Fullers' radii (or radiuses)

[John B]

I would just like to emphasise what Brian has said, that fullers come in pairs, and can also be used seperately. The bick is also a bottom fuller wth radii depending upon its shape. Some are more curved over the top than others.

[WillyP]

Ruben, Brian, et.al.

To look at this from a slightly different perspective may help - I hope anyway.

I work in a Stamping and Fabrication Plant. In the Fab Shop, the Brake Press Dept. in particular, if a drawing calls up a certain radius'd bend, the operator then has the choice between many different styles of Brake Dies which all have the same radius ground into the profile. So the actual die itself may be 4 feet long, 4 inches thick, and 6 inches tall, but the "point" if you will will be ground to the certain radius. Let's use 1/2" for an example: then the "point" or the "business end" will be 1" thick.

The angles at which the sides of the dies are machined have no bearing on the radius. See the attached pic of a Goose-neck Die - I am not 100% sure of the actual rad on this die because I just swiped it off the net but if it has been ground to a 1/2" radius on the "business end" it don't matter what the rest is like.

Well that's how it works in with Brake & Press Tooling, Blacksmithing may be different, and as I am learning, I am learning that some folks look at a thing one way, and others look at the same thing differently. Yet they are both the same.

Hope I did not confuse things worse.

Willy

[John B]

Thanks Willy, This is a problem in terminology and applications again, as blacksmithing developed through the ages and is as a result of specialisations developing, eg lathes for turning when 'smiths used swages to make axles, gate journals etc.

The sheet metal industry developed along these lines also, and eventually along came the press brake

These tools are used to generate an angle to a side using an internal radius as a measurement.

This radius is there for a reason, not least of which is to reduce the stressing effect when introducing a sharp corner made cold in the material being bent,

The specifications therefore usually call for an internal radius of a specified dimension, and that is why blades used for producing the bends on press brakes and other similar applications are usually identified by the radius on the nose of the blade, and not a diameter.

Hope this helps with the clarification problem.

Edited May 7, 2009 by John B

[Grafvitnir]

After many months, I found a reference that answers what I was trying to know:

Harcourt's "Elementary Forge Practice" pgs. 26-27 "Fullers.- ...They are made in a number of sizes depending upon the radius of the circular edge. On a 3/4-inch fuller this radius would be 3/8 inch."

So, what I wanted to know: they are called based on their diameter (a 3/4-inch fuller), not their radiuses (or radii) (3/8 inch radius)

Thanks everyone

Rubén

[bigfootnampa]

You have to STOP Brian!! It makes me cry to see such beautiful hammers!!! This is just too much!

[John B]

After many months, I found a reference that answers what I was trying to know:

Harcourt's "Elementary Forge Practice" pgs. 26-27 "Fullers.- ...They are made in a number of sizes depending upon the radius of the circular edge. On a 3/4-inch fuller this radius would be 3/8 inch."

So, what I wanted to know: they are called based on their diameter (a 3/4-inch fuller), not their radiuses (or radii) (3/8 inch radius)

Thanks everyone

Rubén

I thought this had already been answered previously (post 13 on), but nice to know it has now been confirmed and clarified for all