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All About Guns What's your weapon of choice, and why? Discuss the beloved speargun here!

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Old 05-27-2019, 09:49 PM   #1
jerbee
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Question Burning my mahogany JBL speargun?

First, I’m not talking about actually lighting it on fire, so if that’s why you came to the thread then I apologize for the disappointment you must feel. That being said, I’m asking about pyrography... wood burning. I was kind of thinking I might “tattoo“ my gun when it arrives this week. I would be surprised if some people on here don’t also customize the look of their gun by doing the same thing, so if anybody has experience then please let me know!

Before I get started on it, I have a lot of questions. Ok, maybe not LOTS, but I do have 8 (for now).

1. Is it OK to do practice burns on “regular“ wood, or should I try finding pieces of mahogany to work with prior to burning my speargun?

2. Is it ok to stick with a ‘typical’ small wood burning kit on Amazon, or should I spend more on a ‘laser’ kit?

3. Depending on your answer to 2, what would you recommend I buy for my stated purpose?

4. Is there anything that I need to know that I might not be come across just through reading the tutorial guides on the web?

5. What screw-ups are most likely to happen when I finally begin working on the mahogany speargun?

6. Other than screaming and raging, what should my reaction be to said screw-ups from number 5?

7. Should I sand the gun to remove the seal prior to starting?

8. How/with what should I re-seal the gun when the burning is complete?

Last edited by jerbee; 05-27-2019 at 10:37 PM.
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Old 05-27-2019, 11:37 PM   #2
popgun pete
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Re: Burning a mahogany JBL speargun?

Check out https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pyrography
DO NOT burn on any type of treated wood: Chemically treated, stained, painted, sealed with a finish, etc. If you must use this type of wood be sure that you have thoroughly sanded it to remove all traces and are burning on bare wood.

Another reference: http://www.scorchpyro.co.uk/Techniques.html

Last edited by popgun pete; 05-28-2019 at 01:24 AM. Reason: more info
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Old 05-28-2019, 09:55 AM   #3
Hpwatson
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Re: Burning a mahogany JBL speargun?

Are you talking about like a wood burning calligraphy pen that you can 'write' with? Or one of those electric scorching devices that basically sends lightning bolts through the gun? For the prior, I can answer some questions, for the latter, definitely think twice before attempting - you can kill yourself.

If you're wanting to burn/draw on the gun, here are some answers:
--you can practice on regular wood and I recommend that you do

--small kits with lots of different writing tips are common and perfectly fine. the main difference is the hand held part itself. the more expensive kits are more comfortable to write with and the cheap kits are kinda clunky but practice makes perfect

--one important tip you might not know of is to use a razor blade to draw/write your design as your first step, then the wood burning tip will follow that hair line much better. otherwise you'll hit the wood grain and the tip will follow the grain which will definitely give you a 3-year-old's result. speaking from experience here.

--don't try to get the exact effect on your first pass, do your design with the razor blade (most kits include a razor tip for this exact purpose) then draw lightly with your burning tip and keep going back over it a little more firmly each pass until you get the desired effect. As you go over it, you'll create a groove in the wood that the tip will follow more naturally each time. the other purpose of this method is that if you go outside the lines or make a mistake, it can easily be sanded out. If you're jamming the tip down hard, its a deeper mistake that requires deeper sanding. so multiple light passes are best.

--yes sand the gun in the area you plan to burn

--reseal the gun with whatever the original finish is. If it's oiled, use teak oil, if it's epoxy, use epoxy.
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Old 05-28-2019, 10:46 AM   #4
jerbee
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Re: Burning a mahogany JBL speargun?

Quote:
Originally Posted by Hpwatson View Post
...
Ok, this is exactly the sort of advice I was hoping to get! This is all great - thanks so much. Looks like I’m heading to the local arts & crafts store to get one of the cheaper kits then, and a pack of razors. I hadn’t thought at all about using the razor to set a groove; up until now I was going to freehand the design with a pencil and go over it in one pass with the soldering iron looking gun. Now I know better. Thanks again.

Quote:
Originally Posted by popgun pete View Post
I’d found the first one earlier, but the 2nd link is new to me. Thanks a lot!
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Old 05-28-2019, 01:17 PM   #5
Hpwatson
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Re: Burning a mahogany JBL speargun?

Happy to help! If you want to pencil draw your design, then razor it, then burn it, that would be even better. Razor lines are hard to see.
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Old 05-28-2019, 03:03 PM   #6
SEATUX
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Re: Burning a mahogany JBL speargun?

jerbee; PLEASE...post pictures of your progress!

I'd like to hear and see more!
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Old 05-28-2019, 03:11 PM   #7
popgun pete
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Re: Burning a mahogany JBL speargun?

Here is a tropical island vista on an old timer timber speargun.
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