that is an awesome site Willyb, thanks

 

I wish it was me, but someone here reminded me of it. I had the link in my faviorites folder so I must of looked at it before, but, this time, it wasn't me who remembered it.

I love the way they use a tree stump - I am looking around here for a hardwood stump to carve for myself. Not a lot of hardwoods in the west, but maybe one of the nut farmers will have one.

I did order a large leather sandbag and mallet from Eastwood. I am sending my brother some pictures of the other wooden mallets they recomend - he is a wood carver, and I hope he will make some for me. Talk about a step backwards, imagine using wood to shape a fender!

Also, I am going to build one of the work tables they detail - a guy could spend hours shaping metal over one of those. The price of gas may keep me home this winter (I had hoped to spend it in Arizona) so a homemade wood stove and all those tools might keep me warm and out of trouble.

For you young guys - take a look at the baby carragies and pedal cars they built - your wife may like your shop a lot better it you build her a bucket T body to roll the new baby around in. http://allshops.org/cgi-bin/community/communityalbums.cgi?action=openalbum&albumid=99801 32246240 and also several other pages.

 

I hate when a post disappears! I think I was the one who posted the links to Metalshapers, I found it when searching for Ron Fournier's website.
The nylon or delrin mallets with the egg shaped heads are better than the wood ones. They are heavier and don't crack or beat up like wood and are pretty cheap.
Try a firewood dealer and/or tree surgeon for a hardwood log. You may need to ask them to cut a specific length for you. The proper length is when you sit up straight on a stool or armless chair you'll use when working and you can lay your forearm flat on it with your shoulders relaxed and your upper arm straight down along your side like a comfortable armrest, include the height of your beanbag if you will be working on it most of the time better to be an inch or two short than too tall. The log doesn't need to be real large, 12-16" will do if you lagbolt it to a wider base. debark it before bringing it inside to leave pests outside.

 

embossing using a hammerform: Materials needed- two sheets of 3/4" plywood and one sheet of MDF about a foot larger than the embossed design in all directions. Tools needed for making the hammerform- portable jigsaw, router with 3/4" and 1/4" straight cut router bits. Tools needed for doing the embossing- nylon or wooden mallet, 6" lengths of 3/4" and 1/4" delrin rod (plastics supply house, check their cutoffs bin, if desperate you can also get them from places that sell paintless dent repair tools), all the woodworkers screwclamps you can beg borrow or buy, at least a dozen.
Draw the embossing pattern on one of the sheets of plywood, try to avoid narrow areas in the design. saw out carefully with the jigsaw. This will be the top piece of the hammerform. Trace the open area of the top sheet onto the MDF. Set the router for a 1/32" - 1/16" cut and carefully rout out the inside of the design in the MDF. The more intricate the design the shallower the cut should be. An alternative with a design like flames or scallops would be to cut the design out of a sheet of metal the proper thickness instead of routing it out. Use the router method for things like FORD script lettering or any design that has inside areas that will not be embossed. Make a sandwhich with the blank sheet of ply, the routed sheet of MDF, the metal to be embossed, and the top sheet of ply. Clamp the sandwhich tightly together with as many clamps as possible as close to the design as possible. There should be clamps no more than 6" apart. Now the fun part!!! using the rods as a punch start tapping the exposed metal down into the depression in the MDF. WORK SLOWLY with just light taps over the entire surface make numerous passes DON'T try to drive it down all at once or you leave dents that will be difficult to remove. It will go a lot quicker than you think, just take your time don't rush it.
Possible variations: cut the MDF deeply or all the way through. Round the end of the punches into 1/2 ball shapes and punch some areas down more than others to produce 3 dimensional embossing like 3D flames, dragons, etc??? screw together 2 sheets of ply and cut the design out of both at the same time, leaving at least 6" of uncut ply all around the design. remove the screws and sandwhich your sheet metal in between. Now you can work from both sides, embossing some parts out and other parts in! If you want sharper creases or lines, grind a 1/4" cold chisel so the end is blunted and the corners rounded off. Tap on the line and move 1/2 it's width down then tap again. BE VERY GENTLE so you don't cut thru!
This same technique could be used to form the front of NACA ducts.

 

Sorry for the dumb question, but senality is always a worry with me. What is MDF?

btw, remember your question - you wanted his phone number. Try http://www.fournierenterprises.com/

 

Sorry I thought everyone watched trading spaces!
MDF = Medium Density Fiberboard.
a manufactured building board produced by pressing sawdust like wood fiber mixed with glue into a dense grainless dimensionally stable sheet. Because of it's nature it machines very cleanly leaving a smooth finish. It is less expensive than but does not have the strength of equal thickness of plywood. It should not be confused with a less dense cheaper product know as chipboard that is used for inexpensive shelving and cheap furniture as well as underlayment for carpet and vinyl flooring.
MDF can be identified by it's very smooth surface and sharp corners, the edges will look the same as the surface if cut with a sharp blade you will not be able to scrape material loose with a fingernail. Chipboard will have a more porous looking suface that can be felt by dragging a fingernail across it flakes can easily be picked off, the edges will be very porous looking and the corners will tend to chip easily.

 

Actually it's senility but we're not watching!

 

I know it is "I" before "E", except after "C" but which is before an "L"? I have forgot the rest of the rules! Guess it depends on how you pronounce it.

I use spell check a lot, should have used it before my last post - first sign of senility, pronounced like a Yankee with a nil, not a nal.

 

.. Hey Some of us New Englander might take offend to that.. Its not Us with the Accent.. Its the rest of you .. LMAOROTF

 

Dayum, Y'all even write with an accent!

 

you cou'ld but i thinks that would require some more work than just rubbing it out

 

Blue

Would you mind taking that on over to the paint and body forum or something? They're having a conversation about senile old Yanks here. This thread will get too long if you interrupt them and they start repeating themselves.

 

Jeezum, now you boys are making me feel bad about the summers I spent in Vermont. Jersey boys have no accent. Joisy is just how Brooklynites speak of their neighbor to the west. Here in west Texas I am mildly acclaimed by a very few of having NO ACCENT.

speaker himmelberg