ca finish

[Karl Card]

Well I wanted to take a moment and let you all know that I have finally and succesfully finished a pen in ca finish.

It was so neat when it finally worked... oh wow...

I tried it with teak oil just as an experiement only and it does not do well. It is still smooth but it seems teak dulled the finished.

I also tried, dont laugh to hard, liquid poly with the ca and it did okay it is somehting I would use if i wanted a good finish that is not shiny but still clear...

I used danish oil on mine and I will try blo soon just to see if there is a difference but just dont have any at home..

I would show pics but my camera is old and just does not take pics worth anything, seems like it doesnt focus as acurate as it should.

I also wanted to thank all the creekers who gave info and showed where to get info on ca finish...

[Alan Tolchinsky]

Karl, Would you please give a brief run down of your technique. I want to try this. How do you keep your spacers from getting glued to the mandrel? Alan

[David E Keller]

Glad to hear you got it to work... CA makes for my favorite pen finish.

Karl, a little wax on the bushings will work, but I rarely mess with it. I just turn the glue off with a sharp skew .

[Dave Mueller]

Karl,

+1 for more information.

FWIW, I just started turning pens a couple of weeks ago and have been using CA finish. I just used medium CA, drizzled it on a rag, wiped it with a the lathe stopped, sprayed with accelerant and sanded with 400 grit to make the surface uniformly "frosty". I repeated two more times and sanded to 1200 on the last one. I polished with Scratch Off from Walmart with the lathe turning at about 1500 RPM for about 10 seconds until glass smooth.

At first, it seemed that the CA finish was easy but I soon started having some problems. When wiping the CA, it would leave thicker ridges in places which required a lot of sanding. Secondly, I often had dull areas after polishing that just wouldn't polish out. I have had better success with wiping it on with the lathe running slowly. Still use the accelerant but let it cure for a minute or two before polishing. I also tried a very small amount of BLO on the rag (like the video on YouTube but applied the CA directly to the pen before spreading it with the lathe running. These seem to help a lot, but have not completely solved these problems. I would really like to hear from others with more experience with CA finish.

I keep the spacers from sticking by using a little paste wax on them before putting them on the mandrel. You can even buff the wax off and it still works. Haven't lost a spacer yet.

Dave

[Scott Hackler]

Appearantly there must be a ton of different ways to apply a CA finish. Here is my method (that I thought was the only way).

Apply a little Blo to a folded up paper towel, wiping ing off any excess. with the lathe at 2000 rpms (the speed I tun pens at) I drop a couple of drops of CA on the area of the paper towel that has the Blo. From the underside I touch the towel to the blank and move the towel across the entire blank rather quickly (back and forth). Now I have a pretty bright light shining on the turning and you will see a slight haze form followed by a shine that shows the reflection of the paper towel! I do this 3-4 times and call it good. I know that some people will allow it to cure and buff it out to a super glass like surface, but I havent gone that far.

Hope this technique helps.

[Bryan Morgan]

Appearantly there must be a ton of different ways to apply a CA finish. Here is my method (that I thought was the only way).

Apply a little Blo to a folded up paper towel, wiping ing off any excess. with the lathe at 2000 rpms (the speed I tun pens at) I drop a couple of drops of CA on the area of the paper towel that has the Blo. From the underside I touch the towel to the blank and move the towel across the entire blank rather quickly (back and forth). Now I have a pretty bright light shining on the turning and you will see a slight haze form followed by a shine that shows the reflection of the paper towel! I do this 3-4 times and call it good. I know that some people will allow it to cure and buff it out to a super glass like surface, but I havent gone that far.

Hope this technique helps.


My method is similar. With the lathe off, rub in some boiled linseed oil (being sure to get it nice and soaked into the grain) and let it sit for a little bit then wipe it off. Next I turn on the lathe and set it to 1000-1500 rpm. Put a few drops of thin CA on a piece of scrap paper and lift it to the pen (or whatever I'm turning). Move slowly back and forth to coat the whole thing. Let it sit there spinning for a few seconds and repeat the CA coating. I do this 6-10 times watching for it to get built up nice. Next a quick spray of activator. I found that if I use activator between coats sometimes it puts a white coating that gets covered up by the following coat. The only way to fix it is to sand it all back and start over. Next sand it with 220 grit sandpaper to smooth it all out. Then I wet sand it the same way I would an acrylic piece (CA is an acrylic resin). 400-600-1000-1500-12000 or so followed by a liquid polish (something like scratchX or mequires mirror glaze #7/#9). Wind up with a piece of wood that looks like its coated in glass! :) The only thing that stinks (literally) about this is sometimes your eyes and nose burns from the CA. Sometimes the bushings stick to the piece but a quick tap on the workbench breaks them free. Too strong a whack and sometimes it pulls the finish off with it... sometimes I will use a skew to cut right at the edge of the bushing to remove any CA build up.

[Jon Lanier]

On the bushing I put a little home made food wax on them... this stops the glue from sticking...or makes it easy to remove.

As the pen is spinning I put on thin ca.... then I spritz some accelerate. Repeat. And then I do the same thing with medium ca... then spritz... repeat.

