Giving CA one more chance- Rockler's Stick Fast, and using more than one brand of CA

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BigguyZ

BigguyZ

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Aug 8, 2007
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Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA.
OK, so in the interest of time, I'm going to give CA one last chance. I'm going to try to stabilize all woods, and then I'm throwing my old bottles of CA and using fresh ones.

I've been using the Stick Fast product that Rockler has, as it's a good price for the large bottles. I recently bought fresh bottles of Thin and Medium.

However, I'm wondering if the Stick Fast just isn't a good product. How much difference is there in CA? Is the Stick Fast OK (when fresh, of course)?

I bought a bottle of medium Hot Stuff from WC today to try, but can I use the medium Hot Stuff over the thin Stick Fast? Or do I need to use only one brand of the other?

Sorry for all of the ?'s, but I'm getting leary of making a bunch of pens all at once, and then having them go bad! Especially since it seems to take a good deal of time beforehand. I don't want stuff I'm selling to come back.

Thanks!
Travis
 
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I'm getting a bunch of small hairline cracks in the finish. Most you can't feel or even see unless you look real close, but I don't like the idea of selling a pen that may "go bad" and come back- or worse yet- never come back at all ever again!

And since I do pens in batches (drill all of the pens, glue all of the pens, turn all of the pens, finish all of the pens) I finish a lot of pens in a row. So if I get the the final/ finishing step for 30 wood pens, and I'm using a method/ glue that doesn't work, that's 30 pens that I have to eithe scrap or re-do. (most likely the former, unless it's something spectacular).
 
Do you have a picture? I'm wondering if the problem is heat related, blank getting hot when finished and shrinking later and causing the finish to crack. do you wet sand your finish?
 
Displaced Canadian said:
Do you have a picture? I'm wondering if the problem is heat related, blank getting hot when finished and shrinking later and causing the finish to crack. do you wet sand your finish?
Click to expand...

I could try to take a picture, but no camera I have will do a Macro shot good enough to pick them up. As it is, it's hard to see on some pens without looking rediculously close.

I'm changing my process, but it was to turn to final diameter, wet sand with MS (on the wood). Let the MS dry off (usually with a dry towel applying pressure/ heat). add a drop of BLO for color. Burnish with a cotton rag. Let sit in the original baggie to rest for a week or two. (would move to working on acrylics). Then, add the CA finish. And I wet sand the CA with MS as well.

Now, I'm turning the naked wood blank (no tube installed) down to pretty close to final diameter. Then, stabilize in plexi/acetone. Then allow to dry. Then install tubes. Then turn to final diameter. Probably skip the BLO. Then do the CA finish.

Of course, I just started my new process, so I have no idea how well it'll work out in the end.

Backup plan, give away my wood pens and use only professionally stabilized woods (whatever the "pros" who have the heavy-duty equipment have to offer), Tru-stone, Antler, Aluminum, and Acrylics. :(
 
I wonder if wet sanding the bare wood blank is the problem. I sand the bare blank through the 4th sheet of micro mesh, wipe with acetone, and finish with CA. A lot of people use BLO so that can't be the problem. I only wet sand after I applied the CA
 
Displaced Canadian said:
I wonder if wet sanding the bare wood blank is the problem. I sand the bare blank through the 4th sheet of micro mesh, wipe with acetone, and finish with CA. A lot of people use BLO so that can't be the problem. I only wet sand after I applied the CA
Click to expand...

1+ for the wet sanding being the problem . Adding the water to the blank will cause it to swell then as it dries it will shrink again . Drying on the lathe will not get all the moisture that you added to the wood , you have to let it dry for several days to get it dry again or force dry it in the microwave or oven . Stop wet sanding the wood and just finish with CA or BLO/CA and see if that helps .
 
I'll go ahead and try without the wet sanding.

IMO, it leads to a smoother surface on which to build the CA finish on, and it helps clean off the dust from the blank. And keep in mind I'm wet sanding with MS, not water. Also, I flash the MS off with heat (friction, from pressure with a cotton rag), and let it sit for some time to dry out.

But if you all think that's possibly the culprit, I'll change my ways! :)
 
+1 on the wet sanding and also I think putting them in the platic baggie.

You are heating up the wood, then wet sanding it, then sealing it in a plastic baggie, Condensation will form, even if you cant see it to the naked eye.

Then you finish over it and it trys to get out and cracks the finish..
 
I was having the same problem with my oak burl pens, (one week to two months later a crack or two would show up). The rep. at woodcraft told me to stop using blo. I now only use CA and have not had any problems. He gave me a really good explanation of why the blo can cause those cracks, but I just cant remember what that explanation was.
 
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