Making Ribbon Pen Blanks | Casting Alumilite Resin

Making ribbons is super simple, and they only make some really cool blanks, but they also allow you to do some really awesome effects in your castings!
I've been so busy getting orders filled, that I never got a chance to charge and test out the glow in the dark ribbons in the fluorescent green blank (OK, I forgot.. but it was because I was so busy!!). I'll post the results and some photos of it on my website when I get it done.
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[@Mitermikeswoodshop]

I think it is awesome what you do with your blanks. Keep up the great work.

[@ZacHiggins]

+Miter Mike's Woodshop Thanks Mike! Hoping to come back from Hawaii with some new ideas to share too! Mai Tai pen blanks anyone?? LOL

[@MarkLindsayCNC]

Cool looking blanks, Zac. If you haven't already done it, make sure the spindle on your X-Carve is absolutely square and plumb to your work surface before you machine out your "ribbon mold." That'll keep you from machining a slope or deep grooves and/or ridges in the bottom surface. I just went through this while machining the spoilboard on my CNC. If the spindle is even a couple of thousandths out of square or plumb, it'll leave ridges and dips. I was using an 1 1/2" diameter fly cutter, and a couple of thousandths out of plumb at that diameter translated to a ridge about 1/32" high. It doesn't sound like much, but it's huge when you're trying to cut an accurate depth - or in my case, flatten a slab that's too big to go through your planer.

[@ZacHiggins]

+Mark Lindsay Thanks for the heads up Mark! I've still got a lot to learn when it comes to that x-carve and cnc in general. I'll double check that before I go for the HDPE ribbon board.

[@krtwood]

+Zac Higgins Even just making a pass right to left and then the next one coming back left to right can leave edges between the passes because the forces on the cutter are different and there's some flex in the machine. No matter what you do you should expect to end up with some amount of texture to the surface which will get transferred to the casting.

[@ZacHiggins]

+krtwood Good point! Luckily, ridges don't really matter in this case. Just want a pretty flat even area dished out on that HDPE panel. I'll keep that in mind though for future projects.

[@BraxtonWirthlin]

Really cool, Zac! I'll be excited to see how those glow in the dark ones look after they're all charged up. Have fun on your vacation!!

[@ZacHiggins]

+Braxton Wirthlin Yeah, I just kept forgetting to charge them and get some photos of it. I'll do that today though, just hope I can get a decent photo of it if it works.

[@sarahjacobs1779]

I'm in a colder climate (midwest) and have my garag heated to about 60 degrees. How do I prevent curing issues? Should I hit it with a heat gun?

[@marceaton3128]

I gave up on polyester and I use Alumilite. I saw a guy on here called grub something. Have not played with my pen molds in a while. Need to get back at it. Too many people selling them so you can't make money on them. Thanks for sharing.

[@ronaldainaire7086]

Box will go out Friday with some Cottonwood Bark from Arizona, Colorado and Alaska. Pieces are quite thick (2-1/2") I cut pen blanks and set scrap away. Some states because of weather, seem to have different hardness and growth rings.

[@jbidinger]

Any help would be appreciated. I tried this with some ribbons that I made with Alumilite clear slow and amazing clear cast and when I went to turn the blank it came apart. The new resin didn't seem to stick to the ribbons well. :-(

[@buddhagreene9010]

Thank you! I was so curious how this effect was done when looking at blanks online for inspiration.

[@wolf-bv6lg]

How do you keep the ribbons from bubbling since you can’t put it into a pot?

[@SKKrafts]

great video zac, only now getting into pen blanks. made one for my first pen i made the other week. these ribbons look like a great idea to move my blanks to the next level. i will be giving them ago for sure. thanks for sharing the info.

[@danielparker6102]

You must be part kid. Have a lot of imagination and great ideas. I wish I could have seen the glow in the dark blank look like. Thank you for the great ideas. Opens a lot of doors to try.

[@ZacHiggins]

+Daniel Parker Thanks Daniel! I'm glad that it's sparking some ideas for you. There are lots of cool things you can do with blanks when you start adding ribbons to the mix. I try to keep that youthful sense of imagination and experimenting. You never know what cool things you can do unless you do some testing. I did post a picture of them glowing on my Twitter page, but I don't think I added in pics of them to any of my Weekly Updates. Here's a link to that Twitter post of them glowing: twitter.com/NVWoodwerks/status/646048175321513984

[@wildbill23c]

+Zac Higgins Those glow in the dark blanks turned out pretty cool. Now you can find your pen in the dark LOL.

