# Another "Shiny Thingy"



## wizard (Mar 23, 2011)

Made it this A.M. It's Aluminum on a Sterling Silver Navigator Fountain Pen. The aluminum blanks are from John Goodin AKA johnnycnc.  Turned with carbide tools. Made this as a custom gift for my brother, a dentist, who wanted another version of a pen I previously made like this one.  
To prevent fingerprints, I would have normally airbrushed it with aluminum oxide to get a matte finish. However, he wanted it "shiny". So to prevent fingerprints, I went ahead and put a VHT clear coat finish from Caswell Electroplating on the pen.  I tried different color surfaces to take pictures on and went ahead and included both in the post. Hope you like it. Had fun making it and when finished it just looked like another "shiny thingy" to me. Comments welcome but most of all thank you for looking. Doc


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## SDB777 (Mar 23, 2011)

Liking it a lot!

What did you use to finish(sand or whatever)??





BTW, like it on the red background, easier on the eyes.





Scott (thumbs up to ya) B


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## edavisj316 (Mar 23, 2011)

WOW!!  Very nice.  The fit & finish are spot on.


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## jskeen (Mar 23, 2011)

Nice work Doc.  Just enough contrast between the metals to not have it look boring, but shiny enough to look like it goes together.  

I gotta say, on the pics though, the red reflection on the sides vs the black one in the middle (camera lens i'm guessing?)  seem to detract from the outlines of the pen.  The black is at least uniform across the pen.


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## BRobbins629 (Mar 23, 2011)

Looks good from here Doc!!  Shiney is nice.


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## Katsin (Mar 23, 2011)

Looks great. The shadows in the photo almost make for the illusion of custom segmenting.


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## ctubbs (Mar 23, 2011)

Very well, Doc, you finally messed up.  It is obvious that whole pen is nothing other than a "PhotoShop Creation".  If human hands had ever been close to that magnificent pen, there would have been a bit of fingerprint on it somewhere and with the quality of your photos, that little bit would show up like the proverbial poop in a punch bowl.  There just are no prints on the pen, therefore, logic leads us to believe it is not real.

Seriously Doc, that is one truly gorgeous pen, worthy of its creator.  As they say down here, "Doc, ye done good!"
Charles


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## G1Pens (Mar 23, 2011)

That is just totally awesome!! Fantastic job.


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## moke (Mar 23, 2011)

Of all the excellent pens you have shown, I now have a new favorite....great pen!


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## Jim15 (Mar 23, 2011)

That is truely outstanding.


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## Drstrangefart (Mar 23, 2011)

Brilliant! I'm looking forward to doing some stuff with aluminum in the eventual future.


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## thewishman (Mar 23, 2011)

Shine on you crazy diamond, uh...I mean Navigator. 

Shiny = nice.


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## cnirenberg (Mar 23, 2011)

Looks terrific. Nice and shiny.


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## terryf (Mar 23, 2011)

Thats stunning Doc, really nice. First time Ive seen a bright shiny "all ally" pen!

Thanks for sharing


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## ToddMR (Mar 23, 2011)

Well done!  I can tell you are spot on the fit too.  I think a pen like that being over or under would show very easily.  Nice work all around.


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## patmurris (Mar 23, 2011)

Aluminum rules! I love those shiny things i have to admit...


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## PenPal (Mar 23, 2011)

Shreenath,

The brother of a pen or the pen of a brother since we are our brothers keeper he will be both impressed with the shiny he loves and the design you provided. Kerosine although messy to use with superfine wet and dry helps acheive a top finish with aluminium. I also will send by E Mail if I have not already another Idea for a pen for your brother.

Celebrate your friendships in the family that is the sacred unit for all of us.

Kind regards Peter.  Good to talk to you the other day.


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## David Keller (Mar 23, 2011)

Fantastic!  I love the elegant simplicity of this one.  Your brother is a lucky man.


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## pensbydesign (Mar 23, 2011)

shined up very nice bet you can see every finger print on it, how did you get it so shiny


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## mikeschurer (Mar 23, 2011)

Congratulations.  That is the nicest pen I have seen Posted.  The red background looks better, for my eyesight/perception.

Mike the Pipe in Pangbourne by the Thames.


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## Padre (Mar 23, 2011)

Hey Doc, what is your secret for getting all of the scratches out?  It's a beautiful pen.  You do some amazing work.


