Homemade crafts with their own hands from iron. metal crafts

The fastest and most reliable way to fasten metal parts is electric welding. Anyone can learn how to handle it. Having bought either an inverter, as well as having spent half a pack of electrodes to gain practical skills, you can safely try to create metal crafts with your own hands. Installation of structures, repairs in the country, the manufacture of garden tools and much more from this moment becomes available.

The first metal crafts

Lots of people have welding. Often the device is purchased in case of construction or repair. It doesn't even have to be for yourself. If there is a need for it, you can call a self-taught neighbor or a familiar specialist welder. After the completion of the work, the unit simply stands idle.

But sooner or later the moment comes when you should decide and try to cook something yourself. There is nothing wrong with that, it would be a desire. The main thing at this stage is not to get burned and not to catch "bunnies", and experience comes with practice. If there is or a country house, there will always be a use for welding. With its help, you can solve the problems of developing the territory much faster.

Not always and not everything can be bought in the store. Welding a gate, building a base for a bench or table, “grabbing” a hook for attaching a rope or an additional support for weaving grapes to a metal pole is kind of a trifle, but calling a welder over and over again for such an occasion seems inconvenient. So you need to learn the basics and solve everyday problems with your own hands.

Welding basics

Of course, you should not immediately take up serious work with responsible connections. You can practice on a piece of unnecessary metal. At the first stage, one should learn how to strike the arc and hold it, maintaining a constant working gap between the workpiece and the electrode as it burns.

After that, you need to work out the technique of forming a weld, fusing a layer of metal on a flat surface. Then you can proceed to adjust the current for different thicknesses of the workpieces to be welded. Welding is a technique for joining two metal parts, based on the melting of their surfaces at the junction. They are connected into one whole by adding a layer of electrode binder material.

The current is chosen in such a way as to ensure the melting of only the surface layer without the formation of holes. It is better to master the technique on electrodes with a diameter of 2.5-3 mm. They must not be old and must be dry, otherwise the first experience will most likely be ineffective, which may discourage learning to create metal crafts.

Welding makes it possible to correct minor and sometimes serious flaws in work or installation errors. It is enough to cut off the seam of the “tack”, and the parts are separated. After cleaning the place of unsuccessful welding, the process can be repeated.

Material

Any owner of a country house or the owner of a summer residence will surely have metal waste on the farm. This may be the remains of pipes after the installation of a gas pipeline, water supply or heating systems. The real owner usually does not throw away the remnants of the channel or pieces of reinforcement. You can also find used nails, bolts and nuts.

Such scrap metal very often becomes the material for a new repair or improvement of the old one. Surely there will be outdated garden tools, chains, old dishes, as well as spare parts from a car, motorcycle or bicycle that have not yet been handed over to collection points in the garage or shed.

From all this you can make useful and practical metal crafts. With your own hands, with the help of welding and available assistants, you can repair old garden tools or make a new one from waste, taking into account personal experience, your preferences and business conditions.

It is possible to equip comfort in the backyard territory without buying new equipment. From used, but still strong metal, you can build a base for a country table or bench. Finding the right particle board sheet for the countertop and bench board is no problem. Racks can be made even from substandard inch pipe.

If there is a supply of material, you can also swing on a swing. It is better to make the structure capital, with concreting the base. We need two sidewalls of pipes welded at an angle, with jumpers for rigidity. The more massive the swing seat, the larger this angle should be. Jumpers can be welded at ground level or even lower so that they are not visible.

Hangers are best made from chains, but you can also take a reliable rope. The beam for fastening should be massive. A thick-walled pipe, a piece of rail or channel will do. It is best to fix frame parts and suspension brackets by welding.

At any cottage, with rare exceptions, there is a barbecue or other similar device. A couple of logs for sitting, an old stump as a table and burnt bricks to limit the fire and lay skewers - for some, this may be relaxation, but it is better and more convenient to use a more advanced design.

The brazier can be disassembled. You can bring it with you to your country house, it can also have a permanent place of registration with the possibility of transporting it to the place of storage. For such a solution, a brazier from an old steel barrel is quite suitable. You can make it on your own and get by with just a grinder and a drill. However, it will be better and easier if you use a welding machine.