[@ZacHiggins]

+William Todd (williamtodd) Heck yeah! Very important when you get the urge to write a letter in the dark! LOL

[@wildbill23c]

Zac Higgins Well you would need some glow in the dark ink as well LOL...and some glow in the dark paper...me I just turn the light on HAHA!!

[@stevebrown1132]

Fantastic! I have wondered how those get made. I will have to try it. Thanks for what you do and for sharing it with us.

[@ZacHiggins]

+Steve Brown Thanks Steve, glad to share what I can. I have so much fun with it, I figure someone else might too! If you make some ribbon blanks, I'd love to see what you come up with.

[@RJBWoodTurner]

Great process and tips Zac, Hopefully I'll get a chance to get into casting some of my own blanks before long. I love the creative side of the process where you get to experiment with different items placed into the resin. Very cool.Regards,Bob

[@ZacHiggins]

+RJBWoodTurner It's so much fun, you can totally get lost in it! I'll be interested to see what you make when you get started. The possibilities are almost endless!

[@wildbill23c]

+RJBWoodTurner Its a lot of fun. I just use poly resin for my blanks, and I use the regular acrylic craft paints found at many hobby stores as its pretty cheap, tons of colors, and if all else fails you can mix colors to get other colors if you need to. I haven't purchased commercial acrylic blanks for quite a while now because I have more fun making my own blanks. I've done a couple for customers myself and they couldn't tell the difference anyhow LOL. I made a pure black pen a while back for a person in the Air Force. It turned out great, but I think black is the most difficult to work with due to you can see scratches in it very easily.

[@tobiaskalinowicz7884]

What's with alumilite and polyester resin? All I can get in Germany is poly or epoxy resin, what's the downside of epoxy resin?

[@wildbill23c]

I haven't experimented with the ribbons yet. Haven't really decided which method to try LOL. I use PR which takes 24 hours or longer to cure depending on thickness, amount of hardener, and temperature. I use less hardener as I've found the blanks come out far less brittle, and are easier to turn. Blanks take longer to cure of course, but I'm not in a hurry. For coloring I either use the Pearlex pigments, or regular acrylic craft paint...so many color choices its the best way to go really, and you can mix colors together to get other colors if you need.

[@ZacHiggins]

+William Todd (williamtodd) Well I can't wait to see what your experiments produce. It opens up a whole new set of doors using these ribbons :-)

[@charliehisman4843]

Zac I'm tying to turn alumilite water clear resin into shave brush handles with carbide cutters. I keep getting catastrophic catches. any advice on what to do?

[@teamwild_UK]

Thanks Zac. My head's now buzzing with ideas. Maybe I'll even get to try some of them. Cheers, Ben

[@ZacHiggins]

+TeamWild I definitely want to see what you come up with if you get around to it.

[@scififekken]

when your turning resin blanks you get the bigger scrap that comes off wondering could you use the colored resin peal from turning put it into a mold add clear resin how would it look and come out to a pen.

[@ZacHiggins]

Yeah it can turn out awesome doing that. I tried, and it wasn't so spectacular, but I've seen some that look fabulous. Been meaning to give it another try some day, it's one of the options I've been putting up for the vote on my live stream but hasn't been voted in yet. It will eventually though

[@russellthielemann1006]

Can you tell me what kind of resin works best for making ribbon pen blanks? I have tried to make ribbon blanks using Silmar 41 clear polyester casting resin and the ribbons didn't mend with the second color when it cured. When I cut the blanks and tried to turn them, pieces broke out. I also accidentally dropped one blank on the floor and it separated where the colors contacted each other.

[@ZacHiggins]

Hey Russ, I sent you an email back just a few minutes ago but wanted to respond here if anyone saw your question. I haven't tried anything other than Alumilite myself, but I know other people are using PR and possibly epoxy too. I think it helps a lot if you scuff up the ribbons with some 80 or 120 grit sandpaper to give the resin something to bite into. You might need to dial back the hardener on the PR blanks to make them less brittle too. I know that can be tricky, but it might help out. Should work ok with any type of resin, but I know for sure that Alumilite works great.

