English Wheel after shaping with hammer

[Kerry Pinkerton]

You might need two ( or even 3) layers of tape. On flexible machines like the HF, it will just roll over a single layer I suspect.

There is a fine line between too much extra metal on the boundary and not enough. You want just enough. Too much and it's a lot of extra work to get it shaped.

I don't recall if you are tuck shrinking the edges or not but if not, I'd suggest you look at Ken Burton's excellent thread:

http://allmetalshaping.com/showthread.php?t=3321

Don't be afraid to bend the panel to flatten it out for better anvil contact while you are planishing with the HF. It's called working out of arrangement.

Also, while one can certainly do good work with a HF machine, it's actually much harder for a novice to master because they are so floppy. You end up using a LOT of pressure to get it to do anything and as a result, the rollers 'flip flop' over each other at the end of each stroke. This further stretches the metal and makes lumps. At some point, you'll need to lighten up the pressure and blend the entire panel, ultimately going to very little pressure.

Working a single area is fine as long as you remember that you are continuing to stretch that area. As you gain experience, you'll learn how to guage when you need to stop blocking and finish on the wheel/phammer/or by hand.

Originally Posted by Shawn

i think i'm approaching the "frustrated" stage that everyone probably goes through.

You're in good company. The difference between a metalshaper and a hack is they did not give up when things didn't happen immediately. Metalshaping is not an instant gratification craft. It takes lots of practice and hard work. You WILL make a good bit of scrap. Most of us still do from time to time even if we don't talk about it.

I feel like I can make anything out of sheet metal but it's not unusual for me to decide that it's quicker to start over than 'fix' a panel that didn't come out like I expected it to.

[Shawnm]

Hi:

I've been following your suggestions and I am geting better results. I hope to finish the pieces up the best I can this weekend and weld them together. I'm sure they will be serviceable, and i always have the option of skimming them with filler if they aren't good enough.

thanks

[Shawnm]

I finished fabricating my arch pieces and welding them onto the existing non-rotted pieces and some replacement parts I could find.

Here's my question: I have a gap between some of the old work and the new pieces. The reason is that there is too much overlap of the new piece over the old piece. I'm thinking of cutting back the old piece and then butt welding the new to the old.

the other option is to hammer over the pieces I formed but then I'm afraid I'll lose the nice shape I worked so hard to make.

Anyone hava any suggestions?

thanks,
Shawn

fender headon.jpg

fender.jpg

fender overlap.jpg

car.jpg

[BTromblay]

Hi,
I recommend you cut back the piece and butt weld the joint. If you get distortion from the weld, stretch the weld area and the distortion will go away.
B

[Maxakarudy]

Shawn,
I've still got a long way to go before I begin master the wheel, but what little I have gathered is you need to hand manipulate metal into shape after wheeling, don't just rely on the anvils to put the shape where you want it.
I've also seen experienced guys bend and twist why wheeling, there is so much to learn, but keep at it, you're doing a good job.

[crystallographic]

Originally Posted by Shawnm

I finished fabricating my arch pieces and welding them onto the existing non-rotted pieces and some replacement parts I could find.

Here's my question: I have a gap between some of the old work and the new pieces. The reason is that there is too much overlap of the new piece over the old piece. I'm thinking of cutting back the old piece and then butt welding the new to the old.

the other option is to hammer over the pieces I formed but then I'm afraid I'll lose the nice shape I worked so hard to make.

Anyone have any suggestions?


thanks,
Shawn

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Attachment 38287

Hi Shawn,
You have a normal problem when building over the orig - and then joining pieces to the orig to make it whole again. I snip back and then butt because I have tried lapping and hammering and - no joy there.

Remember that butting new to old will give you different metal on the old, with less strength if it has been rusted. This is not noticeable until you hammer the weld, and the weld stretches and lays down - pushing the old back and making it wrinkle, sometimes. So I don't hammer as much to flatten the weld as I hammer to relieve the weld distortion and also to even up the fit and fairness. Then I sand the weld down, carefully.

*nickel knowledge."

[onya]

Hello Shawn,

I was just looking at your man made stump with the Bowl Shape cut into it.
The Bowl shape looks pretty uniform all over and I was wondering what you used to cut out the Bowl shape in the laminated Beams because now I'm thinking of building a similar one because I don't have access to a stump.
Oh and how deep is the Bowl Shape in the centre?

[Jerry Jackson]

Leigh

Here is how I did it.

http://allmetalshaping.com/showthread.php t=15119&highlight=jerry+jackson&page=3

Jerry Jackson
San Antonio

[onya]

Jerry,

I just checked out your link and that is totally do able from this end, I am a Shop Fitter, Cabinet Maker so I have all the tools to do that.
The small one hand held machine you refer to as a Router we call a Trimmer here in OZ but the bigger 2 hand machines still get called a Router.

[Shawnm]

Hi:

Sorry for the late reply. I cut the pieces before I glued them together and then used a grinder with a 40 grit flap wheel to clean it up.

I made it too deep (about 1 3/4"). When I hammer the middle I get unintended side tucks. Next time shallower. In fact I might put a new top on it with a shallower top.

Shawn