An empty and washed barrel is cut along the vertical center line into two halves. Legs from a rod, fittings or pipe sections are welded to one part. The top part serves as a hinged lid and can be conveniently mounted on welded-on old door curtains.

Sheet metal crafts can be fixed by welding only after gaining some experience. In order to reliably weld parts and not burn a hole with the electrode, you should accurately select the welding current and work with short tacks with constant control of the quality of the seam.

metal sculpture

The garden around a country house is not only a plot where trees and shrubs are grown for picking fruits and berries. It's also a place to relax! Garden sculpture will serve as an excellent addition to well-groomed plantings.

It may not necessarily be made of concrete or gypsum. For a person with creativity, there are no limits for its expression. If at the moment only a welding machine, half a pack of electrodes, scrap and a desire to create are at hand, then from all this you can build an original and unique composition. Moreover, the complexity of execution can be different.

It depends on the material available and on the idea. Such metal crafts for the garden in one case can consist of a dozen different, at first glance, incompatible parts of different origin and purpose. In another case, it can be made up of hundreds of the same type of repeating elements, connected by welding into a three-dimensional model.

Where to get ideas?

This question cannot be answered unambiguously. Someone, having seen random details in one place, imagines how they will fit together if they are combined into a common composition. Another purposefully goes to a scrap metal collection point and wanders around the mountains of this trash in search of a suitable part for the selected sculpture.

You can get ideas or just take as a basis someone's already implemented idea from specialized book publications that are dedicated to metal crafts. There is nothing shameful in creating a thing you like from improvised materials available on the farm.

In any case, do-it-yourself metal crafts created according to an existing drawing or sketch will be original. Welding is not copying, but a kind of creativity. Any that is made with a decorative design and repeats a pattern or composition is perceived as a kind of masterpiece.

Safety

Care must be taken to ensure that do-it-yourself metal crafts do not serve as a constant reminder of a bad welding experience associated with a burn or injury. It is strictly forbidden to work without a mask or shield, otherwise you can get ultraviolet radiation.

A protective suit will protect clothing and body skin from flying sparks and splashes of molten metal, and tight mittens or gloves made of dense material will protect your hands. It is not recommended to knock down the scale from the seam without goggles, sharp fragments flying in all directions can get into the eyes.

When working near wooden objects and surfaces prone to fire, you should have a bucket of water and a wet rag on hand. Accidental sparks or electrode residue bouncing off and falling on such materials can cause smoldering and subsequent ignition. When working indoors, you need to pay attention to proper ventilation.

The desire to produce any product arises among many; do-it-yourself metal products for sale are created by beginners and experienced craftsmen. Some of them are quite interesting developments.

What can you focus on? How to start manufacturing steel and non-ferrous materials? What is in demand today? What products will be in demand in the near future? What tool do you need to have on hand? There are many questions. It's pretty hard to answer everything. But the questions of finding their place in the market will still excite many potential entrepreneurs.

From idea to market

The peculiarities of the market are such that a very tiny product may be in demand, and large products, in which a lot of thought, labor and talent have been invested, will turn out to be unnecessary. There are enough paradoxes in free trade.

Until now, hardware is in the greatest demand.

1. Nails are bought by the kilo. They are used in construction, the manufacture of other goods, and in the production of containers.
2. Self-tapping screws came to replace nails. The advent of cordless screwdrivers has changed the construction technology, the production of furniture. It is much easier and easier to assemble any spatial structure on self-tapping screws than to use disposable fasteners.
3. Screws (bolts) and nuts are fasteners that connect individual parts to each other. The demand is huge. It is difficult to imagine any production that does not use threaded hardware.
4. Wire staples are used together with staplers. Mechanical, electrical and pneumatic staplers are used in all walks of life. A small box of staples is available in any home. The goods are not stale on the shelves.
5. Pull and threaded rivets, with the advent of a tool for quickly connecting parts into finished products, help in the production of complex one-piece assemblies. The range of rivets is constantly expanding.
6. Welding electrodes are soft steel wire coated with protective compounds. Even ordinary clay on the surface of the wire rods allows parts to be welded together by electric arc welding.

