J.P. I've been looking for a source for acrylic turning blanks but the largest I've found are 5/8" x 5/8" . Do you (or does anyone else) have a source for turning blocks with a larger outside diameter ? I was really impressed with the inserts you had in Charlotte!

I was really wowed ! by his inserts, too, Ken. Beautiful work there!

Putter
Williston, ND

You can make your own per the instructions in the article Joe Emig did in RodMaker. They can be colored and patterned to your own specs. I need to get that info on the resin sources for everyone. I'll try to do it tomorrow if I can remember it.

You can pour it as thick as you want, then resaw it on a bandsaw to make your turning squares.

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Oops! Double Post!



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/13/2006 10:05AM by Mike Barkley.

Amazing stuff wasn't it? I talked to J.P.quite a bit and he said that he sometimes turns the smaller size acrylics that are available for pen turnersand then casts them in resin like Joe does. If you find a source, let me know PLEEEEEZZZZE!!
Craft Supplies USA has some new "Celluloid Pen Blanks in 7/8" that look pretty awesome [www.woodturnerscatalog.com]

J.P. If you see this, your e-mail address is hidden!



Mike (Southgate, MI)
If I don't want to, I don't have to and nobody can make me (except my wife) cuz I'm RETIRED!!

Another thing you can do, is to use polymer clay to fashion inserts and colors of you own choosing, and then cast that in polyester resin. This takes care of the clay's somewhat softer nature and encases it in a hard, durable resin and allows you to turn and buff it to a high gloss.

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Craft Supplies is currently selling what seems to be the largest celluloid blanks available. Arizona Silhouette sells celluloid blanks that are 3/4" square and Woodturningz.com sells blanks Inlace Acrylester blanks that are listed as 3/4 square also. It might be worth it to contact Ryan at Woodturningz and check if this is really true, because I have an Inlace blank that's 1" square, so they may be bigger. Penn State Industries sells bowling ball blanks that are 1" round but they only come in four colors. In addition, there is a place in Phoenix, The Pipe Makers Emporium, that has some extremely nice Lucite rods that they say are 7/8" square, 18" long. My experience with their Lucite is that it's actually bigger than that. Here's the link, [www.pipemakers.org] This stuff is is much easier to turn that Polyester resin, cuts like butter. Some of the rods are quite transparent so you need to be careful about colors unless you want to paint the inside of the hole after you drill it.

If you want something colorful in wood, try River Ridge Products at [www.rrpwhite.com] Steven sells Dymondwood in a huge array of color combinations. The stuff is made in fairly large sheets, including thick enough for bottle stoppers, and he will provide just about any size you want.

Thanks Gerry. As for casting my own, well along with trying the castings that Jesse Buky does they're an "investment in time" - and time is what I don't have right now. Maybe once "the get these done for opening day" passes I will have more time to experiment. For now I have to look for something that I can put to use with minimum time 'sperimenting (fabrication) and more focused on final fit. I'll play with the lucite to see how that works out & I remember the samples of bowling ball cores that Ed Smith had with him in Charolotte - those were large diameter (and now I know where to find them too!) Thanks again!

Ken, it would be a complete waste of time to try to duplicate the acrylics that places like Craft Supplies sell. These things are all made by machines that are computer controlled and much more elaborate than anything you or I could afford. I know a lot of people who make some very nice PR castings and not one of them has been able to acheive the find of color definition and separation that exists in the acrylics. To think otherwise is foolishness.

I got looking around at these websites today, Gerry. WOW! Some of these "pen turning" blanks are really, really neat looking! They would be awfully tuff to duplicate, that's for sure.

Putter
Williston, ND

Actually, they're not at all hard to make and/or duplicate. An upcoming article in RodMaker will show you how to make your own, in any size you wish.

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I'll stand by my statement that you can't do it at home until I can be convinced otherwise. I know what's involved and am not interested in spending tens of thousands of dollars in the necessary equipment. If I'm proven wrong, please mail me a crow.

I'll wait for the article to come out and learn as much as I can before I start down the trail that others have blazed and learn from their experiences on what does and does not work in casting. In the meantime I went & looked at the sites Gerry provided - I was absolutely stunned by the variety of colors and patterns available from Craft Supplies [ www.woodturnerscatalog.com ] 5 pages of celluloid alone up to 7/8" in diameter and very reasonably priced. So I can work on the "mechanics" of turning up front

Reasonably priced is right. It's very inexpensive to buy these. One of you guys wanna turn a few seats for me?? LOL!!

Putter
Williston, ND

I'll be glad to do it for you Putter, for a price of course.

Oh, oh, that sounds dangerous; I'm out of pens, Gerry. Maybe we can trade baseball cards?

Putter
Williston, ND

Just go get in your truck and come over here and I'll teach you how to do it. It wouldn't take more than an hour or two. Even walleye fishermen from ND can't be any slower than that. ROTFLMAO

hey everyone i just saw this as i have been very busy. i used to be able to get some of the acrylic in 2" spindles, but havent found any in a while. if you get the 3/4" blanks you can turn them down to a 16mm size seat if you are careful. i am now playing with some different acrylics in the small pen sizes. so far so good. i then put them in the polyester resin. it is pretty neat stuff as it opens the door to all the available pen blanks. sorry about the email here it is
jptimberlake@triad.rr.com
phone336-778-1308
call or send email if you have any questions.