I have also picked up the supplies (shakes tiny fist at @joker) but haven’t made anything yet. It didn’t occur to me to try pouring directly into the wood! Did it just fall out when cool??
When those blisters pop, it will…
sorry… (not sorry, it’s fun!)
Thanks! And I will be envious that you can cross your fingers lol.
Yep, it pops right out with a few taps on the back. Making a silicone mold works better I’m sure, but I’m impatient and the wood ones are pretty quick. I even made a few molds that had little openings at top to pour the metal into and I just put a piece of scrap wood over the back and held it in place with clamps. It sealed well enough to contain the metal and made for a nice smooth back. It was hard to get the pieces with thin parts out intact though and I had more success with designs like the rabbits with no delicate parts. The wood molds held up pretty well too.
(This one had already been removed.)
I have to say, I find this whole thing extremely fascinating, but I am terribly accident prone
And also, even if I didn’t hurt myself, I have visions of spilling it on the floor or something like that. It’s very hard to get hardened sugar off the floor (ask me how I know). Then again, perhaps not so bad if it popped out of a wood mold. Anyway, stay safe and keep the pictures coming!
You could use something simple like a metal cookie tray under your work piece. That way if you have a little overflow it will land in the tray and not on the floor. Personally I do the metal melting in the garage. Any flow that hits the floor just solidifies and can be picked back up for the next job. Just don’t attempt it without proper footwear .
Molten metal on concrete can result in impressive explosions, when the embedded moisture turns instantly to steam.
Good point. You can’t just place a wet paper towel over a metal splatter and wait for it to dissolve.
No this metal is low temp and is almost solid by the time any splashes hit the floor. I’m not talking about spilling 20 pounds of it. It’s like dropping solder on the floor. Hardens almost instantly.
Good point. I was thinking brass, aluminum…
I’ve only experimented with tin and my little heating pot goes up to somewhere around 650 degrees F but tin and pewter melts around 450. If memory serves me correct that is about the temp of burning paper.
The “lead free fishing weight” material I picked up is mostly tin with some bizmuth added and it melts at the high 300s, like, I can do this in my home oven if I really wanted to. Very cool
Yes that’s good stuff. Even with the tin I can make a mold out of MDF and pour right into it. With the small amounts I use it doesn’t even scorch the MDF and they pop out easily.
Obviously on a larger scale but just be careful with molten metal contacting surfaces that retain moisture…
I believe I would run faster.
For a visual, the pewter solidifies as soon as hits the little plate below the nozzle of the pot. Makes for neat little shiny splatters. The metal is still a bit hot to hold, but I can swipe it out of the way.
Daaaamn