Circuit board blanks

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whteglve

whteglve

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Joined
Jun 23, 2008
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112
Location
Lexington, NC
I purchased several Sierra circuit board kits from a supplier and destroyed three of them. I now need to find replacement blanks. Is such a thing available or should I just order new kits and cannibalize the kist I already have?
 
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You may be able to save the ones you have. Just mix up some 2 part Epoxy and coat them where they blew. Wait a day then return and polish. Turn slowly and with very sharp tools. Use sand paper to finish the last .005 inch or so
 
Someone had posted a tip to use a stanley rasp plane to get the blanks to round. It's a great method, and it works really quite well. Did you have your blowout while rounding the blank, or while turning to size?
 
All three blow outs happened while I was turning down to size and at the end of the blank. I'm not sure what happened because I was taking light cuts with a freshly sharpend gouge.
 
Also I take my bushing and insert in the blank and turn it slowly round on my disk sander till nearly down to the bushing, then finish it with a skew and sand parer
 
diamundgem said:
You may be able to save the ones you have. Just mix up some 2 part Epoxy and coat them where they blew. Wait a day then return and polish. Turn slowly and with very sharp tools. Use sand paper to finish the last .005 inch or so
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Jim, how well does this work? Have you actually done it before?

I know when I tried to fill some small voids will CA the area I filled would never polish up clear. If your method works it would be an easy fix! :)

Another option would be to find someone who does their own casting and have them recast it.
 
To eliminate blowouts on the ends of the blanks always start at the end and roll the tool toward the bushing. Keep doing this in light passes until you get close to the size needed. Now you then can start shaping the middle of the blank slowly and again using sharp tools. Any tool you are confortable with will work. Work the ends first is important because it will relive the stress when shaping the blank.
 
Acrylics are not "gouge" friendly. Others will disagree but I stand firm on that statement. The best tool is a sharp skew. I always use a skew from start to finish...square to final size and can't remember the last "blowout". We use the word blowout to mean everything from a small chip out to major destruction.
Do a good turn daily!
Don
 
its_virgil said:
Acrylics are not "gouge" friendly. Others will disagree but I stand firm on that statement. The best tool is a sharp skew. I always use a skew from start to finish...square to final size and can't remember the last "blowout". We use the word blowout to mean everything from a small chip out to major destruction.
Do a good turn daily!
Don
Click to expand...


The reason I disagree with you is because if you ever look at any tool that you turn a small pen blank with there is such a minute section of the cutting edge that is touching the blank as you turn. If the tool is sharp then any tool will cut acrylic as well as wood. I use my fingernail gouge to take a blank round most of the time or will pick up the roughing gouge. Whatever tools lands in my hand first. Now what may come into play is the angle the tool is sharpened at. The more blunt a tool is the more problems you may have. But I have used just about every tool made to turn acrylic or wood pen blanks. I explained in my last post why most people get blow outs at the ends of any blank and to eliminate this you need to work the ends down first. Heck I get more blow outs when using my mill to true the ends because the blade catches. Never had a blow out of a blank yet and if I do I will recognise right away what went wrong. Now there are some woods or even acrylics that may have been over cooked or woods that are too spalty or weak and there is no knowing until you spin them.

The tool I prefer is the skew so I will agree with you on that.
 
They are made from P.R. and can be repaired. If you dig a chunk out or chip it as said you can just put it in a mold and recast with PR Polyester resin. A small chip can be repaired with CA. Don't use anything else but PR on a bad blow out. As long as you didn't put any other chemical on it such as wax or polishing compound or did actually tear the components even then if you are careful and creative you can fix that. When you recast it with PR and about 4 drops of MEKP per once you won't even know it. Now you have to cast it in a mold PR doesn't like to go on like epoxy for small repairs. Blow it out real good with air. Epoxy mite work OK but I wouldn't use for a big repair and if there is a crack be sure to break it open so the PR can get in there.

If you can't do casting send me a PM I will attempt a repair for you for about 1/2 the cost of a replacement blank.

.
 
I have 2 "Euro" style gouges that are 1/3 roundstock instead of the 1/2 roundstock type gouges. I fingernail profiled them and use them all the time with PR. Those and round nose scrapers are my favored tools for plastics.
 
We all have our favorite tools. Maybe my comment was a bit biased. But, using a fingernail grind on a gouge, especially if you use the wing, is much like using a skew...or so I thought. Oh well, to each his own. I wasn't trying to start an argument.
Do a good turn daily!
Don

Glass Scratcher said:
I have 2 "Euro" style gouges that are 1/3 roundstock instead of the 1/2 roundstock type gouges. I fingernail profiled them and use them all the time with PR. Those and round nose scrapers are my favored tools for plastics.
Click to expand...
 
A properly sharpened and used skew is the best tool for acrylics . It is really not meant to be used flat like a scraper but at an angle taking a shearing cut . Doing it this way there is very little chance of a blow out at the ends of the blank . All you have to do is learn to "Ride the bevel" , all that means is to put bevel of the blade parallel to the blank then slowly tip the cutting edge into the work and slice off the surface of the blank .
 
I cringe when I see someone using a skew as a flat scraper...even worse when I see someone teaching a new turner to use a skew that way. Oh well, to each his own.
Do a good turn daily!
Don

ldb2000 said:
A properly sharpened and used skew is the best tool for acrylics . It is really not meant to be used flat like a scraper but at an angle taking a shearing cut . Doing it this way there is very little chance of a blow out at the ends of the blank . All you have to do is learn to "Ride the bevel" , all that means is to put bevel of the blade parallel to the blank then slowly tip the cutting edge into the work and slice off the surface of the blank .
Click to expand...
 
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