic I get better results at 1150 rpm.
Acrylester pen blanks throw out chips while getting them down to round. Plastic or Acrylic - not so much.
These chips will turn to soft plastic flakes if the turning speed is high enough, and are much more pleasant to work with.
Hole Filling
The following works well for these types of holes:
Spray the hole with accelerant. Let it sit for 10 seconds or so.
Use a medium viscosity CA glue and apply one drop. The accelerant keeps the drop in place and hardens it quickly.
This method does not turn the CA glue white.
If after a few minutes it the dot of CA glue still feels tacky, hit it with more accelerant.
Sand off the excess.
Useful Tidbit for Blown Up Blanks
Don't you just hate it when this happens? Sometimes these tubes are non-standard lengths and it can be a pain to find a new one.
Reuse the brass tube! Only takes a minut or so using a parting tool to break up the plastic.
It's already sanded, roughed up and ready to go. And....... you get to see what kind of glue job you really did.
Choosing the correct type of blank:
Choosing the type of acrylester or plastic pen blank depends on the pen size.
If you are turning a 7mm pen, choose a solid colored blank and not a opaque one or you frequently end up
seeing the brass tube through the plastic, particularly at the narrowest ends of the pens. as shown in the above example
Solid blanks like these work much better for 7mm pens.
If you want to use a opaque blank anyway, coloring the brass tube with a magic marker that complements the blank can really help.
8mm and on up, the opaque blanks work well enough.
I would have to say the majority of comments I get center around people initially getting discouraged trying to turn bowls, pens and the like after seeing other demonstrations where it appears to imply that 'if you do it just like this, perfection every time!', and they then follow up by failing to get it right not the first, second, third of more times.....must be a problem with the turner, right?
Yup, that's right. It's called inexperience.
People don't feel so bad after they visit a few of my pages in which I display some of the unspectacular results I've been responsible for along the learning curve.
They soon discover that displays of 'Perfection every time' are not reality and therein lies a measure of hope.
For those who like providing these kinds of guides, also provide examples of of what can happen when things go wrong.
Explain how you managed to blow out 3/4 of the wall of a bowl and what you did to keep that from happening in the future.
Explain how the entire end of a pen blank flew off the lathe during the final cuts and the importance of wearing eye protection.
It makes for interesting reading and provides some valuable lessons learned.
Minor Request:
If you have some acrylester or plastic pen pics you'd like to send along, feel free. If it's a bit different than what I do, I'd be most interested and perhaps I and others will learn something new as well. Helps with the content too.
And most of all:
Have Fun!