[@pris_6969]

How would you degas/de-bubble the Alumilite prior to pouring ribbons? Would you put the mixed resin in the pressure pot prior to pouring? Would you have time for that? My plan is to make layered resin blanks, so i'll need to pour multiple ribbon-thin layers of different colors until I have a thick block. So, any bubbles would be bad. Any tips/tricks for a layered resin look, let me know. Thanks so much, love your videos! :)

[@ZacHiggins]

Hey Pris, I've gotten decent results using a heat gun or torch to pop bubbles on thin layers. It also helps to stir the resin really slowly so you don't introduce many bubbles in the cup. You can go with a slower setting resin as well, that would probably ensure the least amount of air bubbles, but it would take longer to make. I wouldn't use pressure for this because it doesn't totally remove bubbles, just shrinks them until the resin hardens up. If you release pressure before the resin has solidified, the bubbles will just come right back

[@marneysmithies8558]

another question. love the idea of layering colors of ribbon. I see you used a heat gun @ 12:16 , so was that just to dry the layer quickly to add another? or?

[@ZacHiggins]

I used the heat gun to help pop air bubbles from the ribbons, it's a catch22 though because it can also make the resin cure a bit faster which will trap the air bubbles. I thought I saw you ask what resin I was using, it's Alumilite resin. As for the temp, it doesn't need to be too high really, but it will also depend on how thick the ribbons are. I thin I had my toaster oven somewhere between 150 and 200. It doesn't take much to get them soft and malleable, just keep checking on them, and make sure to wear some gloves so you don't burn yourself on the oven or on the hot ribbon strips

[@marneysmithies8558]

ya great, makes sense about the bubbles. I made some blanks from the Amazing Clear casting resin I have and some ribbons but the ribbons I will put in the next blanks I make, will be going to the workshop tomorrow to see if I can turn the blanks, if they work or don't I will let you know and hopefully can share a photo :) peace.

[@nikkivi6541]

Zac, do you do a swirl blank, and can you do a video on it? I want to make a 2 x 2 x 4 blank with swirl, but it keeps getting muddy.

[@chrishaney9507]

I have not done any of this yet, but plan to. The molds that you pour the resin in. Do they have a lid? And how long do they need to be under pressure in the pot, or is does that vary for each pour?

[@ZacHiggins]

+Chris Haney Glad to hear you're going to give casting a shot. It's a blast!! The molds I use are just open topped, I put them in the pressure pot just like I showed in the video. How long you leave it under pressure depends on which resin you are using, how much resin is in the mold, and what the ambient temperature is in the shop. For most of what I'm doing, it only takes about an hour or so before you can pull it out. Some of the slow setting resins will require more time before they have hardened enough to release the pressure.

[@wildbill23c]

+Zac Higgins I can add a bit of information on the Poly Resin side, this is a great way to go if you don't want to have a pressure pot. It takes about 24 hours, sometimes longer depending on the thickness of the material you have poured, plus the room temperature, and how much hardener you add. I don't add as much hardener as required because the blanks seemed to come out more brittle and would chip out very easily during the turning process, so less hardener is used, and I get nice long ribbons when turning on the lathe. A result of using less hardener I've found that it can now take 48 hours for a blank to cure, but since I am not in any hurry its not a problem for me. Now if you are selling pens on a daily basis you may need to decrease the cure times using more hardener, but don't use too much because it can cause the blanks to become extremely brittle to the point they can actually shatter. All of my blanks for pens I pour into 6" lengths of PVC pipe that I just tape the bottom closed and fill up with my choice of colored resin. I use Acrylic craft paint for coloring of the resin, it works pretty well, of course it adds to the curing time, but so far I've had great luck with it, and every color imaginable you an get it seems like.

[@ZacHiggins]

+William Todd (williamtodd) Thanks for the info William.

[@vikkilott5923]

Hey where do you get your casting molds? For the pens or duck calls ??

[@ZacHiggins]

I make my own using HDPE plastic, I have links to where I get the sheets of it on my "Tools I Use" page on my website if you want to make them yourself: nvwoodwerks.com/tools/ I used to use melamine until I found the smooth faced HDPE, it works great! I have a video on making the melamine ones, I do it exactly the same for the HDPE ones: kzbin.info/www/bejne/poGQaHmHg6almdE If you don't want to or aren't set up to make your own, you can also buy the plastic ones premade from Lizard Blanks or you can get either plastic or silicone blank molds from Fred Wissen... Lizard Blanks: www.lizardblanks.com/shop Fred Wissen: ptownsubbie.com/collections/blank-molds You can also use PVC pipes to pour in as well, and I have a video about doing it that way if you want to check it out: kzbin.info/www/bejne/bICZfp6mjqtjhc0

[@christianpratt8158]

Could this be done using Poly Resin in a 3/4" tube. And air hardened? I dont have a pressure pot yet!