To start the production of hardware, it is enough to purchase automatic machines, for example, a nailing machine. All that remains is to thread the wire from the next roll into the machine and adjust it to the desired nail size. All work in the future goes without human intervention.

For the operation of the nailing machine, you will have to purchase wire and boxes where the finished product will be packed. In the production of nails, one person performs the duties of director, accountant, foreman and auxiliary worker. All in one hand. It remains to breed the goods at retail outlets and wait for the results from its implementation.

Equipment for the production of other hardware is not much more complicated. In a small workshop and even in a garage, entrepreneurs organize quite modern mini-factories that produce goods in demand.

Those who managed to establish the production of hardware in the early nineties of the last century still continue to produce them. Small factories export staples, nails, self-tapping screws, screws, bolts and nuts to dozens of countries. Electrodes in the trading network are purchased in tons.

What can an amateur manufacturer offer?

When it comes to metal products, many potential manufacturers begin to fantasize about the manufacture of large spatial structures. Others see themselves as blacksmiths forging elaborate railings or steel flowers.

In fact, the list of metal products is quite extensive:

• Jewelry production. It is not necessary to use precious metals and alloys to create a sought-after product. Most jewelers work with cupronickel, bronze, brass and copper. They decorate their works with pebbles collected in streams and rivers. Jewels and decorations sell out quite well before the big holidays.

• Melee weapons are an interesting line of work. Demand is constant. However, the manufacturer is always under the close supervision of law enforcement agencies. It is advisable to start making weapons for the reconstruction of historical events. There is no need for sharp sharpening, just a similarity with the prototypes is enough.

• Armor making will be in demand in the coming decades. Many clubs are formed, where those wishing to join the history are looking for manufacturers who are able to make ammunition of medieval knights according to the given drawings and height of the customer. The price of products is quite high. While maintaining high quality, the demand is quite high.

• Manufacture of metal structures for protected ground is quite a promising area of ​​activity. Greenhouses and greenhouses, made wisely, are always needed in summer cottages. Even animal husbandry in chicken coops on a metal frame is more interesting than traditional methods. Rabbit cages from a profile pipe, sheathed with panels, make it possible to raise fluffy animals quite profitably.

• Stairs for the house are most often made on the basis of a metal frame. In the designs, different ideas for the manufacture of flights of stairs and railings are solved. Having mastered the technology of calculation and welding, the master will receive a profession in demand for several decades. Individual construction is only gaining momentum. Entrance groups and interfloor stairs will be ordered constantly.

• Metal furniture is in demand outdoors. Various types of benches, benches and tables are used in parks, gardens, cottages and household plots. These items after painting with protective coloring compositions can be in the open air. Atmospheric precipitation, temperature changes and other natural disasters are not terrible for them. The demand for such products is always stable, especially in spring and summer.

• Metal gazebos are a rather interesting line of production. Collapsible and welded structures do not require the use of complex technological equipment. Any master who has mastered the features of using an angle grinder and a welding machine is able to independently weld structural elements. After painting, ready-made fragments are obtained, it remains only to deliver them to the place and assemble them. Sheet material serves as a roof.

• Steel swing can take its place near the house. At the heart of the metal frame, as well as a swing installed in the bearings. The device is simple, to master the manufacture of the forces of a skilled person.

• Appliances for carpentry and metalwork tools are in demand. Many craftsmen require simple devices, with their help the manufacture is facilitated: hives and components; facades for cabinet furniture; parts for various crafts - and much more that home manufacturers use on a daily basis.
• Villagers and summer residents will buy garden tools and tools if new ideas are incorporated into the products that reduce labor costs. Ordinary rippers or rooters will be purchased by those who have to work on the ground.
• Agricultural implements for walk-behind tractors and mini-tractors, which use more efficient methods of tillage, will definitely be evaluated and paid for by buyers.

To master the manufacture of a particular product, you can read the relevant books, watch videos and get acquainted with a step-by-step guide to the main operations and the tool used.

How to start and grow a business?

