First I must say that Acrylic is NOT my favorite material to work with. I just couldn't resist this beautiful red piece to make a special ornament for a special person. I got it turned as I wanted, polished to a nice finish and when I removed it from the lathe-------lt separated at one end after I held it in my hand. I have noticed long ago that some parts of the acrylic are harder than others and would expand/contract at different rates. I'm sure that my polishing caused a minor fault to come apart. So now my plans will change. I'll turn it some more and see what design I can come up with.

If I am able to make something nice, I'll post another picture.

Well that sucks but with some luck you can repurpose it.

 

Ever tried Corian?  I have a bunch of the countertop demo squares about 2 inches.  You can stack them up, glue them down and go to it.  Or mix wood in between them and create many different effects.  If you want to try it I can send you some to play with.  

Thanks Woodbutcher, I have never given that material a thought. I have a HD less than a quarter mile away and will look at tomorrow. It could open a lot of possibilities. I'll let you know more after I see what they have. I've seen some stuff like that in their odds and ends areas for cheap and it could be very interesting. I'll bet it is more stable too

I have used the stack method on pens and taken the Corian down to very small diameter with no issues.

 

That is some fine work. You may have found your calling.

Wow, those look great.

I did finish the acrylic ornament. The top globe is NOT the shape I wanted, it is the shape I settled for, avoiding more chip out. That also meant that the spire at the base had to adjust for the new shape. I like how it came out, it could have been much better, but it is OK

 The finish is the new ultraviolet dry finish. It came out great, I didn't touch it. I used the sun to harden and it looks good. The acrylic is a dust magnet due to static, however after I glued the wood on, it quit. I'll have to remember that.

Nice save!!!

NIce job and now I have to buy a new finish

It looked good enough to be an apple until it broke.  But, the save is incredible.  Good on you.  

 

Gunny, those pens are awesome.  That is a great job.  

A great save.  It looks quite small, what is the finished size of the acrylic part?

Looks great, Ron. As others said, nice save.

Beautiful piece of acrylic and good save. I found that I get a lot of catches with carbide tools and acrylic. I have ruined a few pens that way.

Nice save on the ornament!!

Looks great 

Just beautiful