Aircraft Aluminum

[Shrub]

Thats pretty much it, cut a bar the size of a blank and then just impression as usual,

There is no science to shims and if you have just typed it because you have read it somewhere then just have a quick read, after 5 mins you will be doing it and wonder wtf going on.

dwb178,
sorry missed you question, you can get aircraft aluminimum in any thickness (within reason) so the question doesnt realy make sence but if you had a piece the same thickness as a pop can then the pop can will be slightly tougher as its composition is slightly differant and its also had a little heat treatment when it was made (forced into a die)

[jamesphilhulk2]

couldn't you temper the aluminium

2) i agree with shrub sprung steel is a really good metal, when my friend comes back from holidays him and i are going to make some picks out of it (he's atechnology teacher).

when i made them i will post some pics of them.

[Shrub]

Temper? do you mean anneal?

The trick to anneal aluminimum is to rub a bar of soap on it and heat until the soap turns brow then remove the heat leaving the material to cool in the air, this is only a low temp but softens the material to an adequate hardness.

[raimundo]

this is one of the duraluminum alloys, it has copper added. so if you test it with nitric acid, it will give a green color right away. copper hardens it, but it is still mostly aluminum, so it will fill the files and grinders you use, and aluminum is also very abrasive. If you make a smooth pick with it, it will probably lose its smoothness after a while and become rough, in a milling machine, it does not give a good chip and tends to 'chatter' (a jerky uneven response to the cutter) pure aluminum is soft, and used for such things as deep draw stamping of drink cans, but duraluminum alloys can be made for different tempers, hard tough or whatever.
You could make some nice handles for your picks with it. give em that hpc look.

[n2oah]

Temper? do you mean anneal?

Annealing makes the metal softer and less brittle. In other words, it's easier to work.
http://www.efunda.com/processes/heat_treat/softening/annealing.cfm

[jamesphilhulk2]

i'm talking about the prosess of when you heat a piece of metal until it's cherry-red hot and then quench it in water then re-heat it, ot makes the metal alot stifer and stronger

[Mad Mick]

Aluminium would be in a pool on the floor waaaaay before it got to the cherry-red stage...

[jamesphilhulk2]

anyway does anyone know what i'm talking about?

[Shrub]

Temper? do you mean anneal?

Annealing makes the metal softer and less brittle. In other words, it's easier to work.
http://www.efunda.com/processes/heat_treat/softening/annealing.cfm

I know, thats why i was asking
Your answer is NO you was meaning to harden the material,

Hardening alloy isnt a effective task, it become brittle, to harden it you need to add other materials which is a pain to do to alloy,

Leave alloy to pick handles and nothing else, use a key blank to impression.

[raimundo]

Temper as I understand it is the state of the metal crystals. it can be mild, soft, annealed (annealing is a process, annealed is the product, softened) it can be hard, or it can be tough, or it can be springy. hard will break because its brittle, tough will not break easily. there are a lot of different tempers, tempering is heating and cooling the metal either slowly or fast to achieve a state of desired temper. That is my understanding of the word, but if you have a dictionary on your computer, (dictionary.com) you could look it up.

[Mad Mick]

I'm told I have a bad temper. Should I take a sauna, then go jump in the pool....or should I just go jump in the river?

[Chrispy]

Why not just go jump?