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I've never had or even used a tumbler at college. We were never given any option but to use the bench polishers so I wouldn't know what to do with one. I seemed to make do for a long time but I will admit that buying all the equipment I now have has made life so much easier
It’s tricky isn’t it? I went to Cooksons today to have a look at the beasts and to buy a not-a-Dremel-because-they-break-all-the-time but something that will drill, cut, polish and buff. Came home with not very much because I was swamped by conflicting choices. Anyway, what did become very clear was that most of the combination mills were not what I wanted at all. I need a flat mill with some D-shape extension rollers, because I want to roll quite wide copper sheet with patterns, and actually have very little need to reduce wire, which I can buy in a specified thickness pretty easily and quickly from Cooksons. I do need a reduction gearbox, I think, because the effort involved in using a non reduction mill took the stand off the floor when the lovely bloke let me put a tiny piece of sheet through, plus, on bigger sheets of plate, I would probably turn unevenly, when what’s needed is a smoother action.
The outcome is that Cooksons are going to ask about the price of a DRM F100 RE for me which I think is what I need. I did discover that Sutton’s Tools (are they now Betts?) stock Pepe mills but only as combination types. I’ve also done a brutal audit of my skill level and what I need to learn - there’s a natural limit to what I can achieve because I can’t have cylinders inside my studio for insurance purposes, so I think I’m restricted to a micro torch temperature - and I have a lot to learn... I do need a Foredom pendant motor and handpiece though,the thought of buying another Dremel filled me with horror...
I only use the flat rollers on mine too.
As far as lifting off the floor though, they are normally fixed down when in use so thats not an issue.
Yes Suttons were taken over by Betts a while ago.
There was a thread a few days ago about torches and you can use small canisters with one of them apparently so that would still give a decent powerful option.
Here you go : http://www.cooksongold.com/forum/sho...t=smiths+torch
Thank you for all the help; I am learning so much. It's pushing me to work to see just how much I remember and can do. I've found my copy of The Complete Metalsmith and an old Two in One manual with some projects that I remember working through.Quote:
Originally Posted by enigma
With regard to buying a rolling mill, I'm still hopping from foot to foot, especially since a friend who is a specialist engineer with a lathe and complicated equipment that intrigues me, came up with some interesting ideas. He identified the likely issues with a cheap mill - namely the frame fractures under pressure because it is bolted together and the bolts fail (often under little pressure if the bolts have a manufacturing fault) and the rollers are finished poorly. He suggested that he addresses those faults by remilling the rollers to a better finish, enlarging the holes and putting in bigger and quality-assured bolts. This all sound very complicated, but then he's found a rolling mill for £129 delivered and the modifications will cost me several pints and I roll some plate for his model-making activities. If it's not up to my needs long-term, then he'll have it from me, and I'll buy a better one.
That will leave me with enough money to buy a pendant drill and a better torch, which I think will serve me well until I have the skills (and income) to warrant buying more expensive equipment. I did find a secondhand Evans tumbler with rubber, vaned canisters, at the weekend for £45, which I can use for metal polishing exclusively, so that's another small amount of progress.
That all sounds like a really good plan :)
In the transition between the need for texture and a rolling mill you could buy a creasing hammer and a couple of stakes and maybe this book https://www.amazon.co.uk/Foldforming...ds=Foldforming and try some fold forming.
I sold this shawl pin at the OS this month and the only soldering it required was the pin to the structure
Attachment 11254Attachment 11253
Now, that looks fantastic and the book looks equally excellent. Wanders off to look for a copy...
The book is useful as you can use little elements rather than the full blown. I like using folds and pin tucks in pieces of jewellery trying to get elements of fabric into metal to soften it up a bitQuote:
Originally Posted by wrigglefingers