Latest Acquisitions Revisited!

[Heavens Eagle]

I have a small tube full of brass tubing that I have had and accumulated over many years. The diameters are from 3/16th inch up to 5/8th. I use them as forms or reference only.
Yeah bending a curve on PE requires annealing. Years ago I was trying to bend a curve in some PE with holes. It didn't curve till I annealed it. I also have one of those PE bending tools. It was made by a company called The Small Shop, but apparently they are out of business. The site is still around but everything is listed as sold out. I have one of the bigger ones and use it a fair amount. I only use it on big stuff or really tricky stuff. Tiny stuff is tweezers, and you have seen those.

My Tubing stack, and I have a tube that these go in for storage, and yes the smaller sizes are longer than the bigger sizes. I use the rubber mat underneath in various layers as a support for bending as well. Take the part, set it on the mat and roll the round thing over it and it curves up.

 

[iambrb]

Was not aware of that regarding the annealing. Way back in the day I worked in a local manufacturing plant that made airplane lights, and we would commonly kneel and harden various metals. It’s a really neat process.

 

[paddy]

I used to make punches and dies for the 20 ton press at work. I would turn up a punch out of 1 inch silver steel . heat it to cherry red with a gas torch and then plunge it in an oil tank that would cool it at a slightly slower rate than water and stop it cracking then clean it up so it was shinny again and heat it to straw colour to temper it. Fortunately at home i have a butaine powered soldering iron and that produces a flame hot enough to anneal brass PE

 

[moon puppy]

And of course if it's Eduards' PE when you heat it up it just goes up in smoke...