CyanoAcrylate Glue Finish for Pens

Brent Dowell

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Some one asked me about my comments on the 'Super Glue' Finish, so I thought I would post how I do it. I'm not claiming to be an expert, just thought I'd share.

I think its one of those things that there are a lot of different ways to do, so if anyone else has done this and has some tips, please chime in! I'm using a variable speed Jet Mini Lathe for any references I make to speed.

It's kind of hard to capture in a picture what it looks like, but I think this is probably the best example I've got on disk.

pheartpen.jpg


A couple of notes first.
* This finish has a certain amount of 'voodoo' to it.
I can't make it work perfectly everytime.
Sometimes I just sand it down and start over.
I'd suggest if you want to try it, just just take
the cheapest piece of wood you have, mount it
on a pen mandrel, turn it and give it a try.

* Not everyone likes this kind of a finish. Some folks
complain that it makes the pen look 'plastic', like
you might have just used an acrylic blank instead.
Personally, I like both wood and acrylic pens, and
I really like the depth of shine this gives the pen.

* There are probably other ways to get as good a shine,
but I just dont have any experience with them.

* CA Glue can give off some nasty fumes, so keep a fan
blowing or use your dust collector to pull the fumes
away from the pen.

* Either use gloves, or be ready to have some super
glue on you fingers. I use super glue so much
that it doesn't bother me anymore, but I don't get
to town all that often... :dunno:

Steps:

1) Turn a pen :rolleyes:

2) I will initially sand my pen using regular
sandpaper grits of 100/150/220/320/600
at the slowest speed my lathe can go.

3) Using the Paper Blue Shop towels, I fold the
towels over until it's about 2 inches wide
then cut them into strips about 2 inches wide.

4) Now I crank up the speed on the lathe to about
the middle of my middle range. I put one of these
pads up against one side of the pen barrel and
put a couple of drops of BLO (Boiled Linseed Oil) on
the pen and rub the pad back and forth until it covers
the pen.

5) Now I use some Medium thickness CyanoAcrylate
glue and while the lathe is still running and the pad
still up against the pen, I run a thin bead of CA
along the pen barrel.

6) Keeping a close eye on things, I run the pad back
and forth until the pen has a nice sheen to it.
Depending on the speed, this may only take
several seconds.

7) Depending on how things look, Repeat steps
4,5,6. I typically do it 3 times

8) Now it's time to polish. I have a set of micromesh
pads that I think you can get from woodturners
catalog. These start at like 1500 grit (I think) and go
way way up from there. Very fine stuff.
I will wet sand with alittle spray bottle and a MM Pad
and will sand on each grit for about 5 seconds or so
on the Very slowest speed my lathe will go.

9) Once that's done, it's pretty shiny, but not quite shiny enough.
I made a buffing wheel for my lathe out of some threaded
rod and two buffing pads. I put Tripoli compound on one and
some very fine Diamon compound on the other.
I crank the lathe up to the max speed on the middle range
and with the pen still on the mandrel will buff on the tripoli
first. Then I wipe the pen of real good and then buff on the
diamond wheel.
At this point, if all went well, I've got a pen with a perfectly
clear, deep looking, glassy shine.

10) If you used gloves, you've probably done a good
job of not gluing your fingers together.
If you are like me, you probably now have a thick coating
of glue on your fingers. I find that working some hand
lotion into you fingers will help to loosen up the glue after
a few minutes.
 
Thanks Brent I did not even know this was possible. Where do you get the glue in quantities I would imagine one needs for this sort of excercise. Does it not work out very expensive since the pad probably absorbs a great deal of glue?
 
Well, Yeah, you don't want to buy it in the little teeny tiny tubes at Home Depot :D

I also do Radio Controlled Airplanes, and the CA glue makes building those balsa wood contraptions a lot faster than the old days.

Any hobby shop worth it's while will carry different viscosities of glue in different sizes.

That being said, I've purchased the medium CA in an 8oz bottle before, but I wouldn't recommend that, unless you really go through it fast. It does have a shelf life and there is a trade off in price/quantity. The more you buy, the cheaper it is, but the longer it sits (especially in a big bottle), well, it seems to not work as well...

So for now, I'm just going down to the local RC store and buying my glue there. It's fresh, and not that expensive in about a 2 ounce bottle.

I think the rockler and woodcraft stores stock it as well, but on the days I go to town, I like to visit as many of my 'hobby shops' as possible, just for entertainment, and to help the local guys out.
 
Rob, you can buy 1 oz to 4 oz bottles of CA glue from most (if not all) of the woodturning supply places I've seen. A 2 oz bottle lasts me quite a while.

Brent, I use a similar method for CA finish, but I apply it differently. My method (putting it on heavy with a plastic bag on my finger and using accelerant) tends to leave a fairly "globby" finish that I then have to wet sand out, usually starting at 120 gritor so. I'll give the paper towel trick a shot to see if it saves me some sanding.

