A couple more noob questions about working thin brass

[Marc Bourget]

There's also the "slip ring and die" method.


quick description although many variations to the approach.



Drill a hole at the OD in a plate approx 150% of the depth of the cut.


Radius upper edge and polish well. Mill a pocket the approximate size of your blank to a little over the thickness of the material to complete the "die."



Have a cover plate with a hole sufficient for the punch. Clamp/bolt to the die.



When you press the punch into the material, the radiused edge of the dies acts to shrink the material (hopefully!) leaving a nicely formed cup.

[lrubin28]

Thank you sir! That's what I was looking for - something quick and easy to try before moving on to more expensive solutions.

Originally Posted by cliffrod

First thing I would do would be to try making it with a hammer and a punch over a drilled hole. It would only take a few swings & a couple of tries to succeed or fail and move forward with a better understanding of the situation.

Drill a hole in steel scrap, probably all the way through and then clamp this to another piece of flat scrap so the bottom is easily finished as flat. deburr the entry edge well. then use the butt end of a drill bit that's a little smaller for the drift/punch and see what happens... I would plan to cut the formed cap from a larger sheet vs trying to locate & hold a perfectly round blank and stamp a finished part.

If it goes well, I would likely then try using one of my arbor presses, simply because that's what I have.