# blue shop towels vs. any other



## hughbie (Aug 10, 2007)

i use the bounty select-a-size.....what's the big deal over the blue shop towels?  if they are better.......then i might change....just wanting to know


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## GoodTurns (Aug 10, 2007)

duck-n-cover people!  it's towel war time[][][][][]


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## ahoiberg (Aug 10, 2007)

it doesn't really matter. if you find something that you can apply relatively smooth coats with, use it. i wouldn't bother switching if you've found one that works.


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## IPD_Mrs (Aug 10, 2007)

Be a MAN like one of our members and don't use either, no wait he used one and it bled through, then bled out. [}]

On a serious note use what ever you like to work with and gives you the best finish.  Some folks will even use the plastic bags the pen kits come in. (I can't get the hang of that one.)

Mike


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## hughbie (Aug 10, 2007)

now i've seen someone on here talk about using the little plastic bags.  i tried that once.  it worked great.  i just can't remember to do that any other time.  it's not in my routine, ya know? 

i realize it doesn't matter really.  i was wonderin' if the blue towels had some special effect or something.  that's all.


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## Chasper (Aug 10, 2007)

In the IPA library there is a tutorial on CA/BLO by Russ Fairfield (I think) where he discusses paper towels.  He makes the point that he uses VIVA paper towels because they have the right amount of cellulose in them to serve as a accelerator to the CA curing.  That along with the heat from the pressure cures the CA quickly as you put it on, or maybe it is that the cellulose content causes it to heat up just right to make it cure, (if it sticks your fingers together it must be cured).
I wouldn't be suprised if the blue shop towels and other brands don't have just the right amount of cellulose to do the same thing, but I'm using VIVA and it is working just fine.

Gerry


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## rherrell (Aug 10, 2007)

I've tried them all and FOR ME the blue works best. They seem a little stronger and a little smoother. You know what,the more I hear myself talk about this the sillier it sounds.Blue,white,green,purple,whatever floats your boat!!


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## hughbie (Aug 10, 2007)

i thought this would end up being as silly as it could be.  i was just wonderin how long it would take.  

i know it don't really matter about paper towels.  just fun to start something silly.


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## ahoiberg (Aug 10, 2007)

i suppose another consideration for paper towel would be the texture of it. if you use one like viva or the blue shop towels, you get a "tighter knit" and softer texture whereas a "lesser" brand of towels might have a more rough texture and leave a rougher coat of CA consequently.


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## its_virgil (Aug 10, 2007)

Now them thar is fightin words.[}][][8D][][)][B)] I'm trying to win Russ over to using Bounty but he insists Viva is the towel for him.   I really think it has to do with several things: the amount of pressure ach of uses, the amount of CA, which CA (thin, med, gap filling, etc), oil or no oil, oil first or CA first, lathe speed, and maybe several others. The best paper towel is the one that works for each of us...but Bounty ROCKS! in my shop.
Do a good turn daily!
Don


> _Originally posted by hughbie_
> <br />
> i know it don't really matter about paper towels.  just fun to start something silly.


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## txbatons (Aug 10, 2007)

I've used the little plastic kit bags because they fit on the tip of the finger nicely and I didn't get CA on my fingers. But switched to paper towels after my 3rd "scrape-the-little-bag-off-the-turning-piece-because-I-left-it-on-there-for-a-split-second-too-long" episode. []


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## Ligget (Aug 11, 2007)

Bounty for me![]


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## JasonF (Aug 11, 2007)

I tried blue shop towels the other day and they "melted" onto the blank as the CA  cured. I had a blue mess that I had to turn off the pen. I did this 3 times before going back to Bounty and once I did-no more problems.


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## smitty (Aug 11, 2007)

I'm Cheap I use any free Napkins from the fast food restaurants,  They work great for me.


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## Ligget (Aug 11, 2007)

> _Originally posted by smitty_
> <br />I'm Cheap I use any free Napkins from the fast food restaurants,  They work great for me.



If it works for you then that`s all you need!


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## cdcarter (Aug 12, 2007)

Not me ... I just squirt a bunch of CA glue on my tongue and lick it on at 3900 rpms! [][]

OK, actually, I use the Kirkland (Costco store name) towels from ... well, Costco, for $10 for a dozen rolls, and they're about the best I've seen. Entirely tough enough for a good ca/blo finish.


