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Just for the record, for 95% of people just using tanks is the easier and smarter thing to do, because for most people the couple extra hundred dollars or whatever is worth not having to invest the hours and hours in constructing and working out the kinks in said carbide reactor. And sourcing the carbide. Or grappling with producing it in small quantities yourself. I guess if you're a masochist, a very thrifty masochist, or (like me) you've got a weird obsession with owning the means of production as far down the chain as you can go... *eyes rolling-mill with envy* e: If anyone's curious, here's a guy farting around with a stick welder and melting various normally-unmeltable things, as well as making small quantities of calcium carbide. http://www.metallab.net/arcmelt.php Ambrose Burnside fucked around with this message at 15:08 on Jul 26, 2012 |
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Jul 26, 2012 15:04
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Ambrose Burnside posted:or (like me) you've got a weird obsession with owning the means of production as far down the chain as you can go... I've got this disease too. One day I will make my own iron in a bloomery furnace, just to show that I can. I've been collecting rust for years 
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Jul 26, 2012 20:56
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Oh I know... some weekend I'm gonna get a bunch of friends with a sledgehammer apiece in a pickup with a fireplace liner in the bed and make a pound or two of real wrought iron.
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Jul 26, 2012 21:01
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I know 'what to buy' questions are lame as gently caress but: I've got a line on some Miller Regency 200/250 welding power supplies. To MIG weld, I need a wire feed box+mig accessories, right?
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Jul 26, 2012 22:47
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Veins McGee posted:I know 'what to buy' questions are lame as gently caress but: Yes, you'll need a feeder that will be compatible with your power supply. Make sure you price everything out and know the availability before jumping into it. Just quickly googling the power supply, it seems pretty old. I'm not sure how well you are going to be able to source the required equipment. Of course, if you know where to get the feeder, or it will take a bunch of different kinds, disregard that. What kind of applications are you planning on using it for? What prices are you looking at for the power supply? e: You're going to need a feed unit, and a work lead and whip to attach. Also, your consumables. thecobra fucked around with this message at 02:26 on Jul 27, 2012 |
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Jul 27, 2012 02:19
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Slung Blade posted:I've got this disease too. One day I will make my own iron in a bloomery furnace, just to show that I can. Ambrose Burnside posted:Oh I know... some weekend I'm gonna get a bunch of friends with a sledgehammer apiece in a pickup with a fireplace liner in the bed and make a pound or two of real wrought iron. I, too, have this dream! ...I also have a great big hunk of obsidian sitting out on the patio...
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Jul 28, 2012 01:44
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Leperflesh posted:...I also have a great big hunk of obsidian sitting out on the patio... Make swords. e: wrong thread maybe, I don't even know anymore
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Jul 28, 2012 01:50
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Bad Munki posted:Make Correct thread either way...
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Jul 28, 2012 02:06
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Jul 28, 2012 02:09
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What's up metalworking thread. I'm spending the summer working for an artisan who travels on the renn faire circuit who sculpts copper and bronze free form with an Oxy/acetylene torch. I've been doing this on and off for the last decade, and I've caught back up with him this summer. Here's a link a the gallery of his booth at the Sterling Rennaissance Faire here in NY as we were setting it up earlier this summer- http://imgur.com/a/MJP41 He has a bunch of helpers strategically located across the country who help with the production pieces- all the little stuff, and the fountains, birdbaths, plant hangers. I'm the NY guy for the time being. Friday I made calalilly wall sconces. Setting the basic shape  Add grass and button up the end.  Color the flowers   Ready to rock, patina and clear applied.    He's also doing a frame off restoration of an already chopped Desoto. My real passion is bicycles, and any day now I'll start on my first brazed and lugged road frame.
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Jul 29, 2012 04:19
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One of these days. I want to smelt some aluminum. An excuse to use high power, and high heat. *drools*
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Jul 29, 2012 06:37
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My wife is all "you're going to cut yourself" and "you're going to leave sharp shards everywhere" and whatever. Apparently, sparking-white-hot iron is much safer, who knew. Those swords always strike me as having a serious design flaw that shouldn't be hard to fix: the place where the handle meets the heavy wide body of the sword is a sharp corner that creates a weak point. Making a taper where they socket together (or even better, tapering a single piece of wood for the handle and body) would make it much stronger without adding much weight.
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Jul 30, 2012 20:13
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I don't think they had a firm understanding of stress risers back then.
