My first bolt action with antler

[OklaTurner]

I turned my first bolt action kit last night and loved it. It was also my first time to turn deer antler.

I ran into a couple issues. First, I didn't use accelerator for the CA and it wouldn't set up for me. So, I'll be going to the store soon to get a can of accelerator. Second, the nib section of the kit was too small. I aligned the nib with the tube and it slid right in. So, rather than go to the store to have it exchanged, I just added a little CA to it and assembled it.

All in all, I'm very pleased with how it turned out. I look forward to doing more of these. In fact, I have a slim line and a deer hunter bolt action in my mail box right now!

Micah

 

[TonyL]

Nice grain, shape, and matching.

 

[magpens]

A beauty !!!!

 

[socdad]

Good looking pen, did you put any finish on the antler?

 

[OklaTurner]

Good looking pen, did you put any finish on the antler?

Twice I applied 3-4 layers of medium CA, but it didn't set up. There is evidence of CA in the divets, but not much on the rest of the antler. I was going for a solid gloss look, but didn't think to buy the accelerator when I was buying all my supplies. I'll fix that for the rest of my pens.

I was surprised at how much I remembered from 15 years ago and I only turned about half a dozen pens at that time.

 

[OZturner]

Good looking pen, did you put any finish on the antler?

Twice I applied 3-4 layers of medium CA, but it didn't set up. There is evidence of CA in the divets, but not much on the rest of the antler. I was going for a solid gloss look, but didn't think to buy the accelerator when I was buying all my supplies. I'll fix that for the rest of my pens.

I was surprised at how much I remembered from 15 years ago and I only turned about half a dozen pens at that time.

I would also consider that the problem may be with the CA.
CA will usually set "Off" on it's own, with the moisture in the Air.
Accelerator is used to speed up the Process, primarily to hold parts together.
Of course it being Winter, there may not be any significant Humidity in the Air, also with the Porosity of the Antler, the CA may be being drawn into the Antler, rather than staying on the Surface.
Is there any "Tackingness" or "Wetness"on the Antler, that would indicate that the CA has not "Gone Off?
Regards
Brian.

 

[OklaTurner]

Good looking pen, did you put any finish on the antler?

Twice I applied 3-4 layers of medium CA, but it didn't set up. There is evidence of CA in the divets, but not much on the rest of the antler. I was going for a solid gloss look, but didn't think to buy the accelerator when I was buying all my supplies. I'll fix that for the rest of my pens.

I was surprised at how much I remembered from 15 years ago and I only turned about half a dozen pens at that time.

I would also consider that the problem may be with the CA.
CA will usually set "Off" on it's own, with the moisture in the Air.
Accelerator is used to speed up the Process, primarily to hold parts together.
Of course it being Winter, there may not be any significant Humidity in the Air, also with the Porosity of the Antler, the CA may be being drawn into the Antler, rather than staying on the Surface.
Is there any "Tackingness" or "Wetness"on the Antler, that would indicate that the CA has not "Gone Off?
Regards
Brian.

There was a lot of tackiness to the CA. I ended up putting a halogen lamp about 4 inches from the blank for several minutes. I let it heat up until it began to smoke a little then removed the light. I then sanded a bit which is what pulled most of the CA off the blank. At that point, I was happy to have the soft part of the antler stabilized. I then moved on to polishing with the MM. Upon finishing that, I was happy to have a natural looking blank. It is a gift for my Dad, who will not be able to identify any flaws in the blank. In fact, he'll probably see some of the discoloration from the CA as character and not a flaw.

Thanks for the insight. I appreciate it and will consider this and future advice as it comes to me.

 

[BobGast]

Nice pen!


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[1bigtuna]

I turned my first bolt action kit last night and loved it. It was also my first time to turn deer antler.



I ran into a couple issues. First, I didn't use accelerator for the CA and it wouldn't set up for me. So, I'll be going to the store soon to get a can of accelerator. Second, the nib section of the kit was too small. I aligned the nib with the tube and it slid right in. So, rather than go to the store to have it exchanged, I just added a little CA to it and assembled it.



All in all, I'm very pleased with how it turned out. I look forward to doing more of these. In fact, I have a slim line and a deer hunter bolt action in my mail box right now!



Micah

This is my first I was told to polish just like acrylic and it works great

Sent from my iPad using Penturners.org mobile app

 

[OklaTurner]

Good looking pen, Big Tuna.

I had some rough texture in the morrow of my pen that I couldn't get out, which prevented me from getting it to polish like acrylic. The section that was harder, though, polished up nicely.

 

[PapaTim]

Micah, what thickness of CA were you using? I don't use accelerator, just a couple or three coats of thin followed by several coats of medium. You can just use thin but it takes longer to build up.

 

[Sataro]

Pen looks great. I'm in agreement with some of the others on here. No accelerant needed. Antler looks a little porous. My steps are to turn it down close to finished size & then stop to work on porous area. I will hold a paper towel under antler & just pour the thin CA to the blank. Turn the blank on the lathe by hand & make sure all areas are filled in. Once it appears that no more CA will sink in, I will let it dry, then turn down to finish size. Then I use thin CA to apply my finish coats. I normally use thin CA & build it up with my thin CA. No accelerant needed.

 

[WriteON]

Came out great. There are a lot of nice pen kit to choose from. My .02 is The Bolt is without the coolest to make, own, sell. People are fascinated when they see one. So am I. It is unique. Does not get old.

 

[OklaTurner]

Thanks everyone. I turned my second bold action on Monday evening. It turned out much better. The CA really took to it and looks great.