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## mick (Aug 12, 2007)

I use Bounty for the simple fact they come in half sheets. When I fold that in half and then again and then fold that over I end up with a roughly 1 inch wide applicator about 3 inches long which I get at least eight uses out of and if using medium CA I can turn it inside out and get a few more. []
 I think a big part of what we use depends on "how" we learn to use it. I currently use the "CA only" finish and can lay down a very smooth layer of CA. The trick is to not...and I repeat NOT to rub back over the blank to many times. I believe Russ in one of his tutorials even says to only go back oand forth over the blank enough to smooth the glue out. 
Oh yeah ...one more thing......BOUNTY ROCKS!!! [] sorry Russ.....lol


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## cdcarter (Aug 12, 2007)

I've stopped going back over it at all. I think part of the problem is we get used to going back and forth with the sandpaper and the momentum carries over into the glue. In my limited CA experience, if you're still touching the pen with the paper towel more than a second after starting, you're doing more harm than good.



> _
> The trick is to not...and I repeat NOT to rub back over the blank to many times. I believe Russ in one of his tutorials even says to only go back oand forth over the blank enough to smooth the glue out.
> 
> _


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## hughbie (Aug 17, 2007)

well, i have to admit, i use bounty in the select-a-size.  the half sheets are perfect, just like mick said.  and yes, i too have had to go back and sand/turn the embedded paper towel off my blank because i went back and forth and the CA started to set with the towel in it.  what learning curves we all go through.


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## tdmiller10 (Aug 27, 2007)

Being pretty new to turning and perhaps not knowing any better, I went and bought some painter's cloths that are made from lint free tshirt cotton. This works for me, but I have not heard about/learned the CA finishing method. I hate that stuff enough as it is just gluing the tubes into the blanks. 

I wonder if the painter's cloth would work just as well with the glue?


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## Firefyter-emt (Aug 27, 2007)

I use Viva myself, and they do come in half sheets as well. (I think they are closer to 2/3 sheets myself though)

Although I will again say that those derlin strips work great for straight CA. I  just can not get the build with the CA/BLO method, it always looks like a friction polish when I am done over a nice glassy finish. I can't seem to buff it, because there is not enough there the sand out. Must just be me as so many others "get it."


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## GBusardo (Aug 27, 2007)

> _Originally posted by tdmiller10_
> <br />Being pretty new to turning and perhaps not knowing any better, I went and bought some painter's cloths that are made from lint free tshirt cotton. This works for me, but I have not heard about/learned the CA finishing method. I hate that stuff enough as it is just gluing the tubes into the blanks.
> 
> I wonder if the painter's cloth would work just as well with the glue?



I would imagine that would work fine, until you glue one to the blank (it WILL happen) and hope the towel/rag doesn't pull your hand into the spinning lathe.  I found a six pack of diaper material at home depot some time back, and I use that for waxing.  For applying most finishes, VIVA works best for me.

If you are interested in the CA finish, Check this out:

http://www.penturners.org/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=17155&SearchTerms=russ,fairfield


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## its_virgil (Aug 27, 2007)

I agree with Mike...Bounty Rocks! I've tried other brands as well as every applicator material that has been suggested by others and well, bounty Rocks!

IMHO, CA is not the best choice (ducking) for gluing tubes into blanks. CA has several excellent uses, but this is not one of them. I prefer to use 5 minute two part epoxy if gluing only two or three and 15 minute epoxy when gluing tubes for several pens. I use 5 minute epoxy and turn them after 15 minutes and never had a problem...with glue that is. Using 15 minute I turn after the first set has been done for 30 minutes and turn that first (glued) set first.
Do a good turn daily!
Don


> _Originally posted by tdmiller10_
> <br />... I have not heard about/learned the CA finishing method. I hate that stuff enough as it is just gluing the tubes into the blanks.


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## tdmiller10 (Aug 27, 2007)

> I would imagine that would work fine, until you glue one to the blank (it WILL happen) and hope the towel/rag doesn't pull your hand into the spinning lathe.



Knowing that Murphy hates me more than most people, when I apply my finish with a rag, I do not wrap my fingers. I just double up the rag at the end and lay it over my fingers. I think this has saved my digits more than once, since every now and then the rag will get sucked onto the mandrel while I am finishing the pen. []

I tried to get that Library link to download or play just before you replied but had some troubles getting it to work. When I clicked the link from your post, the page loaded and started to play but quit about 75% of the way through its download/buffer. I got as far as the paper grocery bag rub, and then got a 'cannot connect to the server' error message. I still have internet connection, so this must be something on the server side.


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## Blind_Squirrel (Aug 28, 2007)

I use the small plastic bags.  Instead of putting my finger in them, I put a paper towel in there.


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