Metal allows you to realize many creative ideas. But working with it requires special skills, abilities and devices. However, the result is durable, original and unique.
Thanks to the malleability of the material and the talent of the master, do-it-yourself metal crafts worthy of admiration appear. They become the pride of a personal plot, cottage or home interior. Let's look at a few examples and working methods:
Sheet metal owl
To work with a thin sheet of metal, strong and sharp scissors are sufficient. Thanks to them, beautiful metal crafts are created in the form of animal figures, various patterns or abstractions. What is needed to make a metal owl:
- Thin sheet and narrow strips of metal;
- Substrate in the form of a wooden rectangular board with a thickness of no more than 0.5 mm;
- A set of various nails and elements for fastening;
- A spoon with a rounded end. It will allow you to form the necessary image of an owl by squeezing out feathers and other parts of the body;
- Sharp scissors.
Stages of work completion
They are not particularly difficult, but will require patience and attention. Detailed review:
- A full sketch is created;
- Thanks to a permanent marker, the diagram is transferred to the metal from the inside;
- Use sharp scissors to cut out the necessary elements;
- To squeeze out a pattern on the inside of the metal or highlight grooves, use a spoon with a rounded end;
- The buttons create the owl's eyes. Can be replaced with metal elements with a similar shape. At the author's discretion, such details are used as additional decoration for the bird;
- When all the parts are ready, the owl is assembled;
- To secure parts of metal crafts, nails or other fasteners are used.
Preparation of materials and equipment
Soldering of silver must be done using special solder. In addition to this, you need to choose what will heat the metal. A soldering iron or gas torch can be used for this.
You need to work with silver on a surface that does not heat up when heated. It should be smooth and firm. This could be a brick, a plate of decorative stone, or heat-resistant ceramics. Additionally, you need to prepare citric acid and iodine. Using citric acid you can lighten the material, and darken it with iodine. In addition to a soldering iron or gas torch, flux and solder, you will need hand tools - metal tongs, a brush and wire cutters.
What kind of solders are used?
Solders for soldering silver are sold in hardware and construction stores. The form of release of connecting compounds may be different. There are powder mixtures whose particles reach 2 mm. You can find whole sheets that are first cut into pieces of the desired size and then used for soldering.
Working with hard solders
Soldering with silver solder is similar to working with tin. A strip of solder of the required width and length is applied to the surface to be joined. The damaged area and the connecting substance are covered with flux to avoid the onset of oxidative processes. By heating the solder with a torch or soldering iron, the technician evenly distributes it over the area of the breakdown.
Silver solder
How to choose a flux for soldering
In order for the flux to be evenly distributed over the damaged surface and reliably fasten the parts together, it is necessary to choose the correct soldering composition. To protect the finished connection from moisture and chemicals, it is necessary to choose a composition that is protected from corrosive processes and aggressive environments.
Making your own flux
The flux used to hold silver pieces together is a mixture of aqueous solution and borax. You can make it yourself:
- Borax powder is poured into an empty metal container.
- Fill with distilled water.
- Heat over low heat until the powder is completely dissolved.
- The mixture is cooled at room temperature.
- Grind the crystals, mix with water and mix thoroughly until a thick mass is obtained.
The flux must be left to stand for 1–2 hours. Pour out the water remaining around the mass.
Soldering tool
At home, it is difficult to find a professional tool for joining silver parts. In most cases, people use an electric soldering iron or a gas torch.
The quality of the work performed directly depends on the heating tool. Low-power soldering irons are not suitable for repairing silver products, since the parts need to be heated to 350 degrees. It is advisable to use a tool with a thin tip so that an accurate connection can be made.
Soldering iron
How to use welding to create metal crafts?
Welding allows you to quickly and reliably connect metal parts, but this method requires compliance with safety precautions and developed skills in working with the appropriate equipment. Electric welding is used for this, since it is portable and accessible compared to its gas counterpart.
To create metal crafts by welding, a transformer, welding machine or inverter is used. The choice is related to accessibility, the nature of the work, and the preference of the author of the metal product.
For beginners
What will you need to make the decoration? Usually here we start with the most obvious method - outlining. To do this, you need to take brass, aluminum, silver and other metals. A thick wire is needed simply for the base of this product, and then a thin wire can be used to intertwine everything at the right angle.
Various craftsmen often add stones, beads and beads here. Then you get just wonderful, simple rings.
