acrylics - what and where?

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jumps

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Having seen some interesting examples of encapsulated materials used in turning I am interested in exploring further - can anyone point me in the right direction?

Thank you in advance.
 
its all alien to me, but the competition has a sub forum dedicated to casting acrylic pen blanks...
http://www.penturners.org/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=43
you may be able to glean some info from there?

and if it floats your boat...http://www.turners-retreat.co.uk/acatal ... g_Kit.html

or if its bigger and better stuff, one of the georges is a big fan. i asked him many months ago about the source of the blanks - the US, dont know if he has started making his own yet?

are you there george???

EDIT. #-o its GeorgeW, a page or two back of his latest post george-w-s-2011-woodturning-pic-s-thread-t47284-165.html =D>
 
One of the turners at our club uses this and comments that it works out a lot cheaper than Turners Retreat for something that is similar (he started with the TT stuff but was put off by the price)
 
thanks Nev, it was GeorgeW's thread and recent work that got me thinking 'differently' about the opportunities to encapsulate nature elements.

further research (following your other links) lead me to basic clear cast polyester resin as the 'what'.
 
duncanh":1utz8r2i said:
One of the turners at our club uses this and comments that it works out a lot cheaper than Turners Retreat for something that is similar (he started with the TT stuff but was put off by the price)

thanks Duncan
 
Forgot to say - in case I picked up the wrong product off the website just phone them and they'll put you right - having dealt with them in the past I found them really helpful and they're aware that some of their products are used for turning
 
jumps,

To further your interest in pen making, there are all manner of different methods of making a pen other than just turning a plain wood one.

Embedding in clear cast resin, segmenting, putting in accents of different materials ie:

Aluminium, Brass, Traffolyte, other woods, even brass powder and CA glue.

Here's a few examples of what I mean:










The top two is a pen I made for a friend to celebrate her being the Lady Captain of her golf club this year.

She was photographed teeing off, the pic printed off, sized and glued on to the brass tube for the cap.

Similarly, the same for the text on the barrel. It was well received!

The next is a pen made from Purpleheart, Sycamore and Bloodwood glued together then cut into sixteen segments,

then glued back together rotating each one a set amount.

The last one, (In Ebony) the blank is cut, a square of thin Aluminium is glued in then cut again and is repeated till all are glued and set,

then drilled out....Not too fond of Ebony, too plasticky when finished if you know what I mean.

But put in some accents, and it changes the whole outlook of something.

Oh, just in case you want to know what 'Traffolyte' is. That's what is in the very last one.





John. B
 
John. B":32rdit2m said:
Oh, just in case you want to know what 'Traffolyte' is. That's what is in the very last one.





John. B

i cant see any traffic lights :? :)

John, when you print something to cast do you use any special paper or inks or seal the picture with anything? (thinking about running or bleeding)
 
Nev,

Ho,Ho, traffic lights (tsk,tsk)

After several failures, mainly due to the paper un-sticking from the tube. In the end I used thin gloss paper, cut it to size, (and that aint easy) it has to be dead on,

it can be oversized a little lengthways, because that can be trimmed off with a sharp scalpel. The edge to edge is the problem, the tiniest gap will show.

I tried most adhesives, spray mount, pva, lacquer, etc ended up with thin CA glue. Pre rolled the pic sanded the tube, drew black felt tip permanent ink down where the joint would

be, spread the glue and held it closed with those polythene gloves you get at the fuel station till it went off.

Didn't get any bleed, (ordinary Epson inkjet) turned two small plugs 20/22mm, diam filled the tubes with lead shot (otherwise it will float)

plugged them in the end of the tubes then into the mold box. Mixed up the resin and Very carefully pored it in making sure no bubbles formed, tapping usually

brings them to the surface.

Then on to the lathe. Again extreme care and very sharp tools is the order for the day! I did get some failures here, a touch of carelessness, a chunk broke off,

another time the tube loosened itself from the resin, I think that was due to me sealing it with lacquer and the resin softened the lacquer and the tube came out.

Final polishing as with any acrylic.

As I said in the beginning, it aint easy. When it does comes together though and works, it is very pleasing and satisfying.

As in all Woodturning, it's an ongoing learning curve. When it works, it's great, when it doesn't, it's time for a cup of tea. (hammer) #-o

Hope that's of any help.

John. B
 
Sorry for the delay Nev,

So far I have only used CFS...www.cfsnet.co.uk. I did a web search and decided on CFS. Their reviews were good and

their prices seemed at the time to be competitive. I don't know if there is much difference between resin manufacturers,

I would have to trial a few to make a judgement.

John. B
 
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