Using a Rolling Mill Rolling mills can be used to roll a metal sheet into a thinner sheet, which will also work-harden it.
You can create more than one gauge on one piece of metal (sections of wide and thin, for example, or sections of wire and flat metal), or taper metal and wire from thick to thin. After about four passes through a rolling mill, metal needs to be annealed before you continue. If you keep hardening the metal with more passes, it could crack. Always be sure to follow the instructions to avoid damaging your metal. |
ROLL PRINTING PROCESS:
Shape Distortion
Metal shapes can be purposefully distorted using the rolling mill.
MAKING FLAT OVALS: If you pass a circular piece of metal or circular jump ring (wire) through the mill under pressure it will be stretched to an oval shape.
Making Holes /Ovals: Drilled holes can become perfect ovals (similar but opposite to making an oval from a circle); edges are softened and straight edges become organic curves.
MAKING FLAT OVALS: If you pass a circular piece of metal or circular jump ring (wire) through the mill under pressure it will be stretched to an oval shape.
Making Holes /Ovals: Drilled holes can become perfect ovals (similar but opposite to making an oval from a circle); edges are softened and straight edges become organic curves.
Adjusting the Height of the Rollers
Be mindful of if undue force is applied, it's possible for the gear teeth to break, usually with the gear attached to the handle.
If your rolling mill has dual-adjusting screws or knobs (as shown above), they can get out of adjustment. To fix them, just tighten both all the way down. Then, back off by turning both at once, a quarter turn at a time, until they are where you need them to be.
If your rolling mill has dual-adjusting screws or knobs (as shown above), they can get out of adjustment. To fix them, just tighten both all the way down. Then, back off by turning both at once, a quarter turn at a time, until they are where you need them to be.
Mokume- Copper and Brass
MOKUME GANE: A Japanese technique (means "woodgrain") of soldering thin sheets of different coloured metal together, rolling them through a rolling mill and relaminating those layers together again. The resulting sheet is then distorted and the layers revealed by grinding the surface down.
Very Labor intensive so we will not be working with this method. But its pretty cool.
Very Labor intensive so we will not be working with this method. But its pretty cool.
Maintaining the Tools
Soft Cloth
SimiChrome
Wooden Dowel
SimiChrome
Wooden Dowel