You can hear the opinion that to create your own business empire you need a significant initial capital. Without it, it is impossible to organize a profitable business. But history proves otherwise. With relatively small investments, gigantic fortunes and huge industries are created:

1. Henry Ford began construction of production with one successful engine on a self-running sidecar. Only $50 was spent to not only design and manufacture the first engine from water pipes, but also carts with steering and brakes. Already during his lifetime (1924), the company produced more than a million cars a year.
2. Dale Carnegie remained a teacher all his life, but managed to earn more than a billion dollars. He correctly identified what he had to offer: he taught others how to make money. He earned money himself, his heirs could not count the inherited inheritance for another twenty years.
3. Michael Rubin started his business at the age of ten selling seeds. No initial capital. Then he organized the first snow removal company: he hired friends to work and agreed with neighbors that within an hour not a single snowdrift would remain near the houses. An enterprising boy at the age of 12 headed a small cleaning company. At the age of 14 he had his own shop. Today, the fortune is estimated at more than 2 billion dollars.
4. Sergey Brin ended up in the United States at the age of five, now he heads GOOGLE. Those who wish will always find the necessary information about it.

The main thing is not the availability of initial capital, it is important to wish and try to achieve the fulfillment of your desires. You need to put all your time into this and try to find ways of further development even in losses.

There are certain rules that should not be ignored. If you decide to deal with metal and metal products, you need to decide on the place where the production process will be organized. You will need tools, fixtures and raw materials.

At the initial stage, not mass production is organized, they start with the first prototypes, on which demand is tested, the limit price of the proposed sample and the wishes of potential customers are determined.

It's time to consider some areas of activity.

Jewelry production

It is not necessary to use precious metals in your work. Copper, bronze, brass and cupronickel look quite attractive. These metals can be cast into special shapes, creating original products.

Stable demand from buyers for products made by weaving. Various chains, brooches, necklaces and bracelets are jewelry in which openwork weaves of wire create unique patterns. Having mastered the complex technology of creating spatial structures, the master will gain a circle of people who want to buy his products. In the future, a transition to the use of silver and gold as raw materials is possible.

Jewelry manufacturing technology by casting

To get acquainted with the features, you need to see the proposed photos and explanations for them.

For foundry production on the table you will need:

• A flask is a device where blanks are cast. It creates a form for future casting.
• Container for the preparation of molding sand. Here, different types of gypsum are mixed and mixed with water.
• Device for centrifugal casting. Most often, this is a special chain suspension that is untwisted to force the foundry mixture to fill the mold with a certain force.
• Tool for grinding cast metals.
• Gas burners - with their help, they heat the flasks, molding sands and melt the metal.
• Devices for making models. In the production of rings (rings), cylindrical supports of different diameters are used.

For spatial and flat models, boards are used on which the model mixture is placed and the model is cut out;

• Sets of cutters - with their help, cut out a drawing of a future product.
• Grinding tools for processing models and castings: files, needle files, sandpaper, drills and other abrasive tools.

To perform casting, you need to have:

1. Casting mixture - if there is copper and lead, then mixing them in different proportions, bronze is obtained. By mixing electrical copper and tin, brass is obtained. Old cupronickel products can become raw materials for the manufacture of silverware. Some craftsmen purchase brass fittings, cut them, and cast their pieces;
2. Molding sand is a special product that uses fine sand mixed with gypsum. Ordinary building gypsum will not work, the shape and size of the grains will not allow you to repeat a complex and small pattern;
3. Model wax is a plastic structure from which complex surfaces are cut. This material, slightly warming up, can be glued in the right places. Novice masters use paraffin from candles. Simple models can be cut from cheap raw materials, but the quality will be low.

Info: Carl Faberge started making bronze jewelry. At first he cast medals and cigarette cases. Only having mastered the technology, he began to use silver, gold, platinum and aluminum in his work.

Attention! When compiling foundry mixtures yourself using lead, tin, zinc, antimony and other heavy metals, you should have exhaust devices to remove fumes.

Step by step guide to making a brass ring

Attention! Investment casting technology. It got its name because after pouring the molding sand and it hardens, the model wax melts. It doesn't stay inside at all.

There is another method of casting on burnt models. In them, the model is made of expanded polystyrene. When pouring molten metal, the model is burned out.

