metal help please
- Thread starter AKAI FETT
- Start date
Hand Schaub
Active Hunter
on thin metal a jigsaw is all you really need. A nibbler will serve you better and a gobbler will do reall y thick stuff. All these are more affordable than a plasma cutter but the plasma is so much fun to use 
Megalomaniac Mando
Active Hunter
Now, HERE'S where I know what's going on. Sorry I'm late.
First, this stuff you're talking about is steel, and it's going to be heavy to wear (if you're making armor). Boba's armor etc. is a complete figment of some artsy-fartsy dude's imagination, and in practicality would be a complete hindrance and an effective handicap. It doesn't ride like true armor, and weight dispersal is out the window when dealing with the same stuff made of real-world materials. Remember, as real as we wish this was, SW is just make believe. You may actually either hurt yourself right-out, or do some kind of progressive damage if you decide to sport steel armor that looks like Boba's.
Now, cutting sheet steel is easy with the equipment named by Hand-Schaub. A regular oxy-acetylene cutting torch would work, also.
SHAPING is a different story. There are radical bends to be made, this "dishing" is actually known as "raising" in metalwork. The process will require a significant source of heat, moreso than a gas torch with even a rosebud tip. Heating must cover a far larger area than just what you intend to manipulate, as the metal must remain "plastic" in order for the linear contraction and expansion of it's shape. On a molecular level, you're actually rearranging the brickwork of the molecules under heat. When cool, they arrange themselves back into a neat pattern of "bricks".
Specially shaped anvils and mandrils were/are used by armormakers. These include hardie tools and anvil bicks. Then, different tongs are needed to hold the pieces under different circumstances. Perhaps four or five hammers, of varying weight and what they are made of will be in order. (Remember, you have to "planish", or smooth out all the dings from hammering with successively smaller hammers and tapping.)
I'd say a good enough forge (gas you have to pay more. Coal, like mine, you can build yourself), the necessary tools, the experience necessary (I've been hammering steel for over twenty years), all told will run you at least a thousand dollars US. And, most modern folks don't have the necessary muscles developed for the un-needed movements required by blacksmithing and hammering thereof.
I am certainly not trying to scare you away from trying this project, but just warning you of a VERY rough road ahead, frought with frustration and cursed epithets. Believe me. I'll also mention briefly the countless burns and cuts you'll get from this stuff.
If I can be any real help, don't hesitate to ask.
First, this stuff you're talking about is steel, and it's going to be heavy to wear (if you're making armor). Boba's armor etc. is a complete figment of some artsy-fartsy dude's imagination, and in practicality would be a complete hindrance and an effective handicap. It doesn't ride like true armor, and weight dispersal is out the window when dealing with the same stuff made of real-world materials. Remember, as real as we wish this was, SW is just make believe. You may actually either hurt yourself right-out, or do some kind of progressive damage if you decide to sport steel armor that looks like Boba's.
Now, cutting sheet steel is easy with the equipment named by Hand-Schaub. A regular oxy-acetylene cutting torch would work, also.
SHAPING is a different story. There are radical bends to be made, this "dishing" is actually known as "raising" in metalwork. The process will require a significant source of heat, moreso than a gas torch with even a rosebud tip. Heating must cover a far larger area than just what you intend to manipulate, as the metal must remain "plastic" in order for the linear contraction and expansion of it's shape. On a molecular level, you're actually rearranging the brickwork of the molecules under heat. When cool, they arrange themselves back into a neat pattern of "bricks".
Specially shaped anvils and mandrils were/are used by armormakers. These include hardie tools and anvil bicks. Then, different tongs are needed to hold the pieces under different circumstances. Perhaps four or five hammers, of varying weight and what they are made of will be in order. (Remember, you have to "planish", or smooth out all the dings from hammering with successively smaller hammers and tapping.)
I'd say a good enough forge (gas you have to pay more. Coal, like mine, you can build yourself), the necessary tools, the experience necessary (I've been hammering steel for over twenty years), all told will run you at least a thousand dollars US. And, most modern folks don't have the necessary muscles developed for the un-needed movements required by blacksmithing and hammering thereof.
I am certainly not trying to scare you away from trying this project, but just warning you of a VERY rough road ahead, frought with frustration and cursed epithets. Believe me. I'll also mention briefly the countless burns and cuts you'll get from this stuff.
If I can be any real help, don't hesitate to ask.
fettcicle
Well-Known Hunter
I made my chest armor and back plate out of metal ... The darn collar nearly decapitates me when I wear it 
You can cut it with a heavy duty jig saw with a fine tooth metal cutting blade ... but you need 2-3 blades per section of armor because the things get dull and break 
The other thing is that I have a leather vest, good luck trying to get it to attach to a cloth vest. Another thing is that the armor itself isn't just flat pieces with a little curve, I had to beat the hell out of them to give them a little shape .... especially the back plate. Wearing the thing is fun, but I can only stand it for a short time. I know when I started, plastic armor seemed lame. How can armor be made out of plastic My present armor weighs a TON .... well, about 10lbs with all the pieces snapped on.
You can cut it with a heavy duty jig saw with a fine tooth metal cutting blade ... but you need 2-3 blades per section of armor because the things get dull and break The other thing is that I have a leather vest, good luck trying to get it to attach to a cloth vest. Another thing is that the armor itself isn't just flat pieces with a little curve, I had to beat the hell out of them to give them a little shape .... especially the back plate. Wearing the thing is fun, but I can only stand it for a short time. I know when I started, plastic armor seemed lame. How can armor be made out of plastic My present armor weighs a TON .... well, about 10lbs with all the pieces snapped on.
