# Applying a CA finish



## rbstallings (Jul 8, 2016)

This has probably been covered, but I'll ask anyway.  

What is a good method for applying a CA finish.  I've tried paper towels, but I always seem to botch the job up right near the end of the barrel/cap.  I've tried the poly bushings, and they seem to work well for the first one or two.

Also, I'm using about 8 coats of thin CA.  Is this sufficient, or should I use a thicker CA?

Thanks, 

Robert


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## jttheclockman (Jul 8, 2016)

I wonder if it is possible to get a sticky thread on top of the finishing forum with questions like this. Just hit a link. 

Robert welcome to the site and I will leave the answers to your question to others. Good luck and happy turning. Hope you post some photos.


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## Mike8850 (Jul 8, 2016)

First welcome to the forum.
I used craft foam with medium CA. I usually apply 5 to 6 coats.
I found that craft foam gives me a longer time to smooth the CA.
Mike


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## Dave Turner (Jul 8, 2016)

Although this topic has been covered many times before, it never hurts to get some fresh perspective of what currently is working for people. I detailed my technique previously here. I should point out that I exclusively turn between centers, as that has always given me the best results. If I'm sloppy and get a lot of CA on the cones sticking into the brass tube, I will score a line in the CA just beyond the end of the blank using a thin parting tool or something similar. This insures that the CA will crack beyond the blank and not chip into vital territory when I remove the blank from the lathe.


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## leehljp (Jul 8, 2016)

There are about as many ways as there is members on this board. :biggrin: Paper towel works well for many. I don't because 3/4 of each drop of CA ends up wicked into the paper towel rather than on the blank. But this is a personal preference developed from experience. Each person's preference comes from his experiences and techniques.

Now to my suggestion, and I did this: Get a cut off of a 2x4 pine or some piece of pallet board and cut some blank sized pieces. Get about a dozen slimline pen tubes or other tubes. Do not think about making a pen. Think about developing your technique and discovering what works for you. Spend two or three hours or more on applying CA. Use paper towel, rubber/nitrile gloves, flat piece of nylon/plastic, foam. Thin and Medium CA. It is very frustrating when that gorgeous blank comes out perfect and the finish just doesn't cut it. Two or three hours of practice (I spent half of one Saturday) on putting on CA finish (and sanding it) alone. This will go a looong way to in eliminating that frustration.

This frustration of getting it right comes because we shoot for the target of a pen before we develop the techniques and acquire enough experience. Bowl turners already have tons of experience before starting with pens, and there are a few other exceptions. However, everyone else should turn a few pens for the excitement of turning a pen and then drop back to focusing on developing technique for a few hours. It sure eliminates a lot of frustration, improves skill significantly, quickly and without the cost of a few good and expensive blanks wasted.


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## JimB (Jul 8, 2016)

Can you be more specific than 'botched it near the ends'. That really doesn't tell us what is wrong.


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## jsolie (Jul 8, 2016)

I use 2mm thick white craft foam from my local hobby lobby, though other places will have it as well.  I cut the foam into a strip about an inch or just a little wider.

I start off with one drop of thin CA per application.  One application will cover one pen section (e.g., cigar pens have two--upper and lower; sierra has one).  I'll apply several "coats" of thin before switching to medium CA.  Accelerator might be applied two to three times during this process.   I'll apply several "coats" of medium before sanding and polishing.

Sanding is done with 400 and 600 grit sandpaper then off to the micromesh and polishing compound.  I usually don't wetsand as I don't want the water to cause any issues with any wood exposed at the ends of the tubes.

I have applied CA between centers and am currently using a mandrel with finishing bushings.  I find that is a bit quicker for me as I can work on both sections of a pen at once.

If there's a bit of CA built up on the end of one of the sections, I'll set up the sanding jig on my lathe and then just ever so lightly sand the end of the pen blank.  This really helps with fit.  If it's really bad (happened once when my son was using CA and he really glopped it on), I'll make sure that the inside of the tube is clear of dried CA as well.

Ask 6 pen turners how to do a CA finish and you'll probably get 13 different answers.    Just keep practicing and you'll eventually find what works for you.

Hope this helps!


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## TonyL (Jul 8, 2016)

Continue to read, watch YouTubes, and practice. I bet within a half dozen barrels, you will find something that you like. Then there's always room for improvement - at least when I practice something.


