Metal for pens

[jyreene]

Hoping I can get some help in metal choices for pens. Primarily front sections, nose cones, and finials (all for custom/kitless pens).

I've read that I should really only use 6061 T6 aluminum (aluminium to out mates across the pond!) but is that really true? I know aluminum oxidizes but doesn't rust and can be prevented but what is the real difference in appearance?

Bronze, I am looking at different types. Would C544 Phosphor Bronze work? What about C863 Manganese Bronze? Would they be handling safe?

Copper. C110 copper. Same thing as bronze. Safe? Good choice?

Finally any other types you can recommend. The metal lather I bought I know can cut off titanium and I'm sure that means I can turn it but I need to learn how to use it better because it took forever for a 20 year machinist to cut it off. Any decent sources for metals?

Thanks a bunch.

 

[BSea]

I have many of the same questions, so I'll be watching this thread.

Here's where I've bought some materials:Online Metal Store | Small Quantity Metal Orders | Metal Cutting, Sales & Shipping | Buy Steel, Aluminum, Copper, Brass, Stainless | Metal Product Guides at OnlineMetals.com

 

[jyreene]

I have many of the same questions, so I'll be watching this thread. Here's where I've bought some materials:Online Metal Store | Small Quantity Metal Orders | Metal Cutting, Sales & Shipping | Buy Steel, Aluminum, Copper, Brass, Stainless | Metal Product Guides at OnlineMetals.com

Thanks for that link. I'm mainly looking at eBay because the few metal sites I've looked at have a wealth of info that is gibberish to me at this point.

 

[mredburn]

Brass 360, for brass stock. you can use harder aluminum than 6061 like 7075. Copper will be soft and you may need to grind a different profile than standard to cut it clean.

If you search ebay for bronze bar stock you will also find a bronzed alumimun bar you could use. http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_odk...573.m570.l1313&_nkw=bronze+bar+stock&_sacat=0

 

[mredburn]

Dont forget stainless

 

[Gofer]

Lots of choices that you can use. You are only limited by your imagination and your equipment. One metal you shoud not use at all without full PPE is Beryllium alloys of any kind. Aluminim Bronze is a very cool looking metal and machines well.

Bruce

 

[Displaced Canadian]

I started by buying stainless steel bolts at Home Depot.

 

[Displaced Canadian]

On the online metals website, if you click on the links for the different types of materiel there is another link to a guide of the different "grades" of that materiel that is quite informative.

 

[jyreene]

I started by buying stainless steel bolts at Home Depot.

That's a good point. I'll stop by Lowes soon.

 

[frank123]

Copper is sort of soft, gummy and hard to machine (hard, not impossible). I don't like copper at all but since I don't like machining it I don't use it for anything so that's only my opinion.

Any brass if fine -scrap metal yards usually have rod in on on and off basis at reasonable prices- and polishes up well if you don't plate it or paint it but it takes plating and plating easily.

Aluminum -6061 or 7075- machines easily and polishes well by itself but from my very limited experience doesn't plate easily or at all but is easily painted by anything from a spray can to powder coating. It can be blackened with an aluminum black treatment (as is used for firearms).

303 stainless is relatively easy to machine -at least in comparison to some of the harder stainless steels- is readily available and takes polishing or painting well. I have no idea if it can be successfully plated.

Any of the bronzes would work well if you want that bronze colored result, if you're going to paint or plate it I see no advantage to bronze. I've used phosphor bronze for bearings and it machines well, I think the different bronze alloys may have different colors (personally, I really don 't like the appearance of bronze, but to each his own).

 

[jyreene]

I just remembered a type a bought a bit ago. Waterfall bronze. I think. I do remember turning it round and that was a hard metal.

 

[Rich L]

adding to Frank's post ...

Stainless steel bolts are usually made from 300 series stainless stock - mainly 304 and 316 which are in the difficult to machine category. If you can find 303, as Frank says, that's easy to machine.

Nickel silvers (not cupro-nickel, but you can go for that too if you want) in the C792 variety is very easy to machine but it has a very very slight yellowish cast. More difficult but still in the moderate category is C752 nickel silver and that has a good silvery cast and they both polish up nicely. One other variety of nickel silver that I've been searching for is one called "dairy metal." It's alloy C976 and it's very machinable and looks great. The only trouble in getting it is that it is a cast metal made in large minimum quantities and not stocked in many places at all so you have to find someone with leftovers.

Silver is good. Sterling varieties (ordinary, Argentium, etc.) and fine silver work well although some consider fine silver to be more gummy. Just like copper, it will leave a bur after a cut.

Titanium is good but can be difficult if you don't use very sharp tools and keep the cut going. Same for the 304, 316 stainless varieties. The materials work harden if you look at them funny. Any of the titanium alloys will work , CP, 6Al4V, 3Al2.5V, etc. and they anodize brilliantly.

I'd add 2024 aluminum to the mix but it's harder to get. Very machinable.