# Finishes



## 10ACTony (Oct 1, 2010)

As a noob, I've made just a few pens and each is a little bit better  than the one before.  Standard kits so far.  I have a question though,  what type of finishes do you use, not including the CA.  Are any of the  friction polishes (Mylands or Behlands) any good and will any wear  better than another?  I tried the CA finish once and it didn't come out  to well, guess  I _need a bit more practice._ 

Any and all input would be appreciated.


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## ldb2000 (Oct 1, 2010)

Friction finishes don't last very long , that is why you don't see very many of us using them . A CA finish is the most durable finish and well worth learning . It can be as easy or complicated as you wish to make it . You will be buried with a thousand different ways to do it and everyone will say that theirs is the best way to do it , and they are right , theirs is the best way ..... for them . You will have to decide which way is best for you . I will start the fun with the easiest way and then you will get to hear all the other ways . Check out this video for a simple three step process http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8zsJXC-17rU Three coats of thick CA and a little sanding and you are done . 

Let the games begin !!!


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## ThomJ (Oct 1, 2010)

I practiced my CA finish on dowels rather than actual pen turnings.


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## grub32 (Oct 1, 2010)

Ca is the best in my opinion in terms of durability and shine....there are tons of resourCes available on this site and others...you will find something that will work for you.

Best of luck,

Grub


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## grub32 (Oct 1, 2010)

Oh... I forgot...mine is by far the best : )

YouTube.com/grub32

My process

Grub


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## DCBluesman (Oct 1, 2010)

CA is not the only option. Try spray poly acrylic or spray lacquer. They are quicker than a traditional lacquer finish and provide protection which is more than sufficient for a pen.


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## RussFairfield (Oct 1, 2010)

My experience with learning to finish a pen, for what it's worth - 

In the beginning (about 15 years ago) I made cheap Slim-Line pens and they were finished with a Shellac based friction polish. No it didn't last forever, but the pens weren't all that good either, and they sold for $10 at the time. BUT, I made a lot of them, and there was a lot of good practice in making them smooth, polished, and glossy. And they were cheap. That experience made going to lacquers, CA glue and other harder finishes a lot easier. I suspect that is the main reason I have never experienced any of the problems so many have with CA and lacquer, and why so many have to use such complicated applications. 

My advice is always to learn sanding and finishing with the less expensive, less technical, and less time consuming finishes. Once you have those mastered, it will be much easier to advance to the more expensive pens with the more complex and time consuming finishes. 

This is just a suggestion. Anyone can start their 1st pen with a CA finish, but most of them are immediately back on this site with a bundle of questions because a lot of things went wrong.

Also listen to what DCBluesman is telling you. CA glue is not the only finish that is available for a high class pen. There are others, and many of them can be faster and easier to apply than CA glue.


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## bking0217 (Oct 6, 2010)

In the video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8zsJXC-17rU , he says he uses "buffing compound" to bring out the sheen. What exactly is that? Sorry to hijack the thread, but this video was already mentioned here and I didn't think I should start a new thread for my question.


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## snyiper (Oct 6, 2010)

Buffing compound is usually in stick form and in different grades or colors it is simply a cutting agent that will remove the finest of scratches from your finish. you apply it to one wheel (Ususally a tightly sewn wheel) and then use a very lose cotton or flannel wheel to buff out. Some people use different stages of compound some just use EEE, do a search on Buffing and youll have all your questions answered.


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## bking0217 (Oct 6, 2010)

Thank you.


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## schaf (Oct 8, 2010)

DCBluesman said:


> CA is not the only option. Try spray poly acrylic or spray lacquer. They are quicker than a traditional lacquer finish and provide protection which is more than sufficient for a pen.



When you use a spray type product, is it applied with the lathe running or stationery.
Regards
schaf


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## DCBluesman (Oct 8, 2010)

Either with the lathe off or on at a very low speed. In either case, several light coats will always produce superior results to one heavy coat.


schaf said:


> DCBluesman said:
> 
> 
> > CA is not the only option. Try spray poly acrylic or spray lacquer. They are quicker than a traditional lacquer finish and provide protection which is more than sufficient for a pen.
> ...