[@ZacHiggins]

+christian pratt Yeah, that will work fine. I'd think it would be easier to lay the ribbon down in a horizontal mold, but you should be able to squish the ribbon into a pipe too. You shouldn't have any issues using PR though, works the same

[@mikeelliott9713]

When making the multi-color ribbons do you let the first layer harden before adding the next?

[@ZacHiggins]

+Mike Elliott Yeah, once it's rubbery I pour the second layer. As long as you get the next pour done same day or maybe even overnight it should bond fine. I'll be doing a video about multi layer pours soon too. That opens up a lot of doors for blank design too!

[@MrPtcrazy13069]

Hi Zac, my first attempt to pour alumalite ribbons was a total failure. I tried pouring it on glass, because I didn't have any HDPE at the time. I let it cure for almost a day, and when I tried to remove it, it basically just came off in tiny bits and pieces. I did clean the glass really well beforehand, so I can't blame that for the failure. My question to you is, are you letting the alumalite fully cure before removing it from the HDPE, or are you removing it while it is still soft/curing? I have a silicone baking sheet on its way, but don't want to have another failure because I am waiting too long or something......Thanks for all the great ideas in your videos.

[@dawnmason9558]

Forgive me for asking what is probably a daft question. The shavings you get from turning your acrylic blanks could you gather lots together & include them into clear resin? I think that would be delicate & pretty plus recycling.

[@ZacHiggins]

Yeah, those can be cast too, not a bad question at all. I've done it once before, mine didn't turn out so great. I've seen some pretty awesome blanks that others have made doing that though

[@carolemorrison9786]

I do fluid acrylic pours using silicone in my mix, and before I resin over the top I use alcohol to clean off the silicone.. just thinking that might work if you’re using stoners.. let me know if you ever try it

[@marneysmithies8558]

what temp on the toaster oven? looking forward to trying this. I have poured out my resin onto a flexible type cutting board which worked well for me. onto the next step ;)

[@IBDaddyO]

I use the glass method with PR which works pretty well. Mark

[@ZacHiggins]

+IBDaddyO Thanks for letting us know Mark, great to hear from a PR user on that.

[@discgolftrainnut]

What kind of resin are you using and how much does it cost to fill the 3-blank mold?

[@ZacHiggins]

+DanEngeWood- Dan I use Alumilite resin, not sure how much it costs exactly for that mold, and it would depend on how much resin you buy at once. It's about 280 grams worth of resin by weight, maybe around 8 ounces in volume.

[@anklebiterwoodworks2818]

Very cool idea. Will have to try it myself.

[@ZacHiggins]

+AnkleBiter Woodworks It's super easy with Alumilite. Just dump it out and let it harden up! They work great too. Just make sure to scuff up the ribbons before recasting them. I find it gives the new resin a little mechanical tooth to help ensure a good bond.

[@84deeanne]

Ha Zac THE HPDE Plastic for ribbon's and do you use different plastics for other things

[@ZacHiggins]

The ribbons are made with thin pours of resin, I don't remember using any HDPE in this video. I do use HDPE for molds, you can get iton Amazon, McMaster Carr, Grainger, or from your local plastic supplier

[@willemkossen]

Sometimes ideas pop in my head. What is you put ribbons in a blender for a short moment and use the scraps in a blank? Confetti blanks?

[@ZacHiggins]

+Willem Kossen That's funny, I got another suggestion from David to put the ribbons through a shredder. Everyone's got partying on their minds I think :) One of these days I may have to pick up a used blender and see how it works! Thanks for the idea Willem :)

[@DemasShopforEverything]

Awesome, my shop sticker front and center lol

[@ZacHiggins]

+Dema's WoodShop Now you're famous :) LOL You're welcome.

[@larrynailon8632]

Hi Zac ..Thanks for advice on my last question. I have another one for you. I tried making ribbons with bondo resin but they come out really hard and brittle. Did i use too much hardener maybe ???

[@ZacHiggins]

+Larry Nailon Glad I could help out :-) Unfortunately, I've never used bondo resin so I'm not sure how that should come out. It may just be a brittle resin. If not, then you may have added too much hardener.

[@marneysmithies8558]

is that the bondo fiberglass resin?