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## lhowell (Jul 8, 2016)

Great idea on the craft foam!
So here is the process I have found works best:
I switch out to the plastic non stick bushings and then go through my sanding progression. After final sanding (some say 600 is ok but I tend to go on up to 1500 grit), I take the white Shop towels and tear one into about one inch strips and fold them into a square pad. My CA glue of choice is PSI Finishers CA (it's a very thin CA glue). Turn the lathe on at its lowest speed (mine is 500rpm), squeeze some CA glue onto the paper towel pad and in one motion wipe the blank. Do not go back and forth! You can either wait for the glue to dry or use a CA accelerator. People are mixed on this due to the fact that CA accelerator can crystallize and crack the finish overtime. I personally have not had this happen yet but time will tell I guess. 
Repeat the paper towel pad and wipe method until you are satisfied with the coating. I typically stop somewhere between 8 and 15 coats. Once all of your coats are applied and properly cured, use some type of sanding progression (I use micro mesh pads). 
The first grit is key as you want to get an even cloudy appearance across the blank. Keep your paper moving so you don't buildup particulates that can scratch your CA coats. I typically will stop the lathe and sand the blanks lengthwise between each grit and use a raking light to make sure all circle scratches are removed prior to moving to the next finer grit. Go through sanding progression (micro mesh goes up to 12,000 grit). 
I don't have a budding wheel setup so I have some PSI plastic polish that I put on a square paper towel pad, turn the lathe on and wipe the plastic polish all over the blank. Turn the lathe up to a very high speed (I go up to about 1500-1600 rpms) and use a clean paper towel square with moderate pressure applied and go up and down the blanks until all of the plastic polishing compound is removed. Use one final clean paper towel pad to make sure all of the polishing compound is off of the blank. Stop the lathe and remove your blank. Hit the ends of the blank with some sandpaper on a flat surface to remove any over glue residue and proceed to pen assembly. 
Like others have stated there are many methods to apply CA glue. This is just my method I pieced together after spouting over these forums and YT videos. Find a method that works for you and your setup and have at it! Hope this was some help! Good luck and happy turning!


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## rbstallings (Jul 8, 2016)

Thanks for all the information. Jim, botched is a poir desciptor.  I think on one the finish turned out perfectly, except about 3/8" from the end the finish must have been thin because I seem to have sanded through it.  On a second piece, there is a scratch in one of the CA layers.  I think it was a blob of CA that dried and was hollow.

Thanks again for all the replies


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## jttheclockman (Jul 8, 2016)

I see this advise given often here and again it is mentioned and I always wondered why???  When sanding a CA finish people talk about stopping the lathe and sanding lengthwise. May I ask why??? Weather you sand radial scratches or long lengthwise scratches they are still scratches. It is not like sanding a piece of wood where there is a grain pattern and you are hiding the scratches within the grain. Just something to think about next time you sand your CA finish out.


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## rd_ab_penman (Jul 9, 2016)

I started doing my CA finishing using Thin CA and my Dipping Method.
So far no sanding or polishing required.
Still working on perfecting my process.

Les


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## knowltoh (Jul 9, 2016)

I am curious if anyone uses the method I use.  I think it came from the IAP site a number of years ago and works very well.  
I put a length of 2" masking tape on my right index finger.  Then apply CA directly to the blank and smooth with the taped finger----lathe off.


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## Dave Turner (Jul 9, 2016)

jttheclockman said:


> I see this advise given often here and again it is mentioned and I always wondered why???  When sanding a CA finish people talk about stopping the lathe and sanding lengthwise. May I ask why??? Weather you sand radial scratches or long lengthwise scratches they are still scratches. It is not like sanding a piece of wood where there is a grain pattern and you are hiding the scratches within the grain. Just something to think about next time you sand your CA finish out.



I always stop the lathe and briefly sand lengthwise after sanding with the lathe on so that the scratch marks run lengthwise for that grit. That way, when I go down to my next finer grit with the lathe on, I can easily see when I've removed all the length-wise scratch marks and know that I've sanded enough with the next grit. It adds about 10 seconds for each grit, but I save way more time than that by letting me accurately gauge when I can stop with the next grit. (This is particularly helpful for me in judging towards the ends of the piece.)

Note: I only do this when using sandpaper on the CA, not with the micromesh.


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## JimB (Jul 9, 2016)

rbstallings said:


> Thanks for all the information. Jim, botched is a poir desciptor.  I think on one the finish turned out perfectly, except about 3/8" from the end the finish must have been thin because I seem to have sanded through it.  On a second piece, there is a scratch in one of the CA layers.  I think it was a blob of CA that dried and was hollow.
> 
> Thanks again for all the replies



I think you just need a bit of practice. In your original post you said you used 8 coats of thin CA. That is not a lot. When using thin CA I usually use about 10 coats and I usually get it smooth enough that I don't need to do any sanding, not even micro mesh. If I do use MM it is very light passes. So, if you are sanding it will be very easy to go through 8 coats of thin.