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Jul 30, 2012 22:20
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Given that the only surviving authentic example was destroyed 200 years ago, I'm willing to give the Mesoamericans the benefit of the doubt that if that design was sufficiently flawed to merit correction they woulda done so 
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Jul 30, 2012 22:28
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Belt grinders- in the vague future I might want to get something belt-ey for making knives. Most bona-fide metal-intended belt grinders are expensive as hell from what I can find, how usable are belt sanders for the same purpose? Is it mostly just a question of motor strength, or maybe speed? Or can I only buy wood-intended belts for belt sanders and metal belts for belt grinders? e: Also, Cherry Red case-hardening compound rules. I hardened some old mild steel punches I made today, it's super-convenient to be able to harden just the tip of the punch while leaving the body/striking end soft- you can gain the same effect with careful tempering, but it's really easy to accidentally quench-harden the rear of the tool as well if it's a really small punch, making for a nervous/dangerous first couple uses, when you're half-expecting it to explode and blind you.
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Aug 1, 2012 00:45
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Ambrose Burnside posted:Belt grinders- in the vague future I might want to get something belt-ey for making knives. Most bona-fide metal-intended belt grinders are expensive as hell from what I can find, how usable are belt sanders for the same purpose? Is it mostly just a question of motor strength, or maybe speed? Or can I only buy wood-intended belts for belt sanders and metal belts for belt grinders? Personaly I use http://www.harborfreight.com/1-inch-x-30-inch-belt-sander-2485.html and http://www.lowes.com/pd_91036-46069-PCB420SA_0__?productId=3163789 I will mostly use my bench grinder for ruffing, I do not have the ability to hollow grind tho. If your really into that I would suggest something like this http://www.texasknife.com/vcom/product_info.php?cPath=659_775&products_id=687 Not like you see hollow ground kitchen knives. To me the most important rating on a belt sander is the amp rating, 5amp is plenty on the porter cable, and it has a nice heavy cast base. I can't find the speed rating, but A belt speed around 5000 feet per minute is what you want for steel along with belts with grit that works well on steel. Invest in good PPE!!!! If you work with stainless filtration is a must. Building your own belt sander is also a nice right of passage for a knife maker, you might want to look into some of the free plans out there. It's maybe 3 days of work?
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Aug 1, 2012 05:00
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Ambrose, I used to use a 4" Harbor Freight PoS belt sander to flatten the ends of iron pipe nipples at a factory. Pop for the blue zircon belts and it'll be fine, they cost 10 times as much but they cut 12 times faster and have about 40x wear life.
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Aug 1, 2012 07:23
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I use one like that lowes' unit for my letter openers. It works ok, but it is slow as gently caress, and with the side table on mine it makes it difficult to sand both sides of the blade evenly. I can crouch down and hold the handle to watch it sand edge-on on the left, but the table blocks me on the right, so I have to do it by feel which is a lot harder. Also mine is kinda cheap so there is a big gap between the wheel and the bed, so if you're trying to grind in a contour on the wheel, chances are you've hosed up part of the blade. You have to 'thrust' it constantly to overcome that and even it out, which makes grinding the contour take even longer. I should try to find the sanding belts designed for metal like Proc mentioned, I know it would help a lot. Or just build my own. gently caress I've been lazy this year  e: this is mine, you can see the table behind the belt there. 
Slung Blade fucked around with this message at 16:39 on Aug 1, 2012 |
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Aug 1, 2012 16:35
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Ok, cool. I just wasn't sure why there was such a sharp price divide between 'sanders' and 'grinders', but if I can use a belt sander it doesn't matter. (I'm actually making small knives, teeny-tiny knives, I'm being hush-hush b/c it involves a pending Kickstarter and me flailing around for money this summer) so oomph isn't a huge deal; it'd just be nice to have a tool capable of doing real knives as well)
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Aug 1, 2012 17:39
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Well, belt grinders and belt sanders are totally different. One's designed for metal, and the other for wood. The sanders work for metal, but grinders will do a much better job and be a lot faster. If you're doing production work with one, I would spring for the grinder since it will greatly increase your hourly productivity.
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Aug 1, 2012 18:05
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It depends on how much money people throw at me I guess!! Aiming low, hopin' high~
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Aug 1, 2012 18:11
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Ambrose Burnside posted:It depends on how much money people throw at me I guess!! Aiming low, hopin' high~ Well keep us up to date on what you might need, I might have some stuff to donate. I really need to do a good garage cleaning. Here are 2 projects I finished this month. I built a steam whistle movie prop, a real one cost somewhere around 200 bucks. I is aluminum top and bottom and the body is stainless steel. Sadly it will prob end up being powder coated copper or brass. Unless they film the movie in black and white...  I built this smoker for my parents house, I got tired of using the round tall pit in the background. It made a might fine brisket for it's first season. I took all the fat and oil from the first cook and rubbed it on the outside, as a season. It hasn't rusted much yet, we will see. 
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Aug 1, 2012 19:13
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Ambrose Burnside posted:It depends on how much money people throw at me I guess!! Aiming low, hopin' high~ Cut Brooklyn video mini-documentary thing: http://vimeo.com/31455885 I'm sure everyone has seen this, but I was surprised by the belt sanders he's using and how he's using them. Man oh man I love this video.
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Aug 1, 2012 20:03
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I feel like this thread doesn't get enough blacksmith love. Mostly milling and welding. Here is my contribution. A hand mirror that I made yesterday. Copper plate casing with a steel handle. The name of the recipient is stamped on the edge. 
Starz fucked around with this message at 22:53 on Aug 1, 2012 |
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Aug 1, 2012 21:14
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just JB-Welded my first thing (back of a screw onto a belt-buckley thing a friend wants to put on the back of a bike as I understand it??). hope it turns out okay 
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Aug 2, 2012 20:00
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Starz posted:I feel like this thread doesn't get enough blacksmith love. Mostly milling and welding. I'm sorry that I have been so lazy about making anything this year. I've just been so... fuckin.. tired. Your mirror looks fuckin boss though, good job. Did you do the copper bits too?
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Aug 2, 2012 20:37
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iwannabebobdylan posted:Cut Brooklyn video mini-documentary thing: Joel is awesome. When this video came out, I realized his shop was 3 blocks from my apartment, and headed over on a Sunday for his open studio hours. Not only did we chat forever, but he took me down to his shop and worked on a knife while we talked. I remember him explaining how his belt grinders were really special tools, the one with the aluminum wheels can switch from horizontal to vertical orientation, and the other is something rare too. His shop is super nice, he basically cuts out the knife blank and roughs it out on the first grinder, then does all the final shaping and sharpening on the nice one. Dipping it in coolant the whole time. Even shapes the wood on the grinders, cuts out his brass pins, glues up the handle and blade, then shapes it all down wet. I think he sends em out to get tempered. His assistant has a forge, but I don't think he does much forging himself. Probably would be too much work, I know he's backordered a couple years now. He even sharpened my pocket knife for free! He's a really nice guy. If anyone lives in the NYC area, it's worth making a visit to. I want to do a collaboration between his knife studio and my glassblowing studio - I already brought in some glass to show him, and he refereed me to a pie shop down the street when I showed him a solid Pyrex rolling pin I made on the glass lathe. There's definitely a market for high end tools for kitchen use, and he managed to tap into it at the right time.
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Aug 2, 2012 22:17
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Money Walrus posted:a solid Pyrex rolling pin I made on the glass lathe  Show me this thing, I must know its secrets. Also can you make me two of them? that would be loving amazing.
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Aug 3, 2012 18:33
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Anybody know of a good solution for insulating metals to avoid galvanic corrosion that can also stand up to high heat? I'm building a furnace and my life would be a lot easier if I could use copper pipe for the propane supply and black pipe for the burner tube itself. There shouldn't be too much heat on the actual copper/steel interface because the flame itself will be in a flare at the end of the burner pipe which is around a foot long. Any ideas for preventing galvanic corrosion? Or would I be better off just using steel pipe for the whole thing?
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Aug 3, 2012 20:49
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I've been hesitating to post these but hey what the hell. My name is Ambrose Burnside, and I'm a sex toy manufacturer. Enterprising/freelance, anyways.    and the other model-   Rings too big for fingers and too small for wrists. I wonder where they go 
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Aug 3, 2012 22:42
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Slung Blade posted:I'm sorry that I have been so lazy about making anything this year. I've just been so... fuckin.. tired. Thank you! Yes, I worked the copper as well. It isn't very symmetrical at all. I just wanted to see if I could get it all together without breaking the mirror. And I did, on the third piece of mirror. I plan on making more because the whole thing was easier than I thought. I am definitely going to make some fancier looking designs for the casing, and maybe even tool it a little bit for extra show. This is the first thing I have made that I think I could sell for "worth it" money. As a side note, I found that one of my local metal recycling/supply places will let me root around and buy some of their stuff. That is where I found the copper sheet for this project, as well as a crap-ton of other copper bits like 4 to 4/0 gauge wire bits and ground rods. I am going to get into a a little bit of redsmithing now.
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Aug 3, 2012 22:56
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Working with copper/copper alloys is the poo poo, it's much more plodding and deliberate than the rhythm of steel's heat-forge-heat-forge but you can really take your time with planning how you're gonna work the metal. Also the aggressive work-hardening is nice because you can 'cheat' a whole ton of extra strength out of a finished forged/worked piece if you plan it so the last step of all-over hammering/forging is done after the final annealing. e: Oh yeah, the blower motor in my A/C broke down, so I inherited the old one after the repair guy pulled it out. It's a 1/2 HP GE motor, and all I can tell is "it smells kinda electrical-fire-y". What are the odds I'll be able to actually fix it if I pull it apart? Should I just bin it? I need extra motors badly, for buffer/belt grinder/power hammer use, and a 1/2 HP variable-speed motor ain't cheap. Ambrose Burnside fucked around with this message at 23:28 on Aug 3, 2012 |
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Aug 3, 2012 23:26
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Ambrose Burnside posted:I've been hesitating to post these but hey what the hell. Have you considered making codpieces? You should.
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Aug 3, 2012 23:44
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Sponge! posted:Have you considered making codpieces? You should. Totally. I'm getting into chasing/repousse and I have this fever-dream of doing a chastity belt with, like, ridiculous obscene images in relief on the face of it in polished brass or something similarly spectacular.
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Aug 4, 2012 00:55
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wargamerROB posted:Anybody know of a good solution for insulating metals to avoid galvanic corrosion that can also stand up to high heat? I'm building a furnace and my life would be a lot easier if I could use copper pipe for the propane supply and black pipe for the burner tube itself. There shouldn't be too much heat on the actual copper/steel interface because the flame itself will be in a flare at the end of the burner pipe which is around a foot long. Any ideas for preventing galvanic corrosion? Or would I be better off just using steel pipe for the whole thing? My hot water heater uses a plastic insert in between the steel piping inside the heater and the copper piping of my household water supply. It seems to me that you must use a nonconductive material of some kind. If it's too hot for ordinary plastics you may have to research high-temperature plastics, or perhaps some kind of epoxy, resin, or ceramic insert. Ceramic is the highest-temperature option but may be impractical depending on how your pieces fit together. e. On the other hand, maybe you're worrying too much about galvanic corrosion in this application. Wrap the copper pipe threads with the typical gas-rated (yellow) tape, connect the steel burner pipe, and I bet it'll last 15 years without problems.
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Aug 4, 2012 01:44
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Leperflesh posted:My hot water heater uses a plastic insert in between the steel piping inside the heater and the copper piping of my household water supply. Yeah that was my first thought: just wrap the joint with a poo poo ton of teflon tape on the joint. I'm only worried about galvanic corrosion because I'll be keeping the furnace outside. I'm just being paranoid because hey, it's a joint that's going to have 60psi of propane running through it. But if it's a foot away from the actual flame I feel like it should be safe. I guess I'll just soap check it often. That or find a hose that has brass fittings on one end and steel on the other.
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Aug 4, 2012 07:59
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wargamerROB posted:Yeah that was my first thought: just wrap the joint with a poo poo ton of teflon tape on the joint. I'm only worried about galvanic corrosion because I'll be keeping the furnace outside. I'm just being paranoid because hey, it's a joint that's going to have 60psi of propane running through it. But if it's a foot away from the actual flame I feel like it should be safe. I guess I'll just soap check it often. That or find a hose that has brass fittings on one end and steel on the other. Comedy option:  Gold Plate Everything.
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Aug 4, 2012 08:06
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 Hello getting paid to take three years of machining and heat treat classes for free!
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Aug 4, 2012 14:32
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wargamerROB posted:Yeah that was my first thought: just wrap the joint with a poo poo ton of teflon tape on the joint. I'm only worried about galvanic corrosion because I'll be keeping the furnace outside. I'm just being paranoid because hey, it's a joint that's going to have 60psi of propane running through it. But if it's a foot away from the actual flame I feel like it should be safe. I guess I'll just soap check it often. That or find a hose that has brass fittings on one end and steel on the other. Maybe join the two parts with JB-Weld? It's an insulator IIRC and tough as hell. Might be tough to guarantee that the parts are not, in fact, touching through the big lump of JB, maybe you could use a thin non-conductive washer-ey thingy in-between the two to guarantee it.
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Aug 4, 2012 17:10
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I produced a commemorative plaque for the Olympics, unveiled to friends and family just as the opening ceremony was beginning. 
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Aug 4, 2012 17:13
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