[TheForge] Aluminum

[Ries Niemi]

When you cut steel with a cutting torch, you are not really "melting" it- you are actually kind of super rusting it- its the oxygen that does the cutting, and the oxy-fuel mix just gets it up to a temp thats hot enough for the oxygen to take over. 
This same reaction doesnt work chemically with aluminum.
But I find it odd that you couldnt get the aluminum hot enough to melt- probably it was just because it was such a huge piece of aluminum, and it conducts heat so well.
Because I have certainly gotten aluminum hot enough to melt with my torch many times- usually when I didnt WANT it to melt.
I sometimes forge aluminum, and, although I use my propane forge for this most of the time, there are times when I need point heat, and I use a torch or rosebud, and, on something smaller, like 1" round, a torch is perfectly capable of melting aluminum, to my dismay, after I have spent a half hour forging a piece that is now a puddle on the floor.

For cutting aluminum plasma works great, but there is always the old armstrong method- I have used hacksaws, bandsaws, skilsaws, table saws, and routers on aluminum, they all work just fine. Wax the blade, or use WD40 for a lube. I also have cut miles of aluminum  with the old cheapo standby that cuts anything metal- a 4 1/2" grinder with an .040 cut disc. Its noisy, and a bit dangerous, but with PPE, its fine, and it will cut big slabs of aluminum just fine.

Ries


On Oct 2, 2013, at 11:53 PM, Vincent Nakovics wrote:

> Hi Guys,
>   Terry asked about Magnesium which I know nothing, but reminded me of something I did, well truthfully could not do with four large Aluminum signs several years ago. There were these aluminum signs brought to my shop to be cut into four pieces. The signs were cast, I guess, with raised letters and picture framing all around. They were about 7 ft long and 4 or 5 ft wide and about 3 inches thick on the edges for about 4 inches and the backing of the letters was about an inch or so thick. I I didn't think anything of it and tried to cut them with my torch. The  cutting torch was  good for 1" of steel. I couldn't barely get those signs hot enough to discolor them. I checked the tank about ten times, increased my Acetylene to 14lbs and Oxygen to 35 ( I think that's what I had on it). Nothing, Nada, Zip, Zilch! 
>   I was just wondering if any of you had ever experienced that?  The signs were loaded on a dump truck which we were trying to avoid bringing down to the recycling yard, that's why they brought them to me in the first place.  
> 
> Vince Nakovics
> 
> Blacksmithing: The mind's eye brought to life in a hard reality.
> 
> 
> 		 	   		  
> ______________________________________________________________
> TheForge mailing list
> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/theforge
> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm
> Post: mailto:TheForge at mailman.qth.net
> 
> TheForge mail list group photo site is
> http://www.shutterfly.com
> Login: blacksmithblacksmith at hotmail.com
> Password: anvil
> 
> This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net
> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html