[@chootrain57]

man, some killer ideas Zac. I try to swirl the dyes. now I know how to get the ribbon effect, Thanks

[@ZacHiggins]

+lionel wainford Glad I could stir up some ideas for you. It's amazing what you can do with these ribbons, and they're so easy to make too. A great addition to the casting toolbox!

[@brynphipps8374]

Hey Zac, would it work if you just keep layering different colours down and do the thickness of a blank? If so would you need to put it in the pressure pot?

[@ZacHiggins]

Yeah, should work ok. Just make sure to keep the layers thin and try to get the air bubbles out with heat on each layer. I was going to do that to try and make some Alumilite Fordite pieces one of these days =D

[@brynphipps8374]

Zac Higgins cool thanks. 👍

[@tibris]

you probably been asked this tons of times but what brand of dye do you use? specifically the lime green

[@ZacHiggins]

+tibris I get asked from time to time, but I'm happy to share. I primarily use Alumilite dyes for all of my blanks. I've found that I get the best results with them so far compared to the few others I've tried. In some blanks, I'll use a combination of dye plus powders as well to give it a little shimmer and sometimes augment the color slightly.

[@alpmedyabasnburosu296]

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[@MakeCrazydays]

Great ideas on how to make the ribbons and what can be done with them.

[@ZacHiggins]

+Make Crazydays Thanks for checking it out Aaron! The possibilities are endless :)

[@AxcelleratorT]

Great video! Thanks for sharing this process.

[@ZacHiggins]

Thanks Mark! Glad to share it, thanks for checking it out :-)

[@sniperwolfjs]

Thanks buddy something new to try for my blanks!

[@ZacHiggins]

Sweet!! Hope you have fun with it!

[@spencerbrown2594]

This is a great help for me. Thanks Zac

[@ZacHiggins]

Glad it was helpful =D

[@graemetaylor6511]

Been looking for a good how to on this.. now I found it I am a happy bunny.. did you ever try glass?

[@DKWalser]

Very cool. If you have a paper shredder, try running some ribbons through the shredder. Then, you could make ribbon/confetti blanks. I think they would look cool. You could call it your party blank!

[@ZacHiggins]

+David Walser Party blanks!! I love it. I'll have to find a shredder and try that out sometime. Thanks for the idea :)

[@wildbill23c]

+Zac Higgins Just don't buy a new shredder for that purpose, pretty sure it will cause some jamming issues with the shredder if you aren't careful.

[@ZacHiggins]

+William Todd (williamtodd) LOL, yeah I don't think I'd buy a new one and try that... although the one I have right now can shred credit cards without any problems

[@Tom_Samad]

A UV light will charge glow in the dark powder way faster than sunlight. I know because i make glow in the dark pens.

[@richardroderick6440]

I enjoy your Videos. Do you have or have you seen videos on making the armor plating to cast in pen blanks? Kind of like what they use in steam punk and in a lot of the military seal blanks i have been buying. Thank you,

[@ZacHiggins]

+Richard Roderick Hey Richard, I haven't seen any videos that I can think of, and I haven't gotten a chance to try them out myself. From what I understand, most people just use metal tape to create the "plates". Basically HVAC tape, but I believe you can get them in different shades/metal types. I'm not entirely sure where you get the tape in different metal types though. You use a serrated tracing wheel like this one on amazon: amzn.to/1kKPURB to make the rivets. Flip the tape metal side down on a cutting board, lay a ruler along the rivet line you want, then run the serrated wheel along the ruler. Then use a wax metal polish to create a patina, like this one by Rub N Buff: amzn.to/1OLPl89 Hope that helps a bit, should get you pointed in the right direction for what materials you need at least. I'd imagine there are some fine details on the process that will get you better results, but I don't know any tricks myself. Once you get the plates mounted to the tube, you can just cast them in a silicone mold like I did in the CAT 5 wire blank video. I do plan to try out some steampunk blanks at some point, and I'll definitely be making a video on it when I get time to try it out.

[@robertevans6481]

they look cool

[@ZacHiggins]

+Robert Evans Not too bad, and easy to make too! Thanks for watching Robert :)

[@robertevans6481]

i with Braxton want to see the glow in dark blanks to see how they look, was thinking if you don't see the ribbon before they charge you mite be able to words in there and only see them when they glow ( just a crazy idea) lol

[@ZacHiggins]

+Robert Evans Yeah, that would be cool!! I need to get them out in the sun right now and then test it out. I'll be posting the results on my website. Hope I can get a decent photo of it if it works.

