Some of us have been eyeballing copper bowls made on the lathe. I think this Is a great video.
I noticed they use wax while they spin. I know the first run on this at DMS involved a little bleeding, maybe wax is the key?
Are there thoughts on a second try? If so let me know when. I would love the watch.
Interesting since I am wanting to make copper bowls the odl fashoned way by forging them and raising them
I think a key part of his success is the special tool rest he has made to hold the steel pivot pin. He is putting a great deal of pressure/strength into this and the pivot pin (my terminology) is crucial.
Searching for “metal spinning” should give some “how to” tips …
Heavy duty lathes can be converted, but the special tool rest is critical I’ve seen tool bars as long as 6’-7’ long used for manual aluminum spin forming for approximately 24" diameter parts.
Ideally an old large diameter lathe can be found that can be modified to do spin forming by shortening the bed and adding tool posts leverage points.
Good video on a simple mod to a lathe.
Desperately want to try some spun metal. Walter repeatedly proffered an instructional video he had on hand, but I never took him up on it. Seems like we need something other than what we have on hand to do it…
PS using the tool with the bearing (thus http://maremetal.com/data/imagegallery/a409467d-9960-3460-2c39-94f68f4df05f/1c84a8af-3ef3-cae3-f6f6-29bf9c37a47d.jpg ) it should reduce the need for wax, maybe?
Another major consideration is how big/deep an object do you want to spin form in its FINISHED form That is when it will be at it’s minimum diameter. When you start it will be flat and at maximum diameter, the limiting factor in starting is material diameter size. The deeper the object the bigger the starting diameter will need to be. There is some some metal stretch but typically much without really thinning the the metal out. A bowl 3 inches deep will be approximately 5" ~ 6" larger in diameter when it starts. 6" deep closer to a foot bigger in diameter.
It is a really fun process to play with and would be great to have.
