New line in pens

[John. B]

Hello everyone, have been away.
Got a new line in pens, I call them 'Steampunk' you know old fashioned cogs and wheels to make things go. 8) 8) In this case watch parts, curved to fit the barrel encased in clear acrylic turned and polished.

http://i426.photobucket.com/albums/pp350/Traincaptain/2-Lorus3BB_zpse9013fda.jpg[/img]

How do you like them?
John B.

 

[NikNak]

Like muchly.....!!! =D> =D> =D>

Want want want.... are you selling them..?

Would love one of the 2 piece kits..... will they do either a large gents pen kit or the slightly smaller classic pen kit..?



Nick

 

[John. B]

Thank you nick,
Yes I do sell them, I have six left on ebay at present but I only have one two piece left which is a JR gent with a timex watch face.
If you are interested in buying one look on ebay under the name 'Komarika'.
I have a few other pens on the same page of a different type. EG bullet pens and some high end fountain pens.
john. B

 

[Inspector]

Nice looking work. Are you casting your own blanks or buying them from a vendor? I've turned one for retirement gift couple years ago from blanks my wife occasionally makes and sells. Though not with the carbon fibre background you show. Hers have painted backgrounds.

Pete

 

[John. B]

I make my own moulds in Silicon rubber which is quite easy with a plug made from quality ply that has 3 or 4 coats of sanding sealer then burnished, then screwed together so it
comes apart completely. As I do not have a vacuum chamber I cut a small hole in a mixing bucket, tape the hole with masking tape, mix up the silicon in another mixing bucket pour it

into holed bucket that's arranged on the edge of the work table directly above the plug on the floor and pull the tape off.
As the silicon runs from the hole, it it falls about a metre into the plug mould. Due to the viscosity, it will fall in a very thin stream, so thin (about 1 or 2 mm) there is no room for any
bubbles to form. So you just let it fill the mould plug, let it set and 'Voila' you have bubble free mould.

The carbon fibre I use is carbon fibre tube bought by the metre slightly smaller the the tube. Pushed together it opens up then pushed onto the tub,e squeezed at the end CA applied, wait till it goes off, cut the surplus square to the tube and you're ready to apply whatever you are putting on the pen.
John. B

 

[themackay]

Hi John lovely pens there you have certainly made an excellent job of them its something thats on my to do list soon, Im scrounging about for old watches at the moment annoying thing is I threw a couple away about 6 months ago when I was clearing out a drawer,which type of resin are you using.

Alan

 

[themackay]

Oh and where do you get your carbon fibre

 

[NikNak]

Hi John.... they do look lovely, but think you maybe misunderstood..... do you sell the made-up blanks to enable us turners to make our own pen (i.e. as a 'kit' etc..?) (hammer) (hammer)



Nick

 

[gregmcateer]

Very nice indeed, John

PS How do you search for a seller on ebay? I don't get any results when I search Komarika

 

[Inspector]

Since you make your own moulds it's logical that you would make your own pen blanks too.

I make Marla's moulds too and use a small Venturi type vacuum to help degas the silicon. It doesn't get them all but I found they rise to the surface, which is the back of the mould the way I do it, so who cares about some bubbles there. The cured silicone around the blanks are smooth and bubble free and that's where it counts. Since a few replacement moulds are in my future, along with the vacuum I'll also try pouring from a height and see how that works out. Thanks.

John on the 2 piece pen it looks like the ends of the blank have separated from the tube a bit on the cap. Is that what happened or is it just the way the picture looks?

Nick if John doesn't wish to sell blanks you can get them from the USA but they aren't cheap. I'd post a link but as my wife also sells through that vendor it might break a forum rule. Don't want to do that. (hammer) PM me if you end up needing it.

Best of the season :ho2
Pete

 

[John. B]

Alan,
I get my resin and carbon fibre from 'Easy Composites' just google that name and you will find it.

gregmcateer,
To look for a seller/item.item number look to the right side of the page, next SEARCH is advanced search click on that,

go to the left side of the page where there is box to find a seller/item/item number etc.

Pete,
Not separated for some reason the end of the cap just went slightly milky. Other than that there was no other affects.

John. B

PS gregmcateer, where did you get a name like that? :shock: :shock: :shock:

 

[Dalboy]

Very nice Pens but I find the first one a little overcrowded compared to the two sierra's.

They are all well turned and finished

 

[gregmcateer]

To look for a seller/item.item number look to the right side of the page, next SEARCH is advanced search click on that,

go to the left side of the page where there is box to find a seller/item/item number etc.

Ta - Got it.

PS gregmcateer, where did you get a name like that? :shock: :shock: :shock:

Errrm, Me Mum and Dad, I guess. :lol:
Well, to be more accurate, the mcateer came from my Dad - traditional passing of paternal surname to offspring
greg - I can't be certain, but I guess, like most kids, my name was probably chosen by my mum and unless actively objected to by the Dad, that was the name that was registered.

All clear, John. B ?

Cheers,

Greg

 

[John. B]

:shock: Mmmm, Not really, but it does sound good :roll: :roll: :roll: (hammer) (hammer) (hammer) :shock: :shock:
John. B

 

[themackay]

Hi John,I take it its the water clear resin you use also there is Polyurethane and Polyester which one do you use.

Alan

 

[John. B]

Hello Alan,
polyester casting resin.
john. B

 

[themackay]

Hi John another question or 2 is it the 10mm carbon fiber sleeve the right size wouldnt mind some info on how you make your moulds

Alan

 

[John. B]

Hello Alan,
It's 10mm sleeve I use for both JR Gents and Sierra's.
Right! how to make a mould:-
I use birch ply that's at least 22mm thick. With that I make a box of the ply (these are the measurements of one of them) 4" x 3-1/4" x 1-1/2".
I then make two blanks, again of ply 1-7/8" x 1-7/8" drill all the holes to screw the lot together sand and clean everything put 3 or 4 coats of sanding sealer
on all the wood and leave to completely dry.

I then buff everything with my Beal buffing kit which leaves everything with a nice hard shine. I could use release agent but that would be an unnecessary increase in the cost.
Screw it all together and we're ready to pour.

If you have a vacuum chamber all well and good! If not this is how you pour silicon rubber without getting bubbles in the mix.
Get two mixing buckets cut a small hole in the side at the bottom and cover with some masking tape.
Get the other bucket and mix the solution (adhere to the mixing instructions) making sure it's well mixed. Pour it into bucket with the hole,
place the bucket at the edge of the workbench or table, place the mould plug directly under the bucket and remove the masking tape.

The silicon rubber will pour reasonably slowly, falling to the mould in a very thin, 1 or 2mm stream. Because it's so thin there is no room for bubbles to form,
when the mould plug is full to the brim stop the flow and allow it to set. To remove the mould from the plug, just unscrew everything and the mould will drop out
and it's then ready for the casting resin.

I hope that's clear,
it sounds long winded but the mechanics is quite straight forward.
John. B

 

[themackay]

Thanks John seems quite clear.

Alan