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Post by L Driggers (fallen) on May 17, 2016 3:06:56 GMT
Not sure what a slurry room is, is where you do your metal casting.
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Post by brotherbanzai on May 20, 2016 23:11:52 GMT
The slurry room is where the wax patterns get coated in the ceramic shell. They are dipped in a colloidal silica "slurry" and then dusted with a refractory sand, then this process is repeated several times over an extended period to build up the shell. In a bronze foundry, the room where this was done was called a "slurry room" so I use the same name. Here are some pictures of it finished. I still have to move the second post over (I already moved the one on the left over and put up a temporary support), and remove some more railing. Once the other post is moved, I'll put in two additional posts sistered to them and a beam overhead for support, then the whole front of the slurry room will be open to the carport without the posts and railing in the way. That's the rear view. Might use some of the old railing from the carport to make a little rail on the side of the little overhang, you can see some pieces propped up over there top let me see how it might work. Here's the inside - Those are the two slurry tanks (rubber garbage pails). Next to them are three bins of refractory sand; fine and medium in bins built into the table, and very fine in a small bin on top. On the wall opposite that stuff (the front wall next to the door) are some shelves with all the extra bags of refractory.
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Post by L Driggers (fallen) on May 22, 2016 5:55:34 GMT
Well that makes more since than a metal casting room, show how much I know. Should have knew it wasn't for metal casting With a wood floor. Going to use the hang over to do the pours.
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Post by brotherbanzai on May 25, 2016 18:11:02 GMT
Originally, the overhang was just a way to make use of the leftover metal siding and create a small sheltered area outside in case I was doing anything especially messy. Then, like you, I thought it would make a good place to do the pours (which were previously going to happen out front). Then I discovered that since that area is down slope, the gravel still gets pretty soaked under the overhang and pouring bronze on a wet surface is a definite no-no. Maybe if I put down some pavers or something, otherwise back to the front of the shop for the pours.
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Post by brotherbanzai on Jun 19, 2016 19:12:21 GMT
Finished moving posts around from in front of the slurry room shed. Used the railing I removed from the carport area to make a little fence around the overhang area out back. The section along the back is two pieces which are removable when I want to open the space up more. More inside the shop pictures. Here's the little lathe. A second metal table I welded together with a plywood top. Put the bead blasting cabinet together and set it up in the carport where I added another pair of outlets. Did some forging yesterday. It was so nice to be in the shade and have plenty of room to move around without bumping into things. Had a couple of hummingbirds fly though the shop last week, so we put up a feeder on the back porch and new we can watch them everyday. In the evening we often sit out on the front or back porch and watch the fireflies. Yesterday as we were heading out to the range we say a deer hanging out in the back yard. Found out we have some wild blackberries on the property so we've been out picking them every few days. Man, life is friggin awesome here! If anyone wanted to see the deck, I think I forgot to put up pictures of it after I finished it, so here's that as well. Still needs to be stained.
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Sean (Shadowhowler)
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No matter where you go, there you are.
Posts: 8,828
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Post by Sean (Shadowhowler) on Jun 19, 2016 21:36:31 GMT
Looking really really good... I gotta come out there and we need to shoot some things and cut some things.
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Post by brotherbanzai on Jul 17, 2016 23:37:30 GMT
Come on over Sean, I usually shoot around 7pm when the range area is all in the shade. Though I haven't been out there for the last few weeks :( Finally got my new piece of equipment, Yay! Still have to get it off the steel shipping pallet and spin it around so that the front is angled toward the inside of the shop. And what the heck is this? I don't have an outlet like this in my shop. So, off to the hardware store to get a breaker, some wire, and a new outlet.
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Post by L Driggers (fallen) on Jul 18, 2016 5:25:56 GMT
Good to see you got the Riverside (Uncle Al) forge press. Been wanting one for about 3 years now. Please let me know how it works out, I am hoping to get one next year. You know you could just change the plug on the machine. I think you should give me a billet of pattern welded steel. By the way take a picture of the die holers always wanted to know what they look like.
Now just don't go getting a mill/drill before me.
God I am terrible writer.
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Post by brotherbanzai on Jul 19, 2016 13:40:29 GMT
Yeah, after you mentioned this machine I looked into them and decided I liked the design better than the one I was originally planning on getting. Managed to get it off the pallet and turned around, then I took off the vinyl lettering they had put on the front. May have to put a lighter spring on the pedal return as it's pretty stiff. Here are some pictures of the die attachment area: Pretty simple setup. Here are a couple pictures of one of the dies too, top and bottom: The base for the dies is 3/8" plate 4" x 8", with a little lip welded onto the end. I expect I'll be making a bunch of these to do different operations with. The plug on the press is a 20amp 250 volt plug, so it can't be changed out to fit a regular outlet. The two pole outlets I have for my welders and HT kiln are the large outlets which are run through breakers rated too high for the press, which means a fault in the press might not trip the beaker and could result in an electrical fire if something went wrong somewhere down the road. So I had to put in a new breaker and outlet. I was planning on using the press later this week, but don't know if I want to be forging then as it's supposed to get up to 96 -98 degrees. Depends on what it feels like, so far it's been pretty pleasant out in the shade.
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Post by L Driggers (fallen) on Jul 20, 2016 4:57:12 GMT
Did know they were 220volt thought they ran off 120.
Thanks for the pictures of the die set up. Now I know I will be able to make my own dies. Some press have dovetail grooves making it harder to make the die plate.
If I had a new machince would want to try it out as soon as possible. Just do like I do start at 2am.
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Post by aussie-rabbit on Jul 20, 2016 8:39:17 GMT
" Finally found a big piece of 1/2" steel plate that used to be on the back of guy's trailer available for $125, so I picked that up and then got some steel frame stuff" Ahh, to be once fit and strong as a wild Mallee bull !
