Scraps from the Master's Table

Roger I'm slow to step in here, but want to thank you for the great WIP. I love your CA finish - wish I could get them that shiny! I must be using the wrong CA and sanding too much of it off the wood. Your WIP gave me some great suggestions on how to approach this next time.

Have a great day!
 
Roger I'm slow to step in here, but want to thank you for the great WIP. I love your CA finish - wish I could get them that shiny! I must be using the wrong CA and sanding too much of it off the wood. Your WIP gave me some great suggestions on how to approach this next time.

Have a great day!

Hi Dave,
Great to have you check in here. Finishing with CA adhesive is one of the trickiest parts for me. I've struggled with it a bunch and have developed a method that's been working pretty well (on the lathe, at least). I'll try to come up with some better pictures this weekend to show that. Thanks for your interest!
Roger

 
Hi Dave,
Great to have you check in here. Finishing with CA adhesive is one of the trickiest parts for me. I've struggled with it a bunch and have developed a method that's been working pretty well (on the lathe, at least). I'll try to come up with some better pictures this weekend to show that. Thanks for your interest!
Roger


That would be great Roger! Just watching you make that pen was wonderful. Learning how to apply CA would be a super benefit. :) I hope you have a great weekend.
 
A ddemonstration for Dave

Hi Dave,
Here’s how I’ve been finishing with CA glue:

Sand the wood to 400 grit.
I go to my pile of old t-shirt rags and cut the hem off the bottom or the sleeves to get a nice double layer of cloth about 3/4 to 1” wide. Then cut that into about 3” pieces.
Fold one over and apply a bead of medium CA glue.
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With the lathe turning slowly make a nice even pass the full length.
Don’t go too slow or it gets sticky and don’t try to go back over it.
Let it set up for 10 min. or so and do it again.

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After 4 or 5 coats, using light pressure, wet-sand with 600 grit – running the lathe at 700-800 rpm.
I dip a rag in paint thinner and use that for lubrication.
Check it frequently, wipe off the thinner, and quit when the shiny grooves disappear.
Very lightly wet-sand with 1200 and then 2000 grit.

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Then lightly buff it with plastic polish (this stuff is fairly aggressive).
If I find that I cut through the finish, I apply 3 or 4 more coats of CA and repeat the process.

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The results:
This is made from African Blackwood, Holly and Bloodwood.

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The finished item:
Penn State Industries calls this their Bolt-action Pen.
A fun gift for someone who loves to hunt
.
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Thanks Roger! I know what I've been doing wrong now and will see how even a coat I can apply to my knife handles. That's my biggest problem, and why I've been sanding between coats. Just need to figure out a way to get a nice even coat like you do. This is great, I really appreciate the time you took to make and post this. And I really dig that bolt action pen! :)
 
Well Dave, I managed to get here WAY later than you... : ) But I also wanted to thank you, Roger, for posting this! It was really fun to read and I greatly appreciate you explaining how you finish with CA glue. I'm in the process of finishing up a small knife with a Birdseye Maple handle and I think the handle would REALLY benefit from this kind of finish. I'll do some testing on the piece of Birdseye I ruined earlier...
 
For what it's worth, I ended up spreading the CA with a small piece of a microfiber cloth. It worked quite well; I did sand a little between coats, but the final finish was stunning, even on ebony. Thanks Roger!
 
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