STIRRING STICK When melting metals for casting, its important to have something to stir the melt. Stirring ensures a homogeneous mixture and also lets you check for any lumps of metal that have not yet melted. A carbon rod is inexpensive, stands up well to high temperatures, will not contaminate the metal, and the metal will not stick to it. The main problem with a carbon rod is how to hold it. A pair of pliers will work in a pinch. But carbon is fragile. If you apply too much pressure, the rod cracks and if you happen to drop the rod, it usually breaks. My solution is to make a simple rod holder from a piece of 3/16 or 1/8 inch metal wire. Heavy steel clothes hanger wire or a thin brass brazing rod works well. Other alternatives are available in most local hardware stores. Wind the wire around a mandrel of the right size like you would wind jump rings. Here I used a 15/64 inch mandrel to develop a coil to hold a 1/4 inch carbon rod. Bend the end of the rod down between the vice jaws to keep the coil from turning on the mandrel as you wind the coil. Leave a long tail on the end of the coil to attach to the handle. Finish off the holder by sticking the tail into a length of wooden dowel to serve as a handle and make it easy to use the stirring rod even with bare hands. See all 101 of Brads tips in Bench Tips for Jewelry Making Amazon Prime and Kindle Unlimited members can borrow it FREE amazon/dp/B00A5ELDRU
Posted on: Sun, 19 Oct 2014 19:13:17 +0000