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Post by L Driggers (fallen) on Jul 20, 2016 9:00:23 GMT
You guys and you 1/2in plate my welding table is only 3/16in.
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Post by aussie-rabbit on Jul 20, 2016 9:05:21 GMT
Hey Sean, yep Most of my swords are still packed up, but it won't take but a minute to get them out. The range is usable, though getting weedy, need to purchase a lawn mower here pretty soon, or get some goats or something. Planing on putting a carport or something out on the range to be able to shoot out of the sun, but haven't had a chance to get to that yet. A good few years ago I set up our range, (gone now, long story, ) picked up a 4 foot diameter cable reel from the local recycle yard for a few $, middle hole was just right for a 12 foot market umbrella, set on a couple of concrete blocks and " bob's your uncle" threw on a coat of fence paint voila! Ambidextrous as well! '
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Post by brotherbanzai on Jul 21, 2016 0:12:22 GMT
Hey L Driggers, I'll probably go ahead and try the press out tomorrow. I got a couple billets ready to go today and yesterday and had to finish putting together and testing my larger forge before that. I did squish a couple pieces of wood with it though, once I had the wiring all done. I wanted a nice thick plate for the table so I can use it to hammer on if I want.
Hey aussie-rabbit, the real trick was getting the plate off the back of my truck by myself and then later lifting it up onto the table frame ;) That's a nice little trick for the range. I want something permanent out there though so I don't have so much to haul back and forth every time I want to shoot. That would likely dissuade me from using the range as much as I'd just go do something more convenient instead. Kinda lazy like that. I try to make everything as convenient as possible so that whenever the impulse strikes me, I can go do whatever without wasting a lot of effort on setup.
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Post by L Driggers (fallen) on Jul 21, 2016 5:03:13 GMT
You should get yourself a compact tractor with a front end loader they are real usefull moving things in and out of the shop.
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Post by brotherbanzai on Jul 31, 2016 19:07:27 GMT
I looked at some old tractors as I was also interested in having something like a plow-type scrapper for doing some light grading as well as a brush hog kind of thing. They get pretty expensive though, and then I need another shelter just to keep that in. I ended up getting this little guy instead. There goes my dirt bike fund, waaaaa. So I used the new forge press for a couple days (less then an hour of actual run time) before it broke. I was dead in the water over the weekend while a waited for a reply to my email from the manufacturer. Turned out to be a simple, easily fixed issue, at least it seems that way for now. One of the guide arms as deeply gouged but hopefully it won't ever have an effect on the presses function. I might post a more detailed description and review of the press in the sword making subforum as I think this information could be useful to others interested in this press.
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Post by L Driggers (fallen) on Aug 3, 2016 8:46:27 GMT
Sorry to hear you had problems with the press I've only seen good reviews on it.
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Post by brotherbanzai on Aug 23, 2016 15:03:17 GMT
Thanks LDriggers, it was really only one big problem and a couple small inconveniences. So here is what happened to the press: As I was using it, it suddenly began to shudder on its way up on the return stroke. I could see it was moving up at an angle, with the left side higher up than the right side, then it stuck and I shut it off. It's designed to go up and down nice and square, definitely not at any kind of an angle. I cleaned off the grease from the guide arms and saw what was causing the problem. Right guide arm from above. Right guide arm from below. Close up. The right guide arm had become stuck and the press was trying to move up and down with it dragging behind. As seen in the close-up, it appears that possibly a small bit of welding splatter from when it was assembled had either been on the arm or broken off nearby and been pulled into the channel the arm rides in. Or could be something else entirely, no way to really know. But something was causing the guide arm to be gouged, then that bit was causing more gouging and so on until this large gouge was there, eventually seizing the arm in the channel. I had been taking video of my first time using the press so I got to see a bit of this occurring. At first all is well, then later I can see a small line forming on the arm, Then this wide gouge as it grinds to a halt. Didn't notice it at all while I was actually using it, though of course the arms were lightly coated in grease at that time. The word I got back from the maker was that they had had that happen to a machine last year, to just grind/file off as much of the burr as possible and run it up and down until it breaks loose, and then it should be fine. So that's what I did, here it is sanded smooth. I then heavily re-greased it and ran it up and down a few times. Then cleaned off all that grease, which had little metal flakes in it, and repeated. I repeated this "clean and re-greased and run up and down" several times. Eventually it seemed to run fine. I've used it for a few more hours since then without any issue of the guide sticking, so it seems ok. I'm a little concerned that the groove that is in the arm now could allow more stuff to get down in there and cause more problems at some point down the road, but for now all is well. I was relieved, but also rather disappointed, that the instructions I got from the maker were to just grind it off and that should be fine. I also thought maybe they would check back with me in a week or so to make sure everything was alright with the press, but I didn't hear from them again. Anyway, working fine now, so fingers crossed.
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Post by L Driggers (fallen) on Aug 24, 2016 3:37:45 GMT
Well that sucks, guess if I ever get one I will have to check it over real well. One good thing when I get my I can go pick it up myself. The company is only about 150 miles from me, so I can check it out real well.
Other than the problems you have run into how does it work. Know it looks like it works real well in Sorrell's videos.
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Post by Brendan Olszowy on Aug 25, 2016 2:10:27 GMT
Thats a dammit about your new toy bro. You want your new stuff all nice, not damaged by someone's F'up that you had to fix. I guess just keep documentation of your communication so that if it does become a problem down the track, even out of warranty, you've got some recourse back on them. Nice to see all your stuff shaping up. As will your dirtbike fund I hope ;-)
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