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## IPD_Mrs (Mar 23, 2011)

I really like it.  I agree on the contrast between metals, and I too like the red better than the black background.  I have to squint on the black to keep it from being painful to look at.  Excellent job!


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## OKLAHOMAN (Mar 23, 2011)

Ok, I get to my hotel room, plug in my laptop, connect to the wireless network here open the IAP, then this thread and the glare off of that pen knocked me off the internet 3 times before I saw it really didn't knock me of but blinded me for a second...Great job again Doc.


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## Ruby pen turning (Mar 23, 2011)

That looks awesome. I have tried to make an aluminum pen but it was a bugger to get the hole drilled and then my carbide chisel just chattered a lot and made a mess of the blank. If I could drill and turn aluminum for a Jr gent, I would make a double closed end. nyhoo I love the way  yours looks.


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## MartinPens (Mar 23, 2011)

ooooooooooooo. Shiny. I like. My preeciouuus.

Great pen, Doc!

Martin

Sent from my iPad using Forum Runner


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## Mapster (Mar 23, 2011)

Beautiful pen. I don't know how you got that to shine like it does, but it is something else! Spectacular. Would you mind sharing your secret to amazing aluminum pens?


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## terryf (Mar 23, 2011)

How about a "front page" request for this master piece?


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## wizard (Mar 24, 2011)

Thank you all for the kind words and comments. Several have asked how I finish my aluminum pens.
  I actually start the finishing while I’m turning by *only* using the carbide finishing blade (straight edge) of the tool to turn the blanks to shape. I make very light cuts. I don’t use the carbide cutters or gouges to reduce the aluminum as it will be very difficult to smooth later. After turning to shape, I use sandpaper from 120 grit down to 600 grit followed by MM, dry, to 12000 grit. I move the abrasive over the surface rapidly to prevent overheating.  After each sanding, I stop the lathe and manually turn/rotate the blanks, clean with a paper towel and look for any imperfections or irregularities by using the reflection of the light over my lathe at an angle. This is the most important step as it will prevent you from having to go back and resand all over again. After getting to 12000 grit, I finish with Brasso Metal Polish and paper towel at low speed followed by high speed. After cleaning the Brasso off with a paper towel while turning, I use a microfiber cloth at high speed to buff the blanks to a mirror like finish. As some of you were curious, when taking pictures of the pens, I wear gloves to prevent fingerprints.. Please feel free to ask if you have questions. Again thank you for the kind comments. Regards, Doc


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## wizard (Mar 24, 2011)

For any that are curious, I have attached pictures of some "shiny" aluminum tubes when done polishing (pardon the dust and fingerprints) as well as an Aluminum pen I have done previously with a matte finish using an Paasche Airbrush with superfine Aluminum Oxide. Regards, Doc


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## wizard (Mar 25, 2011)

Padre said:


> Hey Doc, *what is your secret for getting all of the scratches out? * It's a beautiful pen.  You do some amazing work.



Chip. Thank you for the compliment. I didn't quote anybody in my response to the question on this thread so I'm not sure it showed up that I responded as a followup.:redface: Any way, I answered the question in the posts above. If you have any other questions, feel free to ask. Doc


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## Padre (Mar 31, 2011)

Hey Doc, another question.  When you say "carbide finishing tool," what exactly does that mean?  A woodchuck or something else?  Thank you.


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## wizard (Mar 31, 2011)

Chip,
I used the Easy Wood Tools that have the carbide tips. The two that I use are the Mini Rougher with a Ci2 tip which has a straight edge and you get a smooth removal of the aluminum stock much like a metal lathe. I also use the Mini Finisher with the Ci3 tip which has a circular edge. The finisher is a little trickier for me because it has a tendency to gouge it you apply too much pressure. It does help to shape the pen but the "rougher" actually leaves a smooth surface due to its straight edge. Hope that helps. Feel free to ask if you have any other questions. I have included links to where I got the tools from and description. Regards, Doc 

http://www.woodcraft.com/Product/2080216/29202/Ci2-Mini-Rougher.aspx
http://www.woodcraft.com/Product/2080216/29203/Ci3-Mini-Finisher.aspx

The tip of the carbide tool is square with a flat edge and this is the link
http://www.woodcraft.com/Product/2080216/28286/Ci1-Easy-Rougher-Replacement-Square-Cutter.aspx
The square cutter also comes in the mini version for those who have the mini version of the Easy Wood tools.


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