[@SuperLaura516]

Hi Zac, very cool video. Another question for you, what's the difference between the dyes and the powders? Also, I used the Alumilite clear "slow" and yellow dye but it came out opaque. I was going for clear. Any ideas on what happened?

[@ZacHiggins]

+Laura Toth Dyes are liquid and will color the resin throughout. The powders are just a particulate almost like a glitter that will change the color of the resin a bit, but it's really just light bouncing off the particles. I have no clue why your resin turned opaque, was it Alumilite brand dye or something else?

[@SuperLaura516]

+Zac Higgins It was the Alumilite Clear Slow. I was trying to get a beer color and effect by stirring vigorously to get some bubbles but I think that might be my problem. To get a beer color, what would you suggest?

[@ZacHiggins]

+Laura Toth I'd just go with Alumilite Dyes. Maybe the problem was adding too much dye to your mixture. You only need a tiny drop to color Clear resin with.

[@dougshealthworld6606]

Hi Zac where do i get this Ribbon Material? Hope we get this in Germany....Thanks for answer

[@ZacHiggins]

The ribbons are just thin layers of resin made with Alumilite in my video. You can use any casting resin to make them

[@dougshealthworld6606]

So i just cast a block and then cut thin pieces?

[@ZacHiggins]

I show you how I make them in the video

[@dougshealthworld6606]

Thanks a lot. Your Videos are awesome, one of the best online

[@ZacHiggins]

Thanks! I appreciate it =D

[@tdkrei]

Hello Zac. I am new to the resin casting but have been turning for quite some time. I tried to add a diagonal piece of wood to my pen blanks and where the resin touches the wood (maple) all I got was a tremendous amount of bubbles. How do I stop that? I don't have a pressure pot or a vacuum, and the resin is Alumilite fast set. P.S. I like the ribbon idea and will give it a shot.,

[@ZacHiggins]

Hey Terry, the bubbles were likely caused by moisture in the wood. You need to dry wood out completely, take it down to 0% moisture content, before casting it. Check out my video on drying wood for casting or stabilizing: kzbin.info/www/bejne/rF7NqKV7ndmhaJI

[@tdkrei]

Thanks Zac. I watched your video and will and I like your process for accelerated dehydration. This wood I placed however was in my shop for about 6 months and cut into 1/8" strips because I also do segmenting. But I think you are right I will test some remaining strips ( in the oven) and let you know what I find. And thanks again and keep up the good work and I'll keep learning and watching. By the way I am a retired design engineer/machinist/jeweler and diamond setter and 71 years of age.

[@morganfisher1946]

Thanks Zac, great video, I`m just getting into pen making and just got my first alumilite and using ribbons looks like a great idea. Now I have to figure out how to form some letters so I can personalize some pens to give to family. I did have one thought about forming a mold. Maybe you could rip thin strips from your poly. and glue to the edges. Thanks

[@ZacHiggins]

+Morgan Fisher Thats' awesome Morgan, glad to hear you're getting the bug to do some casting! If you heat the ribbons up, you can form them into any shape you want, then they will stay in that form once the resin cools again. There is a little spring-back though, so you might need to over-bend them first. Let me know if it works out for you. Good idea on the thin strips too, I'll have to try that sometime.

[@martineastburn3679]

Love the thought of ribbons. How about short ones - say 1" or 2" mixed - e.g. big glitter ! Just a thought. Martin

[@mildredwall3845]

Llzach I went to your web site to but the pink Floyd blank can't find I need two

[@ZacHiggins]

+mildred wall I am way behind on getting listings up Mildred, sorry about that. I will probably get things updated over the next couple weeks. If you don't see something listed, you can always set up a custom order. Just email me direct and I'll get an invoice set up in PayPal. I will be out of town between the 23rd and the 3rd though, so I will be able to process orders when I get back.

[@mildredwall3845]

+Zac Higgins I can't find a link to your email

[@MarkLindsayCNC]

+mildred wall He gives his email address in the video at around the 15 minute mark.

[@ZacHiggins]

+mildred wall Mark is right, I put my email address up at the end of every video, I also have a contact form on my website as well: nvwoodwerks.com/contact/

[@angeb5178]

Why when I made ribbons did it bubble up .

[@ZacHiggins]

+angeleen berglund I get some here and there too, I'd recommend hitting it with a heat gun or hairdryer, helps to pull the air bubbles to the top and pop them. It shouldn't make too much difference once you recast them though.

