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A sidenote: if you don't have a forge yet but want to become familiar with forging operations, I learned a lot with plain ol' tin. Pick up a beefy roll of high-tin solder (95/5 tin/copper's your best bet, it's basically fine pewter minus the antimony for extra hardness), melt it on the stove in a ladle or can, cast it into a bar via an open-topped tinfoil mould made by wrapping the foil thickly around a form, and hammer the poo poo out of it until it's unrecognizable. Then do it again, experimenting with different techniques- tapering, squaring off, upsetting, maybe a project that combines them like making a spoon or something like that- until you're bored or your forge is done. You lose some tin with every melt in the oxidized casting dross but it's no big deal, and tin doesn't need to be annealed like other cold-working metals like copper/brass do so the work goes easy and fast.
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Nov 11, 2014 17:28
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ReelBigLizard posted:Hit a farmers market or junk yard and find yourself some old fat Allen wrenches. Straightened out they make great punches. Old worn out files and rasps are a good start for edged tools as they harden very nicely. Allen wrenches I've found to make excellent small blades. Don't know if it's the right kind of steel but they take a keen edge. The problem is they want a buck apiece for them at the flea market.
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Nov 11, 2014 20:35
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ReelBigLizard posted:Sweet! thanks for the link. As a very, very broke artist, I would take you up on the offer but I can not. But as soon as I get money (aka achieve a modicum of success) I will contact you about purchasing some. Also, I would suggest to Wabbly Sausage, that you may want to stock up on some mild steel to practice with before you use up any of the tool steel. It takes some time to get it right. When making new complex tools I still try it out in mild steel first.
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Nov 11, 2014 21:08
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Ambrose Burnside posted:A sidenote: if you don't have a forge yet but want to become familiar with forging operations, I learned a lot with plain ol' tin. Pick up a beefy roll of high-tin solder (95/5 tin/copper's your best bet, it's basically fine pewter minus the antimony for extra hardness), melt it on the stove in a ladle or can, cast it into a bar via an open-topped tinfoil mold made by wrapping the foil thickly around a form, and hammer the poo poo out of it until it's unrecognizable. Then do it again, experimenting with different techniques- tapering, squaring off, upsetting, maybe a project that combines them like making a spoon or something like that- until you're bored or your forge is done. You lose some tin with every melt in the oxidized casting dross but it's no big deal, and tin doesn't need to be annealed like other cold-working metals like copper/brass do so the work goes easy and fast. Actually you don't even need tin. A block of standard modeling clay (not sculpy, but actual modeling clay) has the same properties and characteristics in terms of what happens when you smack it when a hammer, as mild steel at proper forging temp. We give 1lb blocks to new smiths so they can practice with out using fuel, or steel up. You can taper it, upset it, shape it, draw it out, round it, square it up from round and just out everything in between. You can even scroll a taper depending on the specific clay you get. Edit: I use it when I'm wanting to try something new that I've never tried or seen in person before. Much less frustrating than ruining a piece of steel.
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Nov 12, 2014 03:44
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wormil posted:The problem is they want a buck apiece for them at the flea market. Get friendly with the tool dealer and tell them you'll give them scrap price for all the broken/rounded/blunt Allens and files/rasps. They'll be buying stuff in lots and boxes at auction most likely and probably sending the broken stuff to the scrap pile. I buy enough tools from our local chap at the farmers market that every now and then he has a plastic bag of scrap tools waiting for me under the counter for free. In other news, my aunt & uncle have just bought a massive charcoal kiln (they're going to sell it commercially) and I can have as much as my forge can eat 
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Nov 12, 2014 15:45
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ReelBigLizard posted:Get friendly with the tool dealer and tell them you'll give them scrap price for all the broken/rounded/blunt Allens and files/rasps. They'll be buying stuff in lots and boxes at auction most likely and probably sending the broken stuff to the scrap pile. I buy enough tools from our local chap at the farmers market that every now and then he has a plastic bag of scrap tools waiting for me under the counter for free. ha, I read that wrong, and was trying to figure out how your aunt and uncle having a pottery kiln that ran on charcoal was in any way going to help you.
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Nov 12, 2014 23:24
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Good advice for the flea market, thanks. Anyone know if Allen keys are carbon steel?
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Nov 13, 2014 00:14
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Any decent hex key is going to be alloy steel. Probably 41xx, 86xx or maybe 61xx.
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Nov 13, 2014 01:05
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This may be painfully obvious to you guys, but the rear gas connector of that Alpha TIG-200X that I bought back in June wasn't really tight enough, and you can't get a wrench on both sides of the connection to tighten it down well enough. I wasted about 50 bucks worth of argon here and there by forgetting to turn the bottle off overnight. I swapped my first cylinder today for $73 and decided to figure out where the system was leaking down. Turns out it was that back connector and to get a wrench on it you basically have to take the lid off and remove the back black plastic bit. It was about a dozen or so screws, and 10 minutes worth of work. So far the gauges have held pressure for about an hour now. edit: Looked at the gauges this morning and they're still holding pressure. Leaked down a little, went from 40 - 20 on the torch side, and stayed at 2000psi on the bottle side. I didn't want to tighten any further, I've broken a few brass nuts by leaning into it. That's good enough for me. Before I was leaking down to nothing in 10-15 minutes. Pimblor fucked around with this message at 15:25 on Nov 14, 2014 |
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Nov 14, 2014 00:49
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I finally finished my project that I was working on in my metalforming/silversmithing course. http://imgur.com/a/wH5wR That is an album with all the progress pictures. The piece is a Harmon mute for trumpet. I raised the entire mute out of two pieces of brass. Took longer than I thought it would, but I definitely have a better handle on raising than I did before I started.
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Nov 16, 2014 19:37
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Brekelefuw posted:I finally finished my project that I was working on in my metalforming/silversmithing course. Ahh I miss that shop so much! Well done, looks great!
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Nov 17, 2014 02:56
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I’ve finally caught up to you guys after reading every single post in this thread. Only took about 5 months, but I did it. I must say that I’m floored by some of the talent and projects that I’ve seen so far, and look forward to more. Also, I thank all you regular posters for the myriad of tips and tricks I’ve learned from you already. Keep ‘em coming! As far as metalworking goes, I’m just beginning, and have been mostly brazing, gas welding, and FCAW welding. 50A 220V, a decent MIG, and eventualy a TIG are definitely in my future. Primarily, I’m just repairing stuff (last project was a new scraper bar for my snowblower), and so far, I’ve not fabricated anything too extravagant. In addition to a pretty good complement of hand tools, I posses the cheapy 110v FCAW box from Harbor Freight which I’ve used enough to make kind of messy, but strong welds. A Victor O/A torch with cutting head, and 0 welding tip (a rosebud is on my list next week). Drill press, vises, and a 10” abrasive saw. So, here’s my situation. I’m betting most of you folks who have woodstoves know what a flue damper looks like. Here’s a new one I just purchased:  I’ve been burning wood, as an ancillary heat source, in my house for about 20 years (yeah I’m sort of  ). I usually end up going through about 1 damper per year. What I find is that, due to the temperature (I tend to run the stove around 450F pretty much during its operation) the metal rod that passes through the cast iron damper plate literally "burns", or "corrodes" away. Here’s one that failed on me just this week: I attribute this to the fact that the steel’s just cheap. Nothing is ever wrong with the damper plate itself – no wear for the worse at all. So, a friend gave me a section of 304 stainless rod, 1/4 inch in diameter (which is just a weensy bit bigger than the original which is 5.5mm), and I’d like to make this…  … out of the 304 stainless (which has an absurdly high melting point from what I’ve read. Far higher than any wood fire would produce.) The bit that concerns me is that sort of rounded “V” bend. The handle side (with the spring), I can “handle”  just fine as it doesn’t have to be the exact shape as the original, and could even just be a 90 degree bend (I wear welding gloves when tending the fire.).So, I throw to the metal working goon hive-mind, what’s the best way to duplicate that “V”? Should I try and form it cold, or hot? What I’m considering so far is welding up a little bending die of angle and another piece of rod that would conform to the inside of the bend. Heat the rod, chuck it in the vise before it cools, and mash it down, hopefully forming the correct bend. I don’t do nearly enough of this kind of fabrication to warrant something like a Hossfeld, or American bender. Any, and all ideas would greatly appreciated, and thanks again for all the tips I've learned thus far!
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Nov 21, 2014 02:05
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http://youtu.be/345o3Wu95Qo This is a pretty amazing video of a guy who used to be a plate engraver for sheet music. What an insane skill to have. He has to read the music and engrave it mirrored. Too bad everyone uses computers now (myself included.)
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Nov 21, 2014 03:06
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when you do printmaking everything is backwards and mirroring stuff comes pretty naturally after not all that much practice. used to be I could write mirrored just as fast as not.
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Nov 21, 2014 07:59
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The joggle is just to stop the rod sliding back out isn't it? It doesn't need to be identical, just impossible to slide back out, and small enough to rotate in the slots (I assume that's how you insert it). Heat and bend, three bends to get back to straight. Not too complicated.
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Nov 21, 2014 12:29
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Cakefool posted:The joggle is just to stop the rod sliding back out isn't it? It doesn't need to be identical, just impossible to slide back out, and small enough to rotate in the slots (I assume that's how you insert it). Heat and bend, three bends to get back to straight. Not too complicated. Even simpler, drill, tap, stainless-steel setscrew. Wire-wrap. You don't have to replicate the exact solution designed to be easily implemented on a machine. You just have to do the same job.
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Nov 21, 2014 15:46
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Cakefool posted:The joggle is just to stop the rod sliding back out isn't it? It doesn't need to be identical, just impossible to slide back out, and small enough to rotate in the slots (I assume that's how you insert it). Heat and bend, three bends to get back to straight. Not too complicated. Yep, you're right, that's all the joggle does. The rod and plate are seperated, you position the plate up in the pipe where there are two holes on either side. Then, you insert the rod through one of the holes, simultaneously push, and twist 1/2 turn, and then 1/2 turn again, and release the tension on the spring. If everything is positioned correctly, then the joggle is holding the damper plate in place. So, yes, it probably doesn't need to be the exact dimension, just enough to hold the plate. Also, the 304 rod is just a weency bit larger diameter than the original, so I'm sure I'll have to have some slop in there for this to work. babyeatingpsychopath posted:Even simpler, drill, tap, stainless-steel setscrew. Wire-wrap. You don't have to replicate the exact solution designed to be easily implemented on a machine. You just have to do the same job. I thought of this too. Problem is, I don't have any taps small enough to tap a hole drilled into a 1/4 rod. I can go all the way through with a little SS nut, and bolt, though. Even better would be a tiny bolt with a SS wing nut. I have to disassemble this thing periodically throughout the winter (well, once every couple of months), for cleaning. In addition to the chimney flue, I also clean the sheet metal black pipe, and for that I need to get the damper out of the way. A tiny wingnut, and bolt would be easier when you're working blind with both hands in the pipe. I think I may try the bending route first, thanks Cakefool. I have 36" of SS rod, so I've got some room for some failures.
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Nov 21, 2014 16:56
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BlankIsBeautiful posted:Yep, you're right, that's all the joggle does. The rod and plate are seperated, you position the plate up in the pipe where there are two holes on either side. Then, you insert the rod through one of the holes, simultaneously push, and twist 1/2 turn, and then 1/2 turn again, and release the tension on the spring. If everything is positioned correctly, then the joggle is holding the damper plate in place. So, yes, it probably doesn't need to be the exact dimension, just enough to hold the plate. Also, the 304 rod is just a weency bit larger diameter than the original, so I'm sure I'll have to have some slop in there for this to work. Tapping and threading stainless steel rod is not fun anyway. Besides, ask anyone who has ever taken off a rusty exhaust manifold what they think of threads near a hot carbon rich environment. I think bending it is the right way to go too. edit: Holy crap, I burn cords and cords of wood in my woodstove and I only ever have to clean the flue every couple years, what are you burning? Railroad ties? Pimblor fucked around with this message at 17:44 on Nov 21, 2014 |
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Nov 21, 2014 17:38
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Hu Fa Ted posted:Tapping and threading stainless steel rod is not fun anyway. Besides, ask anyone who has ever taken off a rusty exhaust manifold what they think of threads near a hot carbon rich environment. I think bending it is the right way to go too.  No, not at all. I burn a combination of split hardwood, and dunnage lumber from my place of employment which is non-treated 4x6x8 foot oak beams used to haul pre-cast concrete. The stove's an old potbelly that gets really cranky draft-wise when the flue's dirty. It's stupidly efficient though (not by today's standards, but for the time frame in which it was built, it does pretty well.), and I can actually choke the fire completely just by closing the damper, and all the intake vents. I can tell when it's ready to be cleaned because when I slam the damper all the way closed, it gets a bit smoky in the house. The chimney's never really super sooty, but enough comes down the pipe to fill about 1/4 of a large garbage bag (about an 8 foot run of black pipe feeding into a 25 foot run of triple wall flue.) Plus, I've been a little paranoid since being in someone's house when the chimney decided to cook off. They lost half of the house. I burn about 7 cords a winter starting September 15th, to around the end of April. I'm in NE Ohio, and I'm heating a little over 4000 square feet, half of which is a 114yo Victorian (with no insulation), and the other half is an addition added in 2000. When the stove's cruising along nicely, the temp at the damper is about 500F, and at the black pipe exit into the flue, about 350F. I do like having $200 natural gas bills in January, too.Not to derail too far into woodburning chatte, I'm going to try the bending route. Hopefully I can get some time this weekend to fire up the torch and see what I can do.
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Nov 21, 2014 19:11
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Thought this might be interesting to some. I bought some old tools today and among them was this Craftsman alcohol blow torch. It seems to be in working order but I won't know until I clean it up and try. I've also heard of people using gasoline or Coleman fuel.  
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Nov 23, 2014 22:34
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Off chance, but is there anyone in here in Southern California? I have done some work with my dad in his smithy, back in Indiana, but I'd like to get serious about learning blackmithing skills.
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Nov 24, 2014 02:46
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I just got my first silicon carbide grinding wheel, I haven't tried this tungsten yet, but I'm pleased with the surface finish. The bottom tungsten was ground with a green silicon carbide wheel, the top on a plain 60 grit blue bench grinding wheel.  Plus it was a lot faster to grind.
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Nov 25, 2014 00:00
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I know aluminum extrusion is loving EXPENSIVE  , but does anyone know of somewhere that sells it that would not put me in the poor house?
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Nov 30, 2014 10:54
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Youre talking about 80/20? Or just literally any aluminum that is extruded?
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Nov 30, 2014 19:09
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CarForumPoster posted:Youre talking about 80/20? Or just literally any aluminum that is extruded? Dont think it really matters. At least at the moment I don't want it for heavy load bearing. I am thinking about it for the frame for a 3D printer.
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Dec 1, 2014 10:46
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IndianaZoidberg posted:Dont think it really matters. At least at the moment I don't want it for heavy load bearing. I am thinking about it for the frame for a 3D printer. What he means is "Aluminium extrusion" covers aluminium in literally any shape from rod / tube / square up to specially designed framework systems designed for rapid prototyping and process engineering / automation. You probably want the latter, and you probably want a system called 80/20 - which is what most 3D printers use, if they use Al extrusion at all. https://www.google.com/search?q=80/20+aluminium&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=AFl8VMDsLJXUapLmgbAB&ved=0CAkQ_AUoAg&biw=1680&bih=937
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Dec 1, 2014 13:03
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If you just want straight, stiff pieces of aluminum for a frame and you're not afraid of screws and clamps, then window/sliding door track is pretty cheap. It doesn't have as much of a connector system designed around it, though, so you'll have to be more clever.
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Dec 1, 2014 15:44
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ReelBigLizard posted:What he means is "Aluminium extrusion" covers aluminium in literally any shape from rod / tube / square up to specially designed framework systems designed for rapid prototyping and process engineering / automation. Then, yes. 80/20 is what I am looking for. I have seen the "80/20" around but I didn't know that the frame work extrusion was specifically called 80/20.
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Dec 1, 2014 16:49
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We finally picked up our "new" lathe. Needs some cleanup and a few repairs. I can't wait to start making chips  .
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Dec 1, 2014 18:27
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Awww yeah, that's awesome. Looks like it's a pretty good size. Get any tooling with it?
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Dec 1, 2014 18:39
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Motronic posted:Awww yeah, that's awesome. Looks like it's a pretty good size. Tons.  ~10 pounds of misc HSS tooling ~2 pounds of braised carbide (5) quick change tool holders (2) 3 jaw (1) 4 jaw Steady Rest Jacobs 16N chuck Live/Dead centers Carbide grinding wheels Old style tool post holder + tooling Random stuff
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Dec 1, 2014 19:29
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IndianaZoidberg posted:Then, yes. 80/20 is what I am looking for. I have seen the "80/20" around but I didn't know that the frame work extrusion was specifically called 80/20. Try McMaster. They sell a decent assortment, in both metric and imperial.
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Dec 1, 2014 19:34
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Karia posted:Try McMaster. They sell a decent assortment, in both metric and imperial. I love McMaster but they're $$$$. You get what you pay for as an engineer (fast shipping, cad data, etc.) but for a hobbiest... I'd bet that the Chinese make a knock off that is sold on eBay or Alibaba/AliExpress. Also try google shopping and sort by price. You can use McMaster to come up with a list of what you need then order it there. EDIT: Yep. http://www.aliexpress.com/wholesale?catId=0&initiative_id=&SearchText=aluminum+extrusion CarForumPoster fucked around with this message at 19:43 on Dec 1, 2014 |
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Dec 1, 2014 19:41
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the spyder posted:Tons. That's probably worth way more than the machine itself. Nice one.
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Dec 1, 2014 20:03
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hey Brek, do you know what that time-lapse video of a vessel being raised is called? I can't find it on YouTube. not the silver hand grenade one, the first one he showed in class. I'm trying to explain what raising is to someone and it's not clicking.
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Dec 3, 2014 22:14
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No, I don't. It was on the silversmith's website I think. Not Youtube. Send Dave an email. He is good about writing back.
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Dec 4, 2014 02:19
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wormil posted:Thought this might be interesting to some. I bought some old tools today and among them was this Craftsman alcohol blow torch. It seems to be in working order but I won't know until I clean it up and try. I've also heard of people using gasoline or Coleman fuel. If it is rated for alcohol, I would be wary of running it on white gas/colman fuel. White gas runs far hotter under pressure from my experience.That could get sketchy with the tank attached to the burner.
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Dec 5, 2014 06:40
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mcbagpipes posted:If it is rated for alcohol, I would be wary of running it on white gas/colman fuel. White gas runs far hotter under pressure from my experience.That could get sketchy with the tank attached to the burner. Turns out it is a gasoline torch. I have to replace the gasket on the pressure pump because the leather is old and won't seal anymore. I'm anxious to try it though.
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Dec 5, 2014 18:44
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wormil posted:Turns out it is a gasoline torch. I have to replace the gasket on the pressure pump because the leather is old and won't seal anymore. I'm anxious to try it though. Maybe I'm just a giant female sex organ, but I just wouldn't mess with it. It looks like a neat antique tool from the 50s, which is maybe where it should stay.
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Dec 6, 2014 00:21
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Hu Fa Ted posted:Maybe I'm just a giant female sex organ, but I just wouldn't mess with it. It looks like a neat antique tool from the 50s, which is maybe where it should stay. You've never used a Coleman lantern or stove? Same principle.
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Dec 6, 2014 04:27
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