Fast or slow. Heavy or light

[Aaturner]

I am new to turning pens , and want to try and get the best possible finish on acrylics. Do you sand through 12000 micro mesh at a high or low speed? Heavy pressure or light preasure? Any feedback would be a great help. Thanks guys and gals

 

[CREID]

Low speed, wet sand, light pressure. First I wet sand with 400 before I MM. Then after MM I polish with Maguires Plastx at medium speed.

 

[Brotherdale]

My heavy handed sanding has caused me many hours of extra work. Sanding with light pressure is the way to go for finish work.

 

[robutacion]

Some new turners don't realise how much material wet and dry sanding can remove even with fine grits so, I support the advice giving above...!

Cheers
George

 

[Wescott]

Low speed, wet sand through 600, MM with a light touch through first three pads (1280 I think) followed by three coats of PlastX

 

[leehljp]

Instead of heavy pressure, use lower grits and move up using the next up grit. I have noticed over the years that "heavy pressure" is used when a slight defect is noticed and one (we or I) want to get it out without having to go back down a grit. Take your time and enjoy the journey of pen making. It is the enjoyment of the journey that produces the best pens.

 

[TonyL]

You are going to get a ton of excellent, up to date advice from experts here. You also may try in the search box "Scratch free acrylic Finish". You may find a process that appeals to you. Happy turning and finishing!

 

[dogcatcher]

Also remember to wipe down with a "clean" paper towel between grits. Especially if you are using cheap sandpaper, one grain of "sand" from a lower grit will devastate a smooth finish.

 

[Aaturner]

So do we go with low speed, about how many RPMs

 

[Ted iin Michigan]

I agree. Low speeds. My pen lathe goes down to two hundred something. That's good. I also support clearing off the mess from the previous grit before the next one. I keep separate "baths" of water for each grit (the plastic cream cheese tubs from Panera work great ).

 

[leehljp]

Most pen lathes go down to about 600 RPM and some finer ones go slower. 600RPM is fine.

 

[DJBPenmaker]

Yes, slow speed mine is about 500, wet sanding also sand lengthways between each grit. Then a plastic polish to finish

Sent from my SM-G955F using Tapatalk

 

[JPW062]

Definitely light touch.
I go a bit faster on the finer grits. Maybe 1000. I seem to get a really smooth finish that way. In my mind it is building up enough heat to melt a bit, but I am not really sure about that.

 

[JimB]

Definitely light touch.
I go a bit faster on the finer grits. Maybe 1000. I seem to get a really smooth finish that way. In my mind it is building up enough heat to melt a bit, but I am not really sure about that.

You are not building up that much heat. If it was melting anything you would have a mess, not a smooth finish

 

[Aaturner]

Thanks for all the info.