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## monophoto (Oct 8, 2010)

I'm also a relative noob, but I'm starting to formulate some opinions.

First, for pens I do like CA.  But I have concluded that CA works best when the turning is relatively plain - no pronounced coves or beads.  If the design is more adventuresome, the ultimate finish won't be as nice.

Second, finishes can be highly polished (like glass) or a more subtle satin that allows the user to have a better feel of the wood.  The former requires more work, and a simpler turning design, while the latter is easier to apply and can be done with more coves and beads.  

Third, for bottle stoppers, nothing works as well or as simply as a few coats of sanding sealer followed by several coats of wipe-on polyurethane.  Yes, you do have to allow for drying time between WOP applications - I'm learning the serenity of patience.

Fourth, friction finishes seem to work OK for bowls and other ornamental pieces made from harder woods.  The don't work very well at all if the wood is soft.

Fifth, if you don't like the finished pen after it is done, it MAY be possible to disassemble it and refinish it.  But if you are using one of the low-end slimline kits, the transmission is likely to fail when you try to disassemble the pen.  Take the philosophical approach - if you are successful, you are ahead of the game.  But if the disassembling the pen to refinish it wrecks the pen, you aren't any further behind than if you simply threw the pen away in the first place and chalked everything up to learning.


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## Jamesh (May 11, 2012)

I have a question.  I am finishing a pen_ that I have turned out of Koa that I have had for a couple of years.  I like using Minwax brand clear gloss Polyurethane as the finish.  I applied the finish on Wednesday and on Friday it is still tacky.  Is this normal?  _


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## Knucklefish (May 11, 2012)

I have had the same thing happen to other "oily" woods, in my case they were bowls (I haven't tried poly on pens). It did eventually dry it just took a few days. It helped when I put them in the sun for a few hours too. Lastly it was only an issue on the first coat or two. After that it dried much more rapidly. Just my 02.


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## leehljp (May 11, 2012)

Jamesh said:


> I have a question.  I am finishing a pen_ that I have turned out of Koa that I have had for a couple of years.  I like using Minwax brand clear gloss Polyurethane as the finish.  I applied the finish on Wednesday and on Friday it is still tacky.  Is this normal?  _



Most of the time, people thin poly's by 10% to 20% and sometimes more. Thinners will allow for it to dry/cure faster and soak into the pores farther. Did you apply it straight or thinned? Thinning often requires two or three coats.


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## Jamesh (May 11, 2012)

I applied the finish from a spray can.  I have found that I get a better finish than with a brush or with dipping.


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## Wildman (May 11, 2012)

I do not know if Koa is an oily wood.  Ii does take oil, poly/varnish & lacquer finishes well.  You do not say if this product is oil or water base product and how many coats applied.  Easy to apply too thick coating with a spray can, mo better to apply several thin coats.

Have to pay attention to re-coat time, especially with poly. I normally light sand between coats of poly, if sandpaper clogs need to wait longer. Only time do not sand between coats is when dipping.  Found waiting a day between re-coating gives better results. Poly can take as much as 30 days to fully cure.  

I also thing poly, only because get less runs and applying light coats speeds up drying time.  I do use separate container with thinned poly for dipping.

If dealing with oily wood wiping down with acetone before applying finish helps. Direct sunlight can really do weird things to film finishes.


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## leehljp (May 11, 2012)

Jamesh said:


> I applied the finish from a spray can.  I have found that I get a better finish than with a brush or with dipping.



James,

I would say that you happened to get a bad can of poly. IMO, it should not be tacky after a couple of days at all. The only other reason that I can think of is that if it was very cool and high humidity but I don't think you are having that kind of weather at the moment.


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## Jamesh (May 11, 2012)

Well at this point I am probably going to just bake it to speed up the cure time. I origionally tried to use CA but the oil in the wood was bleeding into the Turquoise inlay. I have enclosed a picture to show my work.


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