glw20109
Member
This is my first post here, my first pen from WoodTurningz, and my first Inlace Acrylester (Golden Black) and I have to say I've enjoyed both.
In my vast pen turning experience (maybe 30 pens) the Knight pen kit is well made and assembles easily.
I read several posts about Inlace and wondered if I made a mistake. I drilled the blank on the drill press with a self centering pen vise, took short cuts (¼") cleared my chips and gave the drill and blank a few seconds to cool between cuts. No problems at all. I turned the blank at my highest speed (3200 RPM) starting with a negative rake finisher. I experimented with different tools, a roughing gouge, skew, and a scrapper. All of them worked well. I finished the barrel with a micro mesh pads up to 12,000 then polished it.
Lessons Learned:
Next pen is a Fountain Pen, haven't made one yet.
In my vast pen turning experience (maybe 30 pens) the Knight pen kit is well made and assembles easily.
I read several posts about Inlace and wondered if I made a mistake. I drilled the blank on the drill press with a self centering pen vise, took short cuts (¼") cleared my chips and gave the drill and blank a few seconds to cool between cuts. No problems at all. I turned the blank at my highest speed (3200 RPM) starting with a negative rake finisher. I experimented with different tools, a roughing gouge, skew, and a scrapper. All of them worked well. I finished the barrel with a micro mesh pads up to 12,000 then polished it.
Lessons Learned:
- Don't be afraid to try new things, pay attention to the basics.
- Paint the inside of the blank and tube. I always look at the blank and think, to dark the paint won't show through. But when I get the blank turned to size, I should have painted the tube.
- Don't go by the bushings, measure the tip and cap and turn to those dimensions.
- Carefully exam the blank for scratches and bad spots before assembly
Next pen is a Fountain Pen, haven't made one yet.
