Fred Wissen first got into wood turning a few years ago when he attended a pen making class at the Norfolk Woodcraft. Since then, his wood turning hobby has expanded into handcrafted bowls, pendants, and many styles of pens. Tapping into his engineering background, Fred has also learned to custom design handcrafted molds to pour your own polyester resin and other casted pen blanks. He has been a member of International Association of Penturners (IAP) for a few years and is nicknamed PTownSubbie on their forum.
@@fredwissen1305 Fred I am not a computer gru with instructions I think I could make my own labels . I have a program called Rapid Riser will this work I do have Info about the size of the wrap for each pen tube size. I do volunteer work for some Veteran clubs and I teach pen turning at a VeternFarm here in VA that need a little extra help. Making my own labels for pen tubes when be a great help yo me. Thanks for any help
Thanks for sharing all the hints and tips. I know that detailed knowledge like this is only acquired through a lot of experience to learn what works and what doesn’t. It’s great that you’re willing to share that knowledge.
When you pour it in the pressure pot does it have to be a special temperature with alumalite. Like can I do it in my garage in the winter months in Michigan?
It's better if your work space has some heating, cold resin and cold molds can slow down the curing process. We recommend you bring your supplies in the house if you can't heat your workspace.
No we do not leave the air hose connected to the pressure pot and never approach maximum pressure. We recommend 35-40 pounds of pressure for casting is enough.
So much useful information I am doing reasearch on making blanks because I want to try my hand at it for making diamond art pens. Thank u so much for this useful info. I’m wondering how they make the watefall type diamond art pens the have a tube in the middle where they put liquid either water or baby oil and the they add anything from glitter to trinkets and even mixed baby oil and colored water. I would love to see something like that made. I’m not sure where to get the tubing and the caps for each ends of the clear tubing.
Each branch is different but usually the main logo and special logos are...such as the EGA for Marines, which we have a license. Here is more info www.defense.gov/Resources/Branding-and-Trademarks/DOD-Trademark-Licensing-Guide/
@@robertriley6213 there are various applications you can use, but we have Adobe's Creative Suite which has Illustrator and Photoshop in it for drawing logos and images. To print, you can use any document application that allows image placement such as Microsoft Word.
Hey there bubblehead, old Corpsman here, my wife loves your stuff, she encouraged me to watch this, and I learned alot. She is molding and I am lathing lol. Thanks for all you do to educate people.
First of all - the best part of PTownsubbie is the service - can’t go wrong with Tina and Fred. The pot racks are awesome as are the tube in casting molds. I have multiple label templates and if you don’t see the one you need - Fred can most likely make it for you. Also a great source for extra pen tubes.
The brands I use haven't, it can develop air bubbles if air is trapped behind the clay. Make the blank to bushing height or just below if you want a thicker finish
@@fredwissen1305 Not sure I understand the logic of that. Once the resin has cured, the label is completely encapsulated and incapable of movement no matter how well the resin adhered to it. I've tried one pen blank on the matte label, but am not happy with how dull it is. Waiting for some glossy labels to see if there's a difference as there is making resin photo coasters.
Hmm, I may need to order one of those pressure pot racks. Although I will only have 1 mold whenever it arrives, so not really all that important right now. Wish I would have realized much sooner that I had never got around to ordering the Sierra mold until I needed it, ugg. Ordered all the other blank label stuff, never ordered the actual mold LOL....OOPS, such as my life HAHA!!!
Any one know who i can send a brass tube to , to have a photo put on and or casted in alumilite or blak diamonds so i can turn it for a gift ?? i have posted before and surprised no response !!
If you buy Harbor Freight's pressure pot, then you will get a T shaped handle. Again, you will have to convert their pressure pot into one for pen blank molds.
We have 3 pots from 2 different dealers. We have 2 Harbor Freight 2.5 gal paint tanks we converted. They work fine but have to tweak them to get them right and their pressure limit is 60# max. We also have a 5 gal California Air Tools tank that has an 80# limit. For a little more money, the 5 gal tank is much more solidly built. You can find the 5 gal pot on amazon for under $300.
Hi! Great video! I bought a mold and some templates from you and I will be trying label casting soon. Is there a need to rough up the brass tube with sand paper before affixing the label to it like one does when gluing it into a blank? Tina didn't mention that it needed to be done. Just checking.
Smooth tubes are easier to apply a label to. Sometimes with rough tubes, this allows air behind the seam which creates air bubbles or raised seams, even with overlap.
Hi Tina, I just received my PTMold and I”m excited to try tube in casting. I live in Canada and I was wondering if you can recommend where to purchase scissors ? Thanks, Peter
There is another video about making the labels and attaching them to the pen tube. More info on our casting guide page on PTownSubbie.com - ptownsubbie.com/pages/ptownsubbies-casting-basics-guide
Okay your Husband just shared the video you did for applying labels. Now I HAVE TO TRY THIS TOO!!! You do such a good job of explaining and showing. Thank you so much!
Are you referrring to the label sizing template or rolling jig? Our casting accessories are all listed on our website at ptownsubbie.com/collections/machined-jigs-tools but the clear acrylic are the templates
Along as you slightly overlap the label and use the weatherproof labels. Our templates already have a .04 inch overlap built in so you don't have to make it any larger unless you want to.
@@fredwissen1305 Thanks Fred. My waterproof labels are the problem obviously. The seams tend to lift after they are in the molds and the resin has been poured. What else is available?
@@OpeeChee1 If y'all are using a slower setting resin like polyester or epoxy resin, you can cure the tubes with CA or apply CA over the label. Do not use Alumilite urethane resin over CA or it can cloud.
I have Adobe Creative Suite which I use Photoshop and Illustrator to make my designs, then open it in Microsoft Word so I can print a sheet of as many labels as I need on one sheet. Here is a tutorial on printing