Something I've learned on acrylic pens, and now use on CA finishes, is I can go from 400 or 600 grit wet sanding straight to the tripoli buff, and it looks as good (to me) as the micro mesh/buffer routine. Try it sometime and see if you like the results. If not, you can always put it back on the lathe and go through the micro mesh.

That's a real pretty pen, BTW. :thumb:
 
Vaughn,

I do find that the way I do it seems to put a pretty light coat of CA on the pen, so I go pretty light on the coarser grits. Sometimes depending on my mood and how the pen looks, I'll skip the first couple of MM Grits.

I have been known to sand completely through the finish and have to start over again...
 
Your technique is similar to what many use. The "plastic" sheen you mention is a matter of taste. On the pen forums many of those who are successful at selling pens state that customers are attracted to pens with a high sheen.
My only comment on what you said is the "close eye" statement. Using CA with a spinny tool requires some safety measures. Do keep protection over that "close eye". A trip to the emergency room with a big dollop of CA on yer eyeball could ruin the whole day.
 
Ryan at Woodturningz sent me a three step polish that is easier for my students to use and gives a very, very nice sheen/polish to a pen and is reported to be quite durable (more than the Hut friction polish). It is Myland's sanding sealer, Myland's liquid friction polish then I have the students put on four coats of the carnuba wax friction polish. A final run through the carnuba buffing wheel and what a shine! :thumb:
How do you stop from gluing the blanks to the mandrel and bushings?
 
Here you go Frank.
Norm said:
"Before we use any power tools, let's take a moment to talk about shop safety. Be sure to read, understand, and follow all the safety rules that come with your power tools. Knowing how to use your power tools properly will greatly reduce the risk of personal injury. And remember this: there is no more important safety rule than to wear these — safety glasses."
 
How do you stop from gluing the blanks to the mandrel and bushings?

Understand I'm not 'glopping' on a ton of glue, and I'm not using the watery thin stuff.

If the ends of the pens are trimmed pretty well, it doesn't seem like the glue gets down in between the bushings.

The bushings can get a buildup of glue on them, but a quick dip in an acetone bath takes care of that.
 
Nope. Probably should have put something in there about that.

I did manage to get a pair of prescription glasses coated with tiny little dots of CA a while back. Fortunately, my vision plan allows me a new pair of lenses each year, frames every 2 years.

I've always worn glasses 100% of the time, until this year. Now I probably only wear them when I go outside. I can't focus with them on up close.

So I keep a pair of decent safety glasses in the shop that I usually put on and wear the whole time. They are cheap, but not the kind that you can get at the big box stores. And if I do need to wear glasses, they fitover my normal glasses.

Good safety reminders are never out of line... :thumb:
 
Thank goodness I'm not the only one who pulled that stunt. I was lucky I'd saved my old glasses that weren't that old. A weird thing about super glue is that it wont adhear to your eyeball. The moisture doesn't allow it to set, but I know of a lady who glued her eye shut thinking it was eye liner...musta been a blonde...No offense intended in advance!!!!!
 
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MM Sanding

Your pens are beautiful and who am I to mess with success but I think you will find the grit level of Tripoli and White Diamond to be somewhere in the middle of the Micro Mesh grit range.

I believe 12,000 is the top of the micro mesh line and that Tripoli is about 2500 and White Diamond about 3500.

So just maybe you are backstepping a little with the sanding grits but they sure look great.

Of course I could be wrong on all of this.
 
My guess would be that you are right.

Like I said, I'm not an expert in this. I'm just doing what has seemed to work for me. I stole the basic process from others and have just sort done whatever works for me along the way.

I do know that while the pens look good after the micro mesh, the polishing compounds really step it up (or back :huh:) a notch....

Thanks for the info, seems like something I might actually research.

I am careful to wipe/clean off the pen in between each grit and polishing wheel.

Plus, using a buffing wheel is kind of fun. :bonkers::bonkers::bonkers:
 
I'm making this pen do double duty.

First it's a test of the "don't cut all the way through the pen" method of doing the inlay.

Secondly, I tried a different method on the finish. I sanded up to 600 grit normal sandpaper and did 2 light coats of CA on it using my normal method.

Instead of doing all the tedious sanding, I looked at it and it looked ok as is, so I just went straight to the buffing wheels.

It doesn't have quite deep gloss that I normally get, but it certainly does not look bad, and took a lot less time.

maplepadauk.jpg


Unfortunately, this one is a factory second. The bushing that I'm using for the center band seems to be a bit undersized, and the top barrel is a bit narrower than the center band.

Hate it when that happens!

Hmm, Maybe I should just take apart the top part and turn my own trim ring out of paduak?
 
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Yeppers, you're getting a much smoother application of the CA than I have in the past. I think with a few more coats of CA, you'd get the same depth of gloss with the "buffer only" method as you do with the micro mesh.

And I know what you mean about factory seconds. I don't turn pens very often, so I don't stay in practice like I should. It seems sometimes I get more seconds than firsts. :eek:
 
Factory seconds are just a way to spend more time thinking about things...

