ok, so I'm still no expert at this, but this is my set up, and this is way I made a few of them, and this way seems to work the best for me.
YMMV
These little guys are all scraps from aluminum rod cut offs I got at work. The bodies are no taller than an inch and a quarter. Add in the hats and they can be about 3 inches tall. I try to make each one a little different.
Sanding them with successive grit sandpaper is important, if you don't and miss a grit, when you shine them up the little scratches will stick out like a sore thumb. (DAMHIKT)
The starting grit is up to your turning skills, how smooth of a cut when you're done shaping is the determining factor, after that I just go up to 12000 and then use a product called "One Step Plastic Polish" that I get from PennState Turning or amazon
After it's polished, I use some good ol renaissance wax to shine it up nice.
Roughing out the blank I use a rounded diamond shaped carbide, and then a pointed diamond carbide to get the body crease nice n sharp looking.
Ok....with all that said, let's move onto the picture show....
YMMV
These little guys are all scraps from aluminum rod cut offs I got at work. The bodies are no taller than an inch and a quarter. Add in the hats and they can be about 3 inches tall. I try to make each one a little different.
Sanding them with successive grit sandpaper is important, if you don't and miss a grit, when you shine them up the little scratches will stick out like a sore thumb. (DAMHIKT)
The starting grit is up to your turning skills, how smooth of a cut when you're done shaping is the determining factor, after that I just go up to 12000 and then use a product called "One Step Plastic Polish" that I get from PennState Turning or amazon
After it's polished, I use some good ol renaissance wax to shine it up nice.
Roughing out the blank I use a rounded diamond shaped carbide, and then a pointed diamond carbide to get the body crease nice n sharp looking.
Ok....with all that said, let's move onto the picture show....