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## jttheclockman (Jul 9, 2016)

Dave Turner said:


> jttheclockman said:
> 
> 
> > I see this advise given often here and again it is mentioned and I always wondered why???  When sanding a CA finish people talk about stopping the lathe and sanding lengthwise. May I ask why??? Weather you sand radial scratches or long lengthwise scratches they are still scratches. It is not like sanding a piece of wood where there is a grain pattern and you are hiding the scratches within the grain. Just something to think about next time you sand your CA finish out.
> ...




Dave if it works for you than by all means continue. I think it is more a mental thing than a real physical thing but as it is often said here there are 1000 ways to do a CA finish.


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## Edgar (Jul 10, 2016)

My CA method is very simple & consistent. There are probably a hundred reasons why it's not a good method, but it works for me.

I switch to delrin bushings for sanding & finishing - all at high speed (2000-2500 rpm). After sanding, I burnish the wood with shavings, then give it a final wipe-down with DNA. Then I use white Bounty paper towels to apply my CA. I fold a piece of towel twice for 4 thicknesses with the back side of the towel showing. I apply just a couple of drops of thin CA to the towel & give the blank a quick back & forth wipe 2 or 3 times. Wait 15-30 sec & repeat with a dry section of the towel. I generally give it 3-5 coats in this manner. When I feel like it looks right, I let it continue to spin for a couple of minutes, then I hit the blank with a white HUT bar & apply a layer of the wax to the blank. Then I buff the wax off with a wad of the paper towel. No accelerator & no sanding of the CA.

This method doesn't give a high-build, encased in glass or plastic look, but I get a nice consistent shine while still retaining a natural look to the wood.

As others have mentioned, experiment with different techniques until you find one that you like. Chances are it won't be exactly like anyone else's, but if it works for you, then it's right.


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## MantasLithuania (Jul 11, 2016)

Someone mentioned there is 1000+ techniques to apply CA. Here's mine.
HDPE bushings (non stick to CA).
Grit 180 radial (lathe on), lengtwise (lathe off). Inspection of high/ low spots. More sanding if needed. quick wipe with paper tower (dry) to remove extra dust and grit leftovers.
Grit 400 radial (lathe on), lengthwise (lathe off). Inspection again. paper towel again.
Grit 600 radial and lengthwise sanding. wipe with DNA and peper towel (again, radial with lathe on and lengthwise with lathe off) then with the dry paper tower I clear the wood again. 

For applying CA i use plastic bags on my finger (comes with pen kits) and strip of paper towel. I do 3 coats of thin with 2 drops of CA on paper towel (if i need to grain fill the wood i pour about 4-5 drops directly on wood and spread it) let it dry ~30 sec. then do another light pass ( I think light passes is a key to great shine).
If i'm happy with the result of thin CA I move on to medium and do another 6 coats.

After that i let it dry for about 10 minutes and then move on to sanding the CA. I start with 600 grit (light passes), wipe of the dust, then 1000 grit, and sometimes if i don't have nothing to do more i do 2500grit. again sanding radial and lengthwise 
Fully wipe everything off and turn to the micromesh wet sanding. (always use clean water and clear pads) This time i sand only radial with lathe on (500 rpm). move on to 12k grit and don't wipe it with paper, let it dry by itself. 
No polishing needed, deep, exposed, smooth gloss is guaranteed. 

Good luck. Btw everything i learned about prepairing and sanding and coating is from this forum, so don't be lazy and search 
Cheers.

PS. cut paper towel between aplications of CA. don't tear it, because it will leaves tearouts of paper which can get stuck to your job. use scissors for nice cut.


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## Jonlane71 (Jul 11, 2016)

My method is pretty simple for CA and it seems to work.  I sand as normal and use DNA to clean the blank before application of the CA.  I use non stick bushings and use the Blue shop paper towels from WalMart cut into 9 strips.  I only use the thin CA and apply it to the paper towels and smooth evenly, with each coat I switch directions and apply the opposite way than the previous, spraying with an accelerator between each coat.  When all 9 coats have been applied I will take the blank off of the non stick bushings and clean up the ends with a little bit of sandpaper usually 600 grit laying flat on the table and moving the blank in a circular motion until it is flat.  I then place the blank back on the original bushings and use "0000" Steel Wool to sand it down lightly.  That's if there are not any bad spots.  I then use a buffing compound from CA to polish up the blank until you reach the desired shine. This works for me, and like the others have said you can ask 5 people and get 10 different answers.  Hope this helps and is not confusing.


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## butchf18a (Jul 13, 2016)

Once again taking something so simple and complicating it beyond reason.


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