Work begins with the preparation of the wax mass. She is heated. At a temperature of 62 ... 65 ⁰С, the wax melts. They heat it up a little higher, up to about 70 ⁰С, so that it stays in the molten state longer.

Wax is applied to the surface of a template of a certain diameter. A good craftsman usually has a set of templates so that he can make rings and rings for different clients. The minimum size is 12 mm and the maximum is 28 mm.

In the future, all work on preparing the model is carried out on the surface of the template. The wax is cut to the shape of the future product. A pattern is formed on the main surface.

If it is required to fix the stone in the future, then a small antennae is created on the model. They will hold the stone on the front surface of the ring.

The template allows you to work in such a way that the master does not touch the wax with his hands. Therefore, there are no fingerprints on the surface. Having a set of incisors, skilled craftsmen cut out a convex or concave pattern. This is how signet rings are made.

During the development of the model, it will be agreed with the customer. Then exactly the product that is approved in the order will be manufactured. Sometimes the master makes not one, but several models. In the future, one or more is selected, which will be cast from metal. The work is quite difficult, so this stage of work is negotiated and paid separately. Each new model is a new product, on which the master spends time.

Attention! You can design a product in 3D modeling programs and make a model on a 3D printer.

After working out all the elements of the future product, the model is removed from the mandrel. It is necessary to make a gating system. It will be needed for the subsequent pouring of metal. Provide for the presence of sufficient volume for the melted mass. It should be in abundance.

Ordinary plasticine is taken as the basis for the manufacture of the sprue. Filling is carried out through at least two holes. One is molded, and the second serves as an extrusion - air outlet. Correctly position them at different heights. A thick wire is used to form holes.

The rods are slightly heated before installing the model. Then it will be easier for her to sit down. They try to make the injection hole lower, and the bulge a little higher. Its filling will occur during the reverse movement of the metal at the time of filling the space.

The flask is put on the gating system. A tight fit will prevent sand from leaking.

Inside the flask, it can be seen that the model does not touch the flask walls anywhere. When pouring, there will be no deformation of the product.

The molding sand is mixed with water. A solution is obtained, which must be poured into the flask.

When pouring, it is desirable to install the flask on a vibrating table. Then air bubbles will be removed from the poured mass. The absence of bubbles will make it possible to obtain a solid form without defects. It remains to wait until the gypsum present in the form hardens.

Gating system is removed from the flask. Now the wires responsible for pouring the metal are visible.

Remove wire. Through small holes there will be access for metal. But while there is a model inside. It is surrounded on all sides by a hardened molding sand. When removing the wire, try to act carefully so as not to damage the workpiece.

After removing all the auxiliary elements, the mold begins to warm up and the wax is removed from it. The flask is turned upside down. They put it on a dish where the wax will flow out.

When the wax comes out, a cavity for the metal is formed inside. Filling by centrifugal casting under pressure is provided. A special device is used in the form of a box and a chain. The flask will have to be rotated by hand, so that under the action of centrifugal force the metal penetrates more fully into the most remote spaces of the form.

Heating is carried out in a device for centrifugal casting.

Attention! At home, other methods of injection molding are also used. Many jewelers use potato halves. When there is molten metal, the flask is covered with potatoes and pressed against the flask with force. From below, the high temperature is over 800 ... 900 ⁰С. Moisture evaporates from the surface of the potato. The resulting steam exerts pressure on the molten metal. It penetrates into the most remote parts of the form.

When all free moisture has been evaporated from the mold, and a temperature close to the melting point of the poured metal (about 850 ⁰С) has been reached, pieces of brass (melchior, copper, bronze or other material) are placed on the sprue part.

The melted metal flows into the mold. Now you need to forcibly direct it inside. They begin to spin the device for centrifugal casting. Craftsmen using steam apply potatoes and wait for the steam to push the metal in.

It doesn't take long to spin (about 2 minutes). The fluidity of the metal decreases rapidly. It is necessary to wait for the solidification of the product inside the mold. The temperature difference between the device and the ambient air is high, so after 5...8 minutes the casting will become solid.

You can destroy the gypsum and remove it from the flask by waiting for it to cool. This is how they do it when casting gold items. If the mold particles cool quickly, they can damage the soft metal.

In cold water, within a few seconds, the mold will collapse and the product will be released. It's easy to get it.