[@angeb5178]

Thanks. I have to put my pressure pot together today. Then I make the boxes after measuring circumstance of the inner pressure pot. But we will see if I pour today. I am retired due to a disease I recieved from a patient I took care of so I can only do so much . Someday I can't move so today my goals are high. Lol. I will probubly be asking more questions an I'll take a pic of my out come. All my thanks Ange

[@kennethlegendre]

To get your glow in the dark stuff to glow quickly, try a purple (UV) laser. Only takes a couple of seconds to get them to glow. Great video!

[@ZacHiggins]

+Kenneth Legendre Thanks Kenneth! I'll try it out. It didn't take too long in the sun, just put them outside for about 5 minutes and they were pretty bright. Not sure how long they last though. Do you know if there is any difference between the laser and sunlight for how long the charge lasts?

[@kennethlegendre]

+Zac Higgins Without getting to technical, the part of the sun rays that makes the ribbons glow is the UV portion. The laser is 100% UV light therefore it is a lot stronger. It will make them glow longer with shorter amount of exposure. I've seen it on a friends watch dial and in about a second the glow in the dark part was way brighter than I think you could ever get it in the sunlight. For demonstration purposes I would think the laser would be awesome. They are available on ebay and fairly cheap.

[@ZacHiggins]

+Kenneth Legendre Cool, thanks so much for the explanation. Makes perfect sense. That will be perfect for demonstration, I'll have to pick one up.

[@AndrewR74]

Do you pressure the ribbons to cure them before you shape them?

[@ZacHiggins]

+Andrew R I'm not understanding what you are asking. I cast the ribbons not under pressure, then I recast them in the pen blank molds under pressure. To bend them, it helps to heat them up a bit.

[@AndrewR74]

OK, thanks, I was just curious because I understand that you have to pressurize alumalite. I thought that you poured the ribbons, and then pressurized them, and then warmed them up to form them.

[@AndrewR74]

I know that you have to pressurize the whole blank, just didn't know if there was an intermediate setting for the ribbons

[@ZacHiggins]

+Andrew R Oh I see, no I just poured them without pressure since it's such a thin layer. You can usually get the majority of the air bubbles out of the casting in something like these ribbons. Pressure is only needed to get rid of air bubbles, it has nothing to do with the actual curing. Alumilite sets up so fast that there isn't enough time for air bubbles to get free of the resin. Pressure collapses them to a microscopic size, effectively removing them. To be honest, Alumilite White resin is so thin that it's not as big a deal to use pressure since the air bubbles get free pretty easily, but it sets up in 2 minutes so I suggest using pressure to make sure. Alumilite Clear resin is much thicker though, and there's no way the bubbles will come out on their own, so pressure is a must for casting. Again though, in such a thin layer, you can get most of the bubbles out with a heat gun or vibration.

[@AndrewR74]

+Zac Higgins gotcha, thanks

[@TheLittleGardenShedWorkshop]

Great experimentation Zac, very interesting, Cheers. Harry

[@ZacHiggins]

+The Little Garden Shed Workshop Thanks Harry! I love testing things out with resin, the possibilities are endless :)

[@tonimlentner1255]

Parchment paper works great.

[@ZacHiggins]

Thanks! I haven't tried that one yet. You're talking about pouring the resin on it correct? Not using parchment paper as the ribbon? Just wanted to make sure I didn't read that wrong

[@tonimlentner1255]

+Zac Higgins, correct.

[@84deeanne]

Zac great ideal Zac where did you get the plastic from?

[@ZacHiggins]

Hey Larry, which plastic do you mean?

[@cmcustomcarpentry]

Hey Zack, thanks for the great video! I've been trying to make ribbon blanks for about a month now without much success. I'm having issues with my ribbons bonding. I've been trying to make my ribbons on glass and casting the blanks with the ribbons the same day. So far almost all the blanks fail. Any ideas? I do not use any release agent so I'm stumped.

[@ZacHiggins]

+cmcustomcarpentry Hmm, I haven't had any issues with them bonding, are you using Alumilite or PR?

[@cmcustomcarpentry]

+Zac Higgins alumilite

[@ZacHiggins]

+cmcustomcarpentry I'd try to scuff the ribbons up a bit using some sandpaper. Maybe around 100 grit. When you try to cast things that are too smooth, Alumilite won't form a bond to it very well. That was one thing I forgot to mention in the video.