Micro Mesh to 20000 grit. And then maybe white diamond, finish always with Ren Wax.

Results: See Picture

[brian watts]

would like to hear more about this.. iam trying it to but have not got it down just right yet.. thanks for telling us some of the trick of the trade..

[Donny Lawson]

I've done a few CA only pens but I find that BLO and CA work better together and does the same job.
Donny

[Bernie Weishapl]

Karl I stopped using the BLO and other finishes with CA. I use straight thin CA with about 4 coats sprayed with accelerate between coats, then buff. IMHO I just find BLO and other finishes used with CA is not needed.

[Karl Card]

Karl I stopped using the BLO and other finishes with CA. I use straight thin CA with about 4 coats sprayed with accelerate between coats, then buff. IMHO I just find BLO and other finishes used with CA is not needed.


Bernie,

I think that I would prefer straight ca but i have a terrible problem with it clumping up and drying to quickly... I often wonder why turner use an accerlerator because I seem to get it to dry so quickly. I started out using my finger, and it never did hurt my finger I just could not get it to spread evenly thru out the pen. I mainly just use the "oil" as a vessel to transfer the glue evenly. I have tried the gorilla super glue and the titebond ca glue. The titebond glue I am using is the thick, and I seem to like it becuase if you have a real grainy wood it is easer t build up smooth than the medium or thin. I will say tho that when I was trying the super glue by itself it was crystal clear and very shiny but I just could not get it to go on smooth as needed.

[Mark Hix]

There are as many ways of doing a CA finish as there are turners. I worked on mine for a while before I got really comfortable with it. You need to find out what works for you. Did anyone say practice? On scrap?

My random 2 cents:

I eliminated the blo in my process. It discolors light woods and causes oily woods to be harder to finish.

If you use a paper towel to apply it, make sure yours are lint free otherwise, you end up with lint in the finish and have to start over (or so I hear).

Burls or open grains? try using it as a filler as you sand. Make a slurry w/ a few drops on some sanding dust (my habit is w/ 320 grit), fill the grain as the glue hardens and then sand w/ the same grit until it is down to the wood level...go on w/ your finish process.

Don't worry about the bushings, turn it off, soak them acetone....focus on getting the finishe evenly on the pen. If you have it on the bushings, score it with a sharp blade and snap it off. If you build up a little ridge by the bushings, you can sand it off.

You do not have to use micromesh to get that shine you are looking for, you can get the same shine by buffing. Add a plastic polish for more kick. I buff on the mandrel because it is easier to hold (EEE and WD followed by plastic polish). After you take the bushings off, buff the ends again.

Accelerator sometimes leaves you with cloudy spots. Something to do with moisture in the blank or on the pen (I am told).

I usually let mine cure overnight before assembly. CA degasses for a while and you are usually not in such a rush that you need to assemble immediatly. When you are and it is a capped pen, leave the cap off as long as you can.

Thoughts on safety: wear at least safety glasses, the lathe is turning and it will come off, you only have one pair of eyes. Store some debonder in the drawer under your lathe or somewhere handy for when you glue yourself to something heavy (but don't tell your wife, she will laugh at you).

Sorry I got wordy...I think I used all of them I had.

[Jon Behnke]

Another factor in the equation is the climate. The higher the humidity in the air, the faster CA will cure and vice versa. A CA finish is more difficult in the winter because of the low humidity. I stopped using BLO and just use medium CA. Several light coats, sanding lightly after every 3 coats, micro mesh and plastic polish. Practice with maple or cherry, both seem easier to get a good finish. Exotics and oily woods are more difficult.

[Karl Card]

Another factor in the equation is the climate. The higher the humidity in the air, the faster CA will cure and vice versa. A CA finish is more difficult in the winter because of the low humidity. I stopped using BLO and just use medium CA. Several light coats, sanding lightly after every 3 coats, micro mesh and plastic polish. Practice with maple or cherry, both seem easier to get a good finish. Exotics and oily woods are more difficult.


It is ironic that you mentioned cherry. Yes I finished a wonderful piece of pinkish/redish cherry and it honestly did finished better than most other woods... didnt know if I got lucky or if it was that way with cherry. I tell ya it was just absolutely brilliantly shiny, colorful and just seemed like a natrual shine.

[Karl Card]

My video camera does work pretty good if I have time tomorrow between the honey do list I may try and video what I did for those that want to try or just see another way or whatever.... Like what has been mentioned just get it to work then tune it in with your thoughts and style and it may be very different than others...

[Allen Neighbors]

I use soft paper towels... can't think of the name, but it starts with a V... I fold the towel 4 times... getting a strip about 1 1/4" wide, about 6 or 8 thicknesses. I hold the towel on my first two fingers. Turn the lathe speed to my lowest speed, which is 640 rpm on Little Vic. Hold the towel under the pen, dribble thin CA along the pen, with the towel touching underneath. When I get a good layer of CA, a couple of quick rubs back and forth, and it's done. It sets up in about 2 minutes. I don't use the accelerator, because it fogged the CA... I apply about 3 or 4 coats, and sand with first 5 grits of micromesh... then apply 3 or 4 more coats... resand with the first 5 grits of micromesh.. 2 or 3 more coats and complete sanding with micromesh. Done.
Buff with Tripoli and White Diamond and wax.
I don't mind waiting for it to cure between coats, because I always have something else on my big lathe to mess with...

[Peter Fabricius]

A comment about the bushings sticking when CA gets on them...
I turn the pen blanks to oversized near the bushings and then remove them. I install cone shaped CORIAN bushings with the narrow end against the blank. This way I can sand to final diameter using the electronic calipers and No worry about hitting bushings for either sanding or applying the BLO/CA finishing technique learned from the Woodworking Friends Forum. Bill Young demonstrated the technique on the UTube video.
It works for me.
Peter F.

[James Combs]

I use one coat of thin CA and several coats of medium. My method uses a folded paper towel as an "applicator" except for the first coat. I set the lathe at its slowest speed, around 330 then I literally pour the first coat of thin slowly over the top of the pen. With the tip of the CA spout touching the top of the pen I slowly rack it along the top of the pen as it dispenses the thin CA. After the whole pen is covered I let it soak for a few seconds then wipe off the excess with a paper towel in one side to side stroke along the bottom. (If I try more then one stroke the CA will be drying and it will cause sticking problems). I carefully set the paper towel aside because most of the time it will get hot and start smoking. It has never charred or appeared like it wanted to ignite but I still watch it carefully. Next I fold a paper towel to form a blunt triangular shaped applicator tip. The tip of the triangle will be about 1/4" wide, widening to 3-4 inches in my hand. My finger will be under and slightly behind the 1/4" "applicator" tip of the towel. I then apply a drop of med. CA about the size of a small pea the the towel right above the location of my finger. I apply this small drop to the underside of the still 330 speed pen blank in a side to side motion making no more then 2 passes. It will start to cure on the 3rd or 4th pass so I don't go there. After each application is cured I then lightly micro mesh sand at 1500-1800. I will repeat this process for up to 4 pea drops. for each blank section for a total of 8 drops on a slim line pen. Single barrel pens will of course only be 4.

Using this method so far I have not had any trouble with unwanted ridges or lumps or other imperfections in the CA.

Final finishing is to treat it like an acrylic blank and polish it with acrylic polish until it shines then I apply a good wax and buff.

Hope this is helpful.

[David E Keller]

Here's my technique:

I apply a quick coat of BLO and buff it dry with the lathe on 1500 to 2000. Then I apply a couple of coats of thin CA using a shop towel folded over about four times... I use the oily spot from the BLO to apply the glue. I usually have the speed around 500 to 750. After I feel like I've got all the pores filled, I switch to medium CA for a faster build. Sometimes I use accelerator between coats. I usually apply 4 or 5 coats of medium CA switching to a new spot on the towel for each application then wet sand with 600 to get rid of any ridges. Then I use the first 5 MM pads followed by buffing then plastic polish. I'm not that compulsive with any of the steps.

For oily woods like cocobolo and rosewoods, I usually wipe the blank down with acetone before beginning the finish.

I usually wait to assemble the pens for at least a day... I tend to make them in batches using several mandrels and then assemble a bunch of them at one time.
152970

[Chris Stolicky]

No offense, David, I am going to start with your post below because we have somewhat similar techniques, but change where I do something different. It also shows how there can be slight differences between turners and still get similar results...

In BLUE


Here's my technique:

I apply a quick coat of BLO and buff it dry with the lathe on 1500 to 2000. Then I apply a couple of coats of thin CA (usually 1 or 2) using a shop towel folded over about four times... I use the oily spot from the BLO to apply the glue. I usually have the speed around 500 to 750 (either ~1200 or 1800). After I feel like I've got all the pores filled, I switch to medium CA for a faster build. Sometimes I use accelerator between coats (no accelerator - had bad luck with cloudy finishes). I usually apply 4 or 5 coats of medium CA switching to a new spot on the towel for each application (new spot will get a drop or two of BLO) then wet sand with 600 to get rid of any ridges (never wet sand). Then I use the first 5 MM pads followed by buffing then plastic polish (will let pen sit over night and then either use plastic polish or white diamond beall buff). I'm not that compulsive with any of the steps (well said).

For oily woods like cocobolo and rosewoods, I usually wipe the blank down with acetone before beginning the finish. (good point to make)

I usually wait to assemble the pens for at least a day... I tend to make them in batches using several mandrels and then assemble a bunch of them at one time. (same here)
152970

With CA finishing, it really comes down to finding out what works for you on any given day.

[David E Keller]

No offense taken. I enjoy reading how other finish their work. I've added(and subtracted) things from my finishing process over the last few years based on what I've read. I think everyone agrees that it's a matter of finding a way that work for you.

[Karl Card]

something else that I have started doing was to take the bushing out in the center if I am doing a 2 piece pen that both ends are the same size (as in a slimline) then I finish sanding and put a finish on it. This way I make sure both ends are the same size for the center band. Personally I have not had a problem with ca and bushings sticking much.