A long way to go

[Garno]

I have finally made a pen that I sort of like.
I say sort of because it has lines showing. I seem to be going great guns then I go onto the 320 grit sanding and lines just appear out of the blue, Do I go back to the 220 grit to try and get rid of them or start again from the 120 grit? regardless of the answer I chose the wrong option

This is a Rocket Bullet Pen made from Walnut, I followed the guide written by [MENTION=735]Phil Dart[/MENTION] for the melamine and I am glad I did, I am actually pleased with the effect it had on the walnut, I am not sure if the gloss is "deep" enough and if it would work as well on a lighter coloured wood, I shall find out tomorrow.

Rocket Bullet Pen.
Walnut
Finish:- Sanding sealer, Melamine, Carnauba Stick.
Total time 4hrs 30 mins

 

[flexi]

Questions,...... Are you wiping the blank after each different grit? sometimes grit remains and can cause this.
Are you sanding along the blank also this also removes radial rings.
Are you using clean sand paper/ mesh/ pads? Again contamination is not helpful
Unfortunately always treat sand paper as if someone else bought it... And 'CLEARLY' Mark the grit grade on it, it doesn't help if your going backwards through them...

 

[Phil Dart]

Sometimes radial marks are an illusion left behind by the sanding dust, and sometimes they really are radial marks. In either case, you can overcome them by, as Mark has said, stopping the lathe and sanding parallel to the lathe bed, and removing the dust from the grit you've just used before moving on. I keep a soft paint brush handy by my lathe specially for the purpose

 

[Bill Mooney]

Check for sanding rings between each grit & if you find any go back 1 grit & sand again, check then move on if ok.

 

[21William]

What tool are you using? If you use a skew chisel then you shouldn’t need to do too much sanding. A quick sand with the lathe on but not running too fast then stop the lathe and sand with the grain.
In wood working terms turners are the worst for sanding against the grain!

 

[Garno]

What tool are you using?

I use carbide now as I find them them very enjoyable.
I start with the square one and once the blank is rounded switch over to the round one.

 

[21William]

Carbide tools are fine to get you started and aren’t a bad choice for abrasive materials like acrylic. For wood though the skew chisel is hard to beat for a smooth finish straight off the tool. I personally like the Crown Rolled edge skews, 19mm is a good size for pens but you could go a bit bigger.

Crown Rolled Edge Skew Chisel | Stiles & Bates

But stay safe, You may benefit from some tuition before trying one on your own.

There are lots of videos on using the skew chisel on YouTube on all kinds of spindle work.