[@grussingcustomknives8097]

What brand where those powders and the lime green dye

[@ZacHiggins]

+Grussing Custom Knives The powder is PearlEx and the dye is Alumilite brand

[@grussingcustomknives8097]

+Zac Higgins ok do u know where to get pink dye?

[@ZacHiggins]

+Grussing Custom Knives I just mix red and white to make pink. Don't know of any off hand that come premade pink.

[@TheSafecrkr1]

Hi Zac. I was asked to make some blanks for a well known college of the blue and yellow persuasion. And I've been attempting to use vacume instead of pressure, when the bubbles started foaming up I got green :'( Doing it this way, with ribbons would fix that problem.

[@jonathanayling4378]

jim renderer You also need to consider the possibility that it should have green and white to start with.

[@cade861]

what about using a silicon baking sheet?

[@ZacHiggins]

+cade861 Yeah that should work good too, great idea!!

[@ronaldainaire7086]

Zac: Have you ever tried to cast cottonwood bark. will send a pc. to try. Had not thought of using ribbon Amulite for a thin stripe; will try it Ron toydoctor2012

[@ZacHiggins]

Haven't tried it, but we have lots of cottonwood around here. I might have to grab some and try it out. Yeah, I think you'll get good results with the ribbons, much easier than trying to cast a thin line, hard to get level/even.

[@ronaldainaire7086]

Zac Has to be the bark; cotton wood bark is harvested from dead trees! the cotton wood is very plain and ordinary.

[@ZacHiggins]

Well, there are lots of dead ones around here too :) I can probably get my hands on some from around here, but if you have some on hand and want to send it, I definitely won't turn it down

[@jimrollins1501]

Thanks for the information.

[@ZacHiggins]

My pleasure! Hope you make some killer ribbon blanks =D

[@alpmedyabasnburosu296]

What paint you use

[@ZacHiggins]

+Alp Medya Basın Bürosu Do you mean the dye that I use in the resin?

[@alpmedyabasnburosu296]

yes

[@alpmedyabasnburosu296]

I want to learn how to paint join that kind of resin used in paint

[@alpmedyabasnburosu296]

What is the name of this vacuum also made tools

[@ZacHiggins]

+Alp Medya Basın Bürosu I use Alumilite dyes, and I use a CA Technologies pressure pot

[@larryboecker3459]

That is a prism on the pink Floyd album

[@ZacHiggins]

+Larry Boecker Thanks Larry.

[@dawnmason9558]

Please warn people that Rotary Cutters are circular razor blades & extremely sharp. i have the top of my thumb missing at present from slipping with a rotary cutter which I use for quilting.

[@lilolmecj]

Zac...it is called a rotary cutter, lol. Thanks for all of your videos.

[@ZacHiggins]

What?? It's not a pizza cutter? LOL

[@lilolmecj]

Zac Higgins I wouldn’t have thought to use one like that, I use mine for fabric. My husband and I just purchased a used woodwork suite, including an Atlas lathe. I can hardly wait to get it set up and learn how to use it. You, and other teachers have shared your knowledge and I am really grateful.

[@ZacHiggins]

Well that's awesome Carol! I think you're going to have a blast once you get set up, can't wait to see some cool things that you make =D

[@theclarks6280]

FYI: I bought some cutting boards at Aldi and they turned out to be Poly Propylene, not HDPE. The dollar store had HDPE ones.

[@ZacHiggins]

Good to know. Is polypropylene not a non-stick type of plastic?

[@theclarks6280]

I don't think so. I avoided it because of it but it looks a lot like the HDPE ones.

[@ZacHiggins]

If you try pouring any resin on it, let me know if it sticks or not.

[@baconsoda]

These are excellent. I've sent you a message. Best Wishes, Brendan.

[@ZacHiggins]

+baconsoda Thanks Brendan!! Feels good to get a good casting video up for a change!

[@PENFOLD1962]

EXCELLENT INFO👍😉👍SUBSCRIBED FOR SURE👍😀👍

[@ZacHiggins]

Awesome!! Thanks Andrew =D

[@angeb5178]

Heat popping the bubbles, is that the answer? Lol

[@ZacHiggins]

+angeleen berglund Yep, saw your other post and answered that one first :)

[@russianwolf1972]

It's called a prism, Zac.

[@ZacHiggins]

+russianwolf1972 Yep, triangle thingy was all I could come up with at the time! LOL

[@IncarniChicken]

This comment section is so nice! Is it because there's no 10 year olds?