I have a big pile of pens that I won't give to folks or use. If the mechanics are good, I'll take them apart, order more tubes, and give it another go.

Tubes is cheap...

Oh, and my attempt to save it with a paduak centerband failed...

This ones already been disassembled and tossed on the trash heap.

But that's ok. I like the accuracy, but I didn't like the thickness of the inlay. So, I've got more blanks and tubes to give it a shot..
 
Brent, I use a similar procedure, but with some slight variations..
Steps:

1) Turn a pen :rolleyes:

2) I will initially sand my pen using regular
sandpaper grits of 100/150/220/320/600
at the slowest speed my lathe can go.I sand at the same speed I turn.. usually about 1800 rpms.

3) Using the Paper Blue Shop towels, I fold the
towels over until it's about 2 inches wide
then cut them into strips about 2 inches wide.
I don't use paper towels... I think it causes the CA to set too fast. I use the foam sheets that comes wrapped around electronics, cut into 1 x 3 inch strips... CA doesn't soak in and all of it goes onto the pen... and if you watch closely, you can add the CA without gloves.

4) Now I crank up the speed on the lathe to about
the middle of my middle range. I put one of these
pads up against one side of the pen barrel and
put a couple of drops of BLO (Boiled Linseed Oil) on
the pen and rub the pad back and forth until it covers
the pen.
I turn the lathe down to lowest speed for this procedure. I also use a little lintless paper from Kimberly-Clark called Kimwipes.. works well with the BLO

5) Now I use some Medium thickness CyanoAcrylate
glue and while the lathe is still running and the pad
still up against the pen, I run a thin bead of CA
along the pen barrel.
Same as you, Medium CA, but apply at 450 rpms with the foam pads mentioned above.

6) Keeping a close eye on things, I run the pad back
and forth until the pen has a nice sheen to it.
Depending on the speed, this may only take
several seconds.
ditto

7) Depending on how things look, Repeat steps
4,5,6. I typically do it 3 times
ditto

8) Now it's time to polish. I have a set of micromesh
pads that I think you can get from woodturners
catalog. These start at like 1500 grit (I think) and go
way way up from there. Very fine stuff.
I will wet sand with alittle spray bottle and a MM Pad
and will sand on each grit for about 5 seconds or so
on the Very slowest speed my lathe will go.
I think the MM pads start at 600, but same as what I use.. wet sand from a cool whip container filled with water and placed under the blank.. usually sand at high speed (about 1800) but just seconds with each grit until I get the blank smooth as I want it..

9) Once that's done, it's pretty shiny, but not quite shiny enough.
I made a buffing wheel for my lathe out of some threaded
rod and two buffing pads. I put Tripoli compound on one and
some very fine Diamon compound on the other.
I crank the lathe up to the max speed on the middle range
and with the pen still on the mandrel will buff on the tripoli
first. Then I wipe the pen of real good and then buff on the
diamond wheel.
At this point, if all went well, I've got a pen with a perfectly
clear, deep looking, glassy shine.
I use a plastic polish as last step.. rarely ever use the buffing wheels.. I've not seen any improvement by using the buffers.

10) If you used gloves, you've probably done a good
job of not gluing your fingers together.
If you are like me, you probably now have a thick coating
of glue on your fingers. I find that working some hand
lotion into you fingers will help to loosen up the glue after
a few minutes.
I don't often use gloves, when I do, I inevitably glue the fingers together... don't seem to have that problem bare handed, but when I do get CA on the fingers, a little acetone on an old towel gets most off and a quick application of WD40 as a lotion cleans the rest. In my shop WD40 is standard for a hand cleaner.

I like the CA finish and have finally gotten to where I have about a 90% success rate... biggest problem I have is getting the finish too long on the ends of my blanks and then chipping when I press the parts together... I have to be especially careful to make sure I face the finish back to the tube.

I like the way your purpleheart came out.. for me, that is one of the harder woods to finish and have it look right.
 
2008-10-25_021647_PITH-Pen.jpg



All CA is applied with lathe at slowest speed. Applicator is a piece of card stock or 3x5 card.


After sanding to 600, I apply a coat of thin CA and set with accelerator.

I then apply 3 wet coats of thick CA, setting with accelerator between coats.

If needed to trim down "wake" lines left by the applicator, I give the blank a quick turn with the scraper.

Since CA is a urethane component compound, I finish my pens much like I finish out a car. (I am a body man by trade!!)

Next I begin wet sanding with lathe around 1400 rpm. I run through all the MM to 12000. I then cut and buff with a rubbing compound (wool pad), then a machining compound (foam pad), and then a polishing compound (foam pad). Finish with a good coat of quality car wax (terry cloth applicator and a polishing cloth to wipe down. Whole process takes me no longer than 5 minutes.



3 of these 4 are CA finished.

2008-10-25_023353_4.jpg
 
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