What metal crafts are created using welding?
In fact, everything, right down to artistic work in the form of sculptures of people or animals. But most often welding creates:
- Installation of all kinds of structures;
- Repair work is being carried out;
- Garden supplies are made.
Photos of available examples are offered on our website dnevnikmastera.ru. Almost all illustrations are accompanied by detailed master classes on making metal crafts using welding and other methods.
How to work with a welding machine?
This requires experience, practice and strict adherence to safety regulations. First, the newly minted master practices on a damaged piece of metal. This is necessary to acquire knowledge of igniting and maintaining an arc based on maintaining a constant gap between the electrode and the workpiece.
After this, the technique of making a weld is studied. If it turns out smooth without difficulty, then you need to learn how to correctly regulate the current strength to work with different thicknesses of the workpiece.
At its core, welding in the process of creating metal crafts is used to connect two parts. This occurs by melting the surface of the future joint. A solid metal structure is formed through the use of an electrode.
However, this is not an easy task and requires a lot of practice and experience, since it is necessary to ensure that the top layer of the workpiece melts, otherwise holes may form.
After acquiring basic skills in creating metal crafts by welding, you can move on to doing simple work to gain experience. For this, it is more profitable to use an inverter, since it has increased mobility and consumes less electricity.
Preparing a composition for gilding at home
You can prepare the solution for gilding yourself.
To do this, mix:
- water (1500 ml);
- gold chloride (10 g);
- potassium cyanide (30 g);
- salt (20 g);
- soda (20 g).
To obtain a thinner layer of gold plating you will need:
- water (2 l);
- gold chloride (15 g);
- yellow blood salt (65 g);
- carbonic potassium salt (65 g);
- table salt (65 g).
All components must be well dissolved, otherwise the gilding layer will be uneven, and even thorough polishing will not help. When the product is immersed in liquid, it is necessary to lower a zinc stick into the container (zinc contact method).
What can you make from an old bicycle for your garden?
Old bicycles were found on the balcony and attic, but it was a pity to throw them away. Then you can give them a new life by transforming them into something useful for the garden. For this purpose, it is not necessary that the vehicles be in a suitable condition.
You can use the remaining parts to create an unusual flower bed. It is formed by attaching a flowerpot with flowers to an accessible metal structure left over from a two-wheeled product.
Stand for cucumbers and other cultivated plants
Wheels from several bicycles are used for this. If rust is found on them, it is cleaned with sandpaper. The bicycle is covered with 2-3 layers of metal paint.
Some skip this stage to create the effect of the presence of antiquity. What is needed to create this metal craft for the garden:
- Bicycle wheels;
- Wooden block;
- Heavy and small stones to secure the structure;
- Comfortable shovel;
- Antiseptic;
- Stretch film;
- Wire;
- Strong hammer;
- Scissors.
Step-by-step instruction:
- A shovel is used to dig a hole for installing a wooden block at one of the ends. To protect against rotting, it is coated with an antiseptic in several layers. After drying, the edge chosen for immersion in the ground is wrapped in several layers of stretch film. This will provide insulation from moisture.
- Help will be required for installation. One holds the post, the other fills it with heavy and small stones. A strong hammer is used for compaction.
- If possible, the structure is filled with cement. If it is not there, then a mound of dense soil is created. It is carefully compacted.
- If cement was used, you must wait until it is completely dry. Then the wheels are connected to the post using wire.
Cucumbers will be able to curl around the wheels and be attached to a support to receive maximum sunlight. But this design will also be useful for other plants that can grow vertically and twine around objects: grapes, beans. However, the height of the wheels should be comfortable for unhindered harvesting.
If you liked exploring the possibilities of metal crafts, check out other materials on the site. There is still a lot of interesting things here.
Useful tips for silver wire jewelry
After such decoration is completed, it may not look the most neat. In order to avoid this, after the silver wire is stretched, the ends should not be cut - you just need to hide them in the holes of the stone and crystals. But if you cut the ends, they will then get scratched and constantly cling, and to top it all off, the decoration will unwind very quickly. To prevent this, the wire must be tied into a knot. That is, it is threaded into a loop and stretches, but it stretches carefully, as it can tear.
The prices for such products are significantly lower than buying them in stores. In addition to the prices, you should also take into account the fact that all this is exclusive. However, if we take into account the price of wire, then jewelry made from it can be afforded by the widest segments of the population.
