First attempt at casting

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KMCloonan

KMCloonan

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Inspired by Ken B, I followed suit and built a simple HDPE mold, bought epoxy casting resin and mica powder pigment from Hobby Lobby and used some "junk" wood pieces to make a couple blanks, one of which I turned into a Celtic pen. The end result is encouraging, but not something I would give to a friend or try to sell.

If you look close at the photo of the cast resin block, you can see what looks like broken off toothpicks (because that's what they are). After I poured the epoxy into the mold, the chunks of wood kept trying to float up to the top, so I fashioned a crude lid with 4 toothpicks sticking out, and placed the lid onto the mold. The toothpicks kept the chunks submerged, but I failed to remove the lid before the epoxy set up, so I had to break off the toothpicks. Also, I coated the HDPE with paste wax (car wax), which worked beautifully.

It seems like 90%+ of the epoxy winds up in the garbage, but it's fun to try new things.

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Nicely done!!! What resin did you use? I love the translucent look of the resin. I have that same kit that my wife has been waiting for me to make for her but she picked a blank at Rockler for it.

as a tip I learned from NVWoodworks and Bens Worx (on YouTube) you can hit glue the wood down to the bottom of mold before casting to keep the wood from floating.
 
When my wife first started her blanks always looked terrible, until they were turned. Plus I'd rather have a blank that looked great after I turned it over a blank that only looked good before i turned it anyday.
 
Great effort I have never tried to cast I can make enough mess glueing wood together with CA etc.
But I like it a lot.
 
Stubach said:
Nicely done!!! What resin did you use? I love the translucent look of the resin. I have that same kit that my wife has been waiting for me to make for her but she picked a blank at Rockler for it.

as a tip I learned from NVWoodworks and Bens Worx (on YouTube) you can hit glue the wood down to the bottom of mold before casting to keep the wood from floating.
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I used Amazing Clear Cast resin and Pearl Ex pigment powder (which gives the translucent look).

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Thanks for the tip to glue the wood down.
 
I think the pen looks Great. As mentioned the blank might look a little rough but you not selling blanks so it the final product that counts. If you want to sell blanks you just need a couple of tweaks and your there. Your off to a Great Start.
 
Turned out very nice and I'm glad I was an inspiration. I enjoyed my little experiment enough that I decided to get into casting a little deeper.
 
KenB259 said:
Turned out very nice and I'm glad I was an inspiration. I enjoyed my little experiment enough that I decided to get into casting a little deeper.
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LOL - I already bought a 4-blank silicone mold, and will experiment some more. I don't know if I would ever go as far as buying a pressure pot and all that. I'm about knee-deep in the rabbit hole, and don't think I want to jump in all the way šŸ˜
 
tomtedesco said:
Always another rabbit hole to go into, very well done.
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I read that line twice, and somehow both times I came up with "another rabbi hole", and wondered what sort of analogy that was. Must be derived from the lesser-known parable of the burrowing rabbi. Or maybe the one about the rabbi carpenter and his drill.

Might be time to get my eyes checked.

Or maybe just my brain.
 
For a first try, that is a great job! Amazing clear Cast works well for casting pens. Also, if you're not using a pressure pot, if mixed slowly and with care, minimizes bubbles. It turns very nicely on the lathe. I use it for a lot of projects.
your pen came out lovely! That is a great green!
 
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