The remains of the gating system are visible on the casting. Nippers bite off the excess. They can be reused. When using expensive metal, a jigsaw is used, sprues are cut with it.

The part cast immediately looks unattractive. It is treated with sandpaper, polished. They give a commercial appearance. If necessary, the chisels refine the drawing, giving it an even greater convexity. Skilled craftsmen apply a fine mesh, which will highlight the texture effect more strongly.

Work out the size. After casting, it is possible to reduce the diameter of the ring. You can simply grind off the excess inside with files or needle files. More often, mandrels are used (a tool made of a hard material of a given size, for example, balls from a bearing), which are driven through holes.

With the help of polishing wheels, the surface is treated, a quality product is obtained.

On products where copper is present, they are treated with sulfur. It helps to see the depth of the picture. The easiest way is to use sulfuric ointment purchased at a pharmacy.

By firing at a temperature of 250 ... 280 ⁰С, oil evaporation is achieved. Sulfur film settles in depressions. Excess on convex places is removed by polishing with the use of polishing pastes.

The finished metal product is examined for defects. If they are not there, then you can give it to the customer and receive payment for the completed order.

Video: metal decorative elements.

Other types of own production for profit

By studying step-by-step technologies, you can master several very different professions for the manufacture of metal goods.

The issues of individual production are quite interesting. For an active person, a direction will always be found, which in the future will become a matter of life.

The advantage of metal crafts is the availability of materials. Any improvised parts are used in the work: screws, washers, nails, old devices with a metal mechanism, and much more.

Currently, metal fences, doors, fences are popular, which can be supplemented with forged patterns or toys made of metal parts.

Materials and tools

You will need the following tools and materials:

• paper and pencil for sketching;
• device for welding;
• hammer;
• grinder for cutting metal;
• rust remover;
• sharp scissors;
• washers and bolts for decoration;
• steel bars of various lengths;
• sheet of iron.

The specific set of materials depends on the type of craft.

Prepare all the details in advance, if necessary, treat the surface of the iron with a special rust remover so that the surface is clean - thanks to this, the finished craft will not rust and will last for a long time.

metal owl

1. Prepare a template for an owl by drawing it with a pencil or printing it out on a piece of paper.
2. Cut out the outline of the figure and attach it to the metal sheet, circle the silhouette with a pencil.
3. Using a grinder, carefully cut the edges of the workpiece. Use a drill to drill holes for attaching future crafts and for creating eyes.
4. Make paws from a metal twig, giving them an appropriate curved shape.
5. Treat the surface of the owl with a special solution and paint.

Rose of steel

Prepare the following tools:

• welding machine;
• hammer;
• Bulgarian;
• paint for metal surfaces;
• sharpening stone;
• pliers;
• wire;
• scissors for cutting metal.

Step-by-step instruction:

1. Cut out petals for a rose from a steel sheet - the more, the more magnificent the bud will turn out. Make them in different sizes: for the lower tiers of the flower - larger, and then smaller and shorter to make a folded bud in the center.
2. Grind the sharp edges of the petals with a grindstone so that they become even and smooth to the touch.
3. Twist the steel rod into a spiral with pliers.
4. Weld the petals base down to each other, folding in the shape of a rose.
5. The rosette can be supplemented with thorns and leaves - two leaves on each stem from different sides.
6. Cover the finished craft with paint, for example, a silver shade.

Simple metal toys

Some crafts can be created from improvised metal materials without the use of special tools for welding and cutting metal sheets.

This uses wire, screws, washers, nuts and other small parts that can be glued or twisted together with children.

Bolt dog

1. Take a large nut and hot-weld or glue four upside-down bolts to it. You will get a blank torso with legs.
2. Make a muzzle from a short wide screw, gluing it with a leg to the front upper part of the body, slightly raising the head up at an angle.
3. Make eyes out of small nuts, attaching them on top behind the head of the screw depicting the muzzle.
4. Give the figurine the appearance of a puppy by gluing the tail and ears.
5. With the help of such a base, you can make other animals - a cat, a horse, an elephant, complementing the blank for the body with the appropriate elements in the form of ears, nose, etc.

typewriter

Prepare materials for making crafts. You will need 4 small wheels, metal parts for the body and additional parts for decoration: headlights, exhaust pipe, seat seats. The more detailed the car is, the more beautiful and realistic the craft will turn out.

