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  #21  
Old 12-27-2011, 01:14 AM
BrassBuilder BrassBuilder is offline
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Pickle yes. You can buy safety Pickle from Jewellery supply,store's.
When pickled all the oxidation is removed. Then use a soft brass wire brush,and soapy water. Your work will come up bright and shiney.
Pickle brand for copper and brass Sparex#2 ( Sodium Bisulphate)
Substitutes In a pinch, a swimming pool additive called Ph Plus or a compararable product can be used as a pickle. It has the same active ingredient as Sparex. ( the information on Sparex is from a book called the complete metalsmith by Tim McCreight) A very good book.
We only have one "real" jewelry store in town. I'll check with them tomorrow....ummm....I guess technically today since it is after midnight.

I don't think we have any swimming pool dealers in town anymore.

I've heard a mixure of muratic acid and water is a good pickle bath and also vinegar. I think I read that on the Internet, so it must be true. LOL.
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Old 12-27-2011, 01:34 AM
Dyce Dyce is offline
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That is more or less where I am headed except with a wood pattern instead of a metal one.

I don't have an english wheel either. It is on the "to-do" list. But I need to build a miniature one for 1/8 scale body panels.

I am really appreciating all the advice. I'm going to mess with it some more tomorrow morning. Once I get a handle on shrinking and stretching metal, I should be able to make anything.
You really don't need the wheel, you can planish by hand. You are right "Once I get a handle on shrinking and stretching metal, I should be able to make anything" but usually shrinking goes easier if you do the stretching first. Shrinking goes easier if the metal is under tension. That's why the stump works so good.
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  #23  
Old 12-27-2011, 03:16 AM
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Mark Fox Mark Fox is offline
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Originally Posted by BrassBuilder View Post
We only have one "real" jewelry store in town. I'll check with them tomorrow....ummm....I guess technically today since it is after midnight.

I don't think we have any swimming pool dealers in town anymore.

I've heard a mixure of muratic acid and water is a good pickle bath and also vinegar. I think I read that on the Internet, so it must be true. LOL.
Muratic acid will rust steel tools. be carefull. thats just the fumes.
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  #24  
Old 12-27-2011, 10:01 AM
JimRussell JimRussell is offline
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The swimming pool PH up is and alkaline. It's listed as 97% sodium bicarbonate - baking soda.
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  #25  
Old 12-27-2011, 10:20 AM
BrassBuilder BrassBuilder is offline
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The swimming pool PH up is and alkaline. It's listed as 97% sodium bicarbonate - baking soda.
Oh....that stuff. I think I used something called PH up in our fish tank one time. I'll have to check with the pet store and see what they have if the jewelry store is a bust.

I'll have updates later today. Lot's of stuff to try.
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  #26  
Old 12-27-2011, 10:23 AM
BrassBuilder BrassBuilder is offline
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You really don't need the wheel, you can planish by hand. You are right "Once I get a handle on shrinking and stretching metal, I should be able to make anything" but usually shrinking goes easier if you do the stretching first. Shrinking goes easier if the metal is under tension. That's why the stump works so good.
One of my next projects is a 1/8 scale 1955 Chevy Nomad. I bought the AMT 1/16 scale model kit that I'm going to use to make patterns from. Once I get the outlines done, I can take them and scale them up by 2 and use them for the body.

But I gotta get a handle on shrinking and stretching first before I tackle that project.

Speaking of stretching....is there anywhere on this shell that I should be stretching first? I've just been trying to shrink.
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  #27  
Old 12-27-2011, 10:37 AM
Dyce Dyce is offline
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If you stretch the face of the shell the sides will come around.
This will form tucks, and put tension on the sides. When you shrink the sides you are releiving that tension.
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  #28  
Old 01-01-2012, 09:58 PM
BrassBuilder BrassBuilder is offline
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After swearing, getting mad, pouting, screaming, yelling, throwing stuff, and finally breaking down into a crying heap, I think I am catching on. By this set of pictures, I had beat more pieces of copper into oblivion than I even care to imagine. Actually I can imagine it...they are all laying on my workbench....like a trophy room of failed attempts. And maybe looking at it as failed attempts is wrong. Maybe I should count them on what doesn't work.

On to the pictures!

This is where I started. The copper is just big enough to do one corner. I got it pretty well clamped down. I eventuallyy moved the clamp on the left side over closer to the corner. The copper was annealed and cleaned in a pickle bath.
Attempt3_1.jpg

The hammer I used for most of this.
Attempt3_2.jpg

After about 20-25 *LIGHT* taps.
Attempt3_3.jpg

Eventually got to this. I thought I was losing control of the situation at this point.
Attempt3_5.jpg

Another view with the copper off the wood form.
Attempt3_6.jpg

I trimmed most of the excess off here and switched over to this hammer.
Attempt3_7.jpg

I also used a couple of dollies as I worked the copper. This is one of them.
Attempt3_8.jpg

After about 20 minutes of work.
Attempt3_9.jpg

Even after working the copper over for 20 minutes, it still fits the pattern good.
Attempt3_10.jpg

OK...my question now is, how do I finish the metal off better? Are there any good techniques to get rid of the rest of the dents? I think I got one crimp in the corner, but that is better than the 3-4 I was getting. I am really happy how this one turned out.

I tried burnishing the copper over my pattern by rubbing the flat side of that second hammer over the copper. That does not seem to do much. I was also contemplating laying a coating of soft solder on it and filing/sanding it smooth. Sort of like using lead filling on real cars.

All advice is appreciated.
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Last edited by BrassBuilder; 01-01-2012 at 10:05 PM.
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  #29  
Old 01-02-2012, 02:58 AM
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Mark Fox Mark Fox is offline
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Hi, Mike. You seam to have to much metal hanging over the corner. You need to cut it back, by about 1". Curve it round from one edge to an other. From your photos you are trying to shrink to much,in one go.the tucks you are forming ,are folding in on themselves.If you can see what I mean. In your photos. Just go as you are going, a little bit at a time, from the top. Down . As you hammer you are rising tucks, you have to lock these down. This should work.
I hope this works, I find it hard to write what I mean. It's easy to show you how to do it.That a little hard as I live in Australia.
Is there anyone who lives near you , who could show how to do this.
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  #30  
Old 01-02-2012, 10:15 AM
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HEATNBEAT HEATNBEAT is offline
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Mike,
from the picture it looked like you folded over in a couple of places
that's a tight radius it would be hard not to, with that much material.
other then that your getting there!
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