facium

Copper is different, it will be soft after annealing regardless of air cooling or quenching. How hard copper will be after annealing (hard, half hard, dead soft) depends on how hot you get it.

I think there has been a slight misunderstanding about copper returning to hard if air cooled. Some (but not all) non-ferrous metals do need to be quenched to soften them (Silver need to be held at temp over time, then quenched). If you let them air cool (4 hours?) then they would still be hard, but the original question was about copper.

thanks John, as my fabrication facilities are somewhat limited, I bought a chepo set of industrial punches from harbor frieght and ground them to what I needed.

working on a new piece with these tools, and will post some pics soon

thanks, I have noticed a lot of pieces I have seem don't bother with flat, they texture the surface (I would assume using a rubber mallet on a textured backing plate)

thanks John, that's about the shape I was thinking.

thank you too Thomas, I suspected the bedding might be too soft (modeling clay) and am in the proccess of getting something stiffer. It's nice to know I not waisting my time. the only problem I forsee with bedding is the abient temp here runs 100+ most of the time, and I don't know if I will be able to use pitch.

Facium; In latin it usualy means to build or to make. It is is the latin root word for fabrication.
I came across the quote "Aut invenium, aut facium" while reading a military history of the officer that gave the order to shoot, when Stonewall Jackson was killed (accidently) by his own men. I do not remember the officer or the military institute he attended, but the institues motto "Aut invenium, aut facium" (I will find a way or make one) I have made my own.
It has has been a constant reminder that we can only "find a way" when we look, and we can only "make a way" when we work.

My real name is,
Michael A. Crowther

do you have a pic of a "flattener", I'm self tought and at times I am missing key vocabulary. I can take a guess at what this tool would look like (the name is kind of obvious) how ever I see no need to reinvent the wheel if an accepted tool is allready widely used.
Thanks I'm gunna go check some places on the internet to see if I can get some ideas (always hard to do when you don't know what something is called)

Hi all, I am getting a lot of wrinkle in the sheet around the shapes I put in the copper (all the flat surfaces). Is there a method that will reduce this wrinkle effect, or a process to remove it after the fact.

The piece shown in this post is a good example. although I don't mind a "rustic" look on this piece, I like the look of flat copper in the non hammered areas of a piece.

I used to hammer the copper cold (no annealing) and did not have this wrinkle effect happen (the sheat was too stiff to distort). anealing has made it much easier (or should I say possible) to make the detail I want, but I lack the experiance/knowedge to correct this effect.

any advice help would be greatly apprieciated

an excellent suggestion, I will keep it in mind.

of course for the test prototye I will just throw a tarp over it.

please excuse my use of the word crucible, it was not my intention to to melt but to heat the metal for forging.
I was thinking of using a crucible because it would hold the inert gas (co2 being heaver that air), resist the heat, and be readily available.

biggest problem is tuning it off and on, I can automate moving the mirrors (to turn off the forge have the computer move them out of focus).
I don't have the money for that (and it would raise the complexity of the blue print considerably).
I need to find a low tech solution to either cover the mirrors (about 5 square ft) or flip/turn them so they are out of focus.

I have the mirror size and reflection angles figured, just working on the funtionality

Solar, prabolic mirrors redirected strait down into a ceramic crucible filled with an inert gas that is heaver the air. instant free energy.
like frying an ant with a magifiying glass.
gunna take some time to figure the curve and size of the mirrors, and the angles to redirect it down into the crucible.
I'll figure it out and build a prototype (I live in Arizona, we got lots of sun shine)

electricity was not the power source I was considering, but thanks for the info.

I need to do some math

I have some basic curiosity questions about forges.

what temp range are we talking about for the perfect forge?

does using coal or gas make a differance to your material?

would heating the metal to a forge temp without the presance of any fuel or O2 (ie argon or CO2 bubble) be of any advantage?

I know some of you will be tempted to tell me how impossible this is, but the question is could you find any advantage to it?

did someone call "fescue 911"

Alas anoth poor lawn boy, "cut" down before his time

I made a very simple single axis line plasma cutter once.
just a 110 plasma cutter, a threaded shaft (to move the tip), and a variable DC drive.

controls were simple limit swithches to prevent overtravel, and the dial on the drive.

what you can cut would depend on the table you build to go under the cutter.

If the rings are small you will get slag on the other side of the ring, but using a bar thru the middle of the rings should stop that.

I guess I'm gunna have to clean out the garage and make a shop

That looks great, you used a punch/drift/chisel/whatever to strike the pattern from the front first (chaseing?). then pushed the design features out from the back (repousse?).

just trying to learn the terms of the trade.

thats pretty much how I have been going about it, but I don't use a punch very often (can't hold it, the hammer and the piece at the same time). eye detail, and line depth correction are about the only place I use a puch.

I believe in the KISS philosophy (Keep It Simple Stupid). clean water is working just fine. wouldn't have any place to keep a bucket of alcohol. I don't even have a shop (I sit in a chair on the front porch and hold the sand bag on my lap). man was my wife confused when I heated this piece on the stove bunner and quenched it in the kitcken sink, but we have been married 20 yrs and she knows not to ask. :)

I can not thank you guys enough. Heating and quenching the copper did the trick. I was able to streach the copper way farther with a lot less effort. In fact now I have to be carefull not to go too far.

I'm posting some pics of the piece I'm working on. sorry I didn't take any pics of where I was before annealing, I was just so excited to try it, I forgot to take any.
anyway I have to get back to hammerin

if an RCH is a "loose" tolerance your a machinist.
if an RCH is a hammer tap away your a blacksmith
if you don't know what an RCH is your an engineer

I used to repair this type of equipment, and the potential for endangerment of life and limb are being understated. . this press gets it power from the potential energy stored in a spinning flywheel. once cycled nothing will stop this type of press except the knife pulling out the dog, or hitting something harder the the punch tonnage + 20~30%.
the second condition will either shear off the dog (you hope) or break the shaft (you hope not. I saw this happen, the flywheel went through two buildings and sereral cars before ending up spinning like a quarter half a block away).

thanks to you too Glen, I mostly use a pick I ground the tip on (I think it came from an autobody set). the surface couldn't be more than 1/4" round (but I ground it oval so I'm not sure). I think at this point I'll try heating the copper, before I change hammers. can't change too many thinks at once, or I won't be able to judge what made the differance.

thanks John, I may try pushing the dome out first on my next piece, but it's too late to try on my current one (I'll post pics of the work in progress when I get home tonight).


on another note, this has been a wonderful experiance. I really aprieciate the help.

thanks John, I'll try it. I'm working on a bigger sun, and am having trouble hitting it hard enough to move the copper, and still be accurate enough to make the shape I want.