turning corean type material

[David Little]

In several threads created by those who turn pens I have seen references to using materials that I had not yet considered for turning on the lathe. I assume the mention of corean for making pens refers to the counter-top material. I'm wondering if it is possible, or advisable, to try to turn these kinds of materials for such uses as lamp bases. How does turning these kinds of materials compare with turning wood? Do you use the same techniques and tools? Thanks to anyone who cares to answer these "newbie" questions.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

David.....I've recently turned corian pens. They turn like wood. I used only a freshly shapened skew to make them. I found myself getting curlies off the material just like I'd get if I was turning wood. The only problem I had with the corian was when I drilled the pen blanks for glueing in the barrels. Even though I was extemely careful ....I wouldn't drill more than 1/8" before clearing the debris and used an air hose all the time...I still had a large number of blanks blow out as I was nearly through them. My final fix was to use a blank that was 3/4" longer than I needed. If it blew out, I could cut the blank back to the 2 1/8" that I needed. It might be that my drill bit was too dull but it still works well on wood?

[Ron Kerpsack]

Hi
I turned a few pens and pencils from corian. It works just like a hard wood, but be careful when drilling it. It gets hot and cracks so drill slow and use sharp bits. I use poly glue to glue in the tubes. It seems to be stronger than CA. It does finish nice and you can use either wet dry paper or micro mesh with great results. Have fun