Watching the process of creating a toy car will appeal to both boys and girls.

The body of the machine can be assembled in advance, the parts can be welded or glued.

Attach the wheels to the workpiece, stick additional decorative elements.

The finished machine can be varnished or painted.

wire butterfly

The technology for creating this craft is very simple and is suitable for making together with children.

In this case, the work consists in twisting the wire in the form of curved parts for the wings and antennae of the butterfly.

The wire must be strong, but flexible enough not to break in the process and easily take the desired shape with the help of hands.

Make wings from twisted ovals, decorating them with a patterned ornament in the form of curls and spirals.

Take a thicker piece of wire as a torso or twist several thin wires together in the form of a torso.

Make antennae from thin twisted pieces of wire thread and attach to the butterfly's head.

Cover the finished craft with colored paint or clear varnish.

Other insects, such as dragonflies, are created with a similar technique. They differ from butterflies in a larger body and thin elongated wings.

It is important not to forget about the precautions when working with tools such as a grinder and welding, be sure to use protective equipment - a mask, gloves.

The decoration of any dacha or mansion in the suburbs can be not only a purchased accessory, but also hand-made metal crafts. Any person can make them, since special knowledge is not required for this.

Thinking about the manufacture of metal crafts, everyone is given the chance to choose the desired production process, based on their own skills and experience. The always chosen work technique will imply some expenses necessary to create or purchase the necessary equipment.

Everyone is given the opportunity to create many different metal crafts, to transform the interior of a home or garden plot thanks to them.

Product technology

Creating crafts from wood and metal is today considered a modern way to make money. Handmade metal structures adorn the cornices and benches. In this case, the master has the right to choose the desired style that is suitable for the house.

In stores, metal items are sold expensively, because they are made by hand. Therefore, today it is important to create such products on their own.

For the production of metal parts and patterned images, it is recommended to choose a suitable work process.

The most modern are: filigree, cutting, bending, forging, stamping, chasing. Upon completion of the preparation of the drawing of the metal product and the required list of materials, the master can begin work.

Metal is the material from which whole compositions of various crafts for the home and garden are created. In this regard, many ways have been developed, thanks to which it is possible to create characteristic things at home.

Methods for creating metal products

Casting. The essence is to fill the mold with liquefied steel. Frozen, it becomes strong. This results in a beautifully shaped product.

Forging. Based on the action on the workpiece with a hammer, temperature, press, etc.

Bending. This technique is similar to forging. The essence of technology is welding and riveting elements.

Difovka. This method is characterized by the use of a hammer in the work. So the iron sheets get the desired look.

Cutting and stamping. Using this technology, the shape of the workpiece changes, holes are made.

Filigree. The raw material is wire of any shape. The craft is created by soldering the bent components of the pattern.

Chasing. The method is considered the simplest. Its essence is the location on the workpiece of inventory, subject to further impact with a hammer. This changes the shape of the product.

How to make a drawing

At the present time, many methods are used to make drawings of metal crafts. They can really be done by yourself, or using automated programs.

Thanks to the scheme, there is a specific understanding of how much material is needed for work. Initially, it will be required in the manufacture of large items, for example, metal gates. Having a prepared sketch, the master will be able to understand whether the craft will look harmonious in the desired place.

DIY metal rose

Sheet metal crafts will serve to decorate the garden in a country house. Among them, a beautiful flower called a rose is most often distinguished. The finished product will be able to please you for many years.

To complete the craft, the following learning method is useful:

When carrying out work, it is necessary to take into account safety precautions, using special gloves and a mask for welding.

Take sheet metal and carve out of it the petals and leaves of the flower. Petals should be cut in the following order: from smallest to largest, starting at 15 mm and ending at 80 mm. You will need to make about 30 petals. So the flower bud will look compact and beautiful. After the edges of all the petals should be smoothed with a grindstone.

From the remaining sheet metal, it is necessary to cut triangular shapes of at least 10 mm in size, serving as rose thorns.

We make a button. Take the two smallest petals, squeeze them in a yew, then fold them into two parts. Then we form eight petals in an arc, holding on to the middle of the bud. Each piece of metal crafts is fixed by welding. After that, you need to clean up.

All other leaves are formed in a similar way in an arc, but with the top bent. The bend is carried out with a hammer. All other petals are fixed by welding and cleaned again.

It's time to weld the spikes to the prepared stem. Afterwards, cleaning is done.

And finally, the rose leaves themselves. It is required to make a clamp and unclench the leaflet in a yew so that the vein comes out. The edges of the leaves are bent with pliers. We fix the leaves to the stem by welding and clean the seams.

The final stage is welding the bud to the stem. Cleaning is also done in those places where the parts are connected. After the whole rose is painted with a special paint.

DIY metal craft rat

Metal crafts for the garden and cottages have an excellent appearance. For example, you can make a metal rat or other animal by following the step-by-step instructions.

Step-by-step process of creating crafts:

Take a couple of pieces of a metal pipe (with a rat size of 50 cm). One of them will serve as a head: we cut equal parts in diameter, and the workpiece comes out.

After using electric welding, we attach the parts and use a grinder to clean the place of the seam. When working, proportional dimensions should be taken into account: the head goes more than the body. We weld these two parts together.

On a thin metal sheet 2 mm wide, we apply samples of the ears and paws of the animal, then cut it out. For the correct shape of the paws, the workpieces are folded into a funnel. We connect the paws with the body with a welding machine and clean the seams. Similarly, work is done with the ears.

After we perform brushes of paws from twigs. Smaller rods are suitable for the upper and lower legs. We weld them and clean them up.

For dressing the tail, you need a rod 14 mm long. He joins the body of the rat by welding.

Now let's deal with the muzzle. Initially, two openings are made in the head for the eye sockets. In size, they are smaller than the balls from the bearings.

We carefully clean the entire animal with a grinder. Along the length of the rat, we make welding lines located nearby. This will remind the elements of wool.

At the end of everything, a varnish without color is applied to the rat to obtain the best effect. In the photo of metal crafts, the animal is covered with a colorless varnish that has a shiny effect. Now the craft is ready, you can give it to your loved ones, or place it in your own dacha.

Photo of metal crafts

Forged metal products have been and remain in demand, despite progress, new materials and technologies. The secret of popularity lies in the combination of two qualities - beauty and strength. Forged products can look light, elegant, but at the same time, a person cannot break them! Having mastered the production of metal products, you can create an excellent source of income. About everything in order!

In our imagination, forging metal is the taming of it with the help of fire, hammer and anvil. However, along with the hot type of forging, cold forging is also possible. Unlike the first method, almost everyone can master cold forging at home.

Hammer and anvil for forging metal

Hot working involves heating a metal workpiece to a high temperature. Due to this, the molecules are in a less dense arrangement and the metal becomes plastic, malleable. With the help of a hammer, the blacksmith gives the desired shape to the workpiece - for this, many different techniques are used.

However, it is not so easy to equip a real forge at home with your own hands. First of all, you will need to purchase a forge, which consumes a lot of fuel. For fire safety reasons, it is simply impossible to install a horn in an apartment or garage, so you can forget about hot forging in urban conditions once and for all. The forge is not the only problem, because you still need to know a lot of features of high-temperature metal processing.

Forge

Cold forging is much less of a problem. First, it is available to a much wider circle. If you have a garage or a workshop where there is still room for several devices and machines, then you can safely master the skills of cold forging. This can be a fun hobby at first, which is especially helpful for homeowners. However, over time, you can turn this hobby into an income source. In any case, you will first have to spend some money on tools and blanks.

In cold forging, the metal is simultaneously bent and pressed, resulting in very strong products, stronger than casting or stamping. The finished structure will be very resistant to damage - it is not afraid of vandals and thieves. Therefore, cold forging is so often used to create decorative and protective elements, such as window grilles, visors, railings, gates, fences, wickets, as well as tables and chairs, decorative coasters and fireplace grates.

There are many ready-made do-it-yourself cold forging machines - the simplest ones perform only one function, the more complex ones can perform several operations. