Metal shaping
| Line 10: | Line 10: | ||
Stretching metal can be done on a shot bag with a wooden, plastic or steel mallet. The bag is made of leather and filled with a material such as lead shot or sand. Plastic injection molding pellets have been used for this as well. | Stretching metal can be done on a shot bag with a wooden, plastic or steel mallet. The bag is made of leather and filled with a material such as lead shot or sand. Plastic injection molding pellets have been used for this as well. | ||
| − | Metal may also be stretched over a hollow such as the cut out of a stump or even a piece of pipe. In the photo above, one corner of the stump has a 3" dia hole for stretching metal. | + | Metal may also be stretched over a hollow such as the cut out of a stump or even a piece of pipe. In the photo above, one corner of the stump has a 3" dia hole for stretching metal. Shrinking a piece of metal around the edges will result in a bowl like shape. After shrinking the edges to the maximum amount allowed by this process, it then becomes necessary to stretch the center area of the piece to achieve the radius required. |
| + | |||
| + | Stretching the edges of a panel only and not working the center at all will achieve the classic potato chip shape. This is called the reverse curve. The streching can be done by holding the edge of the sheet over a cutout in a stump and applying some severe hammer blows. The photo below shows a wooden mallet with a small radius and a panel that has been stretched over the 3" dia cut out. | ||
| + | |||
| + | |||
| + | [[Image:DSC00394_%28Small%29.JPG]] | ||
| − | |||
| − | |||
An English wheel (ewheel) can then be used to smooth out the lumps created from the stretching or shrinking processes. If too much pressure is exerted by the ewheel on areas that were shrunk, the material will start to stretch changing the shape. If too much pressure is exerted at the stretched areas, the metal will be stretched even more and change the shape. | An English wheel (ewheel) can then be used to smooth out the lumps created from the stretching or shrinking processes. If too much pressure is exerted by the ewheel on areas that were shrunk, the material will start to stretch changing the shape. If too much pressure is exerted at the stretched areas, the metal will be stretched even more and change the shape. | ||
Your Privacy Choices