Digital SteamPunk!!?

[James Combs]

Is that an oxymoron or maybe a contradiction in terms:confused::D?

I wanted to try my had at casting watch parts in a pen barrel. All I could find was a couple of my wife's old watches. One was a windup and the other was an electronic battery operated one(the reason for the title:rolleyes:). I dissembled both of them (talk about some small parts) and used them to make the Wall Street III. The WSIII is larger then the WSII so it will hold more stuff in the barrel. I have had the kit and have been wondering for over a year what I might use it for.

This was also a test of my revised casting setup. You may recall that I had some leaks in my earlier version (http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?171798-My-Casting-Setup&highlight=). This is a test of the new o-ring addition. I had use it to make a feather pen (http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?171751-A-Couple-of-Firsts-For-Me&highlight=) and it had leaked and bound up some of my mold fasteners.

This time I was lot better, no stuck fasteners.
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A couple twists of the end caps and a trip to the band-saw and presto a ready to turn blank.
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And the results. Sorry I got carried away with all the little parts.:eek: Should have saved some for the next one.:D
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[Chris Burgess]

Wow. That is Amazing. I am liking your mold. My have to get some of that UHMW (I think that is it) next time I am at wood craft. I did some vertical casts yesterday in 3/4" PVC w/ a lot of luck and the blanks just slid right out.

[Craig Matheny]

Very nice being new how does the pen look so black but the blank seems clear?

[Bernie Weishapl]

Very cool James. I like that blank.

[Chris Burgess]

Very nice being new how does the pen look so black but the blank seems clear?

I am not sure how James did his but you can paint the tube black. I have never done it myself but I hear Rustoleum High Heat is good for this. Some paint that cannot handle the heat of the cure will mess up as well as paint that is water based you have to make sure it is Oil Based as Water and Resin don't mix.

[Jim Burr]

Ha!!! You're my watch pen hero! That is a super job...lots more work on that than an HF...trust me!

[David E Keller]

That's very cool! Looks like a crystal clear cast as well... Nice work!

[James Combs]

Wow. That is Amazing. I am liking your mold. My have to get some of that UHMW (I think that is it) next time I am at wood craft. I did some vertical casts yesterday in 3/4" PVC w/ a lot of luck and the blanks just slid right out.
Chris, I want to try the vertical also. One thing I have been trying to do is limit the amount of resin that is required. Due to the taper of my end plugs this arrangement uses about an 1-3/4oz of resin. I may make some more just for the mold and use these just as a holding fixture for the tube. New ones would have a very short tapered plug, as short as 1-8 inch.


Very nice being new how does the pen look so black but the blank seems clear?
As Chris notes below I painted the lightly sanded tube with Rust-Oleum gloss black enamel. If you try it just make sure you let the paint dry over night. If you don't the paint will mix with the resin while the resin cures. DAMHIKT:o.


Very cool James. I like that blank.
Thanks Bernie, as I hinted at above, I think it is a little too cluttered.


I am not sure how James did his but you can paint the tube black. I have never done it myself but I hear Rustoleum High Heat is good for this. Some paint that cannot handle the heat of the cure will mess up as well as paint that is water based you have to make sure it is Oil Based as Water and Resin don't mix.
You nailed it Chris. I am not currently using the high heat paint but will consider it when next I need paint. I am not sure why dried and thoroughly cured water based paint wouldn't work.:confused:


That's very cool! Looks like a crystal clear cast as well... Nice work!
David, yes it is very clear especially compared to my very first one where I had not let the paint dry thoroughly.:eek: The parts are attached with thick CA with a very little use of accelerator. I drop a small drop of CA on top of the smaller pieces and let it puddle around them. They kind of float to level. Then one really light spray of Acc. to keep the CA from running. Flat parts I just glued on in the traditional "apply glue to back and press on/hold" manner. The puddle of CA dried clear and you cannot see it through the acrylic. Letting the paint cure completely was the biggest contributor to a clear cast though.

[Josh Bowman]

James that's beautiful work and craftsmanship. One question.....does your wife know where her watch's are?:eek::eek:

[James Combs]

James that's beautiful work and craftsmanship. One question.....does your wife know where her watch's are?:eek::eek:

Ooohh, ah, ahhh, was I suppose to tell her.:eek:;)

[Baxter Smith]

Very nice work James!

[Bill Embrey]

James, that has to be the coolest of the steam punk pens that I've seen (do not believe it is too cluttered at all). I showed it to my wife, she loves it, but told me if I touch her watches, she'll sell both my lathes!!! I'm going to have to review your previous posts to glean the details on how you are doing these castings, as my wife wants me to try some ideas that this gave her.

Bill

[Tim Rinehart]

Very nicely done James. I'm inspired. My wife has a gaggle of old watches she hardly ever wears...hehehehe. Won't she be surprised when she gets a 'special' pen like this sometime!
Any reason why you couldn't use old cutting boards, which seem 'similar' to the UHMW. Maybe not as slick. Just curious if you or anyone else knows from experience.
Again, that's a fantastic job and beautiful resulting pen.

[James Combs]

Very nicely done James. I'm inspired. My wife has a gaggle of old watches she hardly ever wears...hehehehe. Won't she be surprised when she gets a 'special' pen like this sometime!
Any reason why you couldn't use old cutting boards, which seem 'similar' to the UHMW. Maybe not as slick. Just curious if you or anyone else knows from experience.
Again, that's a fantastic job and beautiful resulting pen.

Thanks Tim, and there is absolutely no reason cutting boards could not be used. Just make sure they are thicker ones. I think they are made from UHMW anyway and I have heard/read of others using cutting boards as a supply of UHMW type material. I read somewhere of someone running them through their planer to remove the texture on them. Good Luck.

[Scott Hackler]

James, that is real cool. I am a watch nut, turner and a fan of steampunk, so this hits all the right notes for me!

I have a question regarding the assembly. Do you bend and glue the watch dials and gears to the painted tube or are they just laying in the mold??

[James Combs]

James, that is real cool. I am a watch nut, turner and a fan of steampunk, so this hits all the right notes for me!

I have a question regarding the assembly. Do you bend and glue the watch dials and gears to the painted tube or are they just laying in the mold??

There are others that do this and I probably don't do it the same way but for this one (and only one so far) I used thick CA, dripping a drop over each part and letting it set with a small amount of accelerator, don't want it to foam or bubble. I do the top of the black painted tube then when the CA sets I rotate the tube, (see my clamp setup in my Casting Setup (http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?171798-My-Casting-Setup&highlight=) thread). It is definitely a time consuming process. Flat parts that you can put a drop on the back of are fairly easy just daub them then stick them on and hold for a few seconds. Yes I did bend some parts like the face and a frame piece but if I do more of these I am going to try to come up with something that bends without scuffing, perhaps rubber coated plier jaws or something similar. Right now I am out of watches, going to rummage through some of my old junk drawers and see if I can find any. Hope this helps.

[Scott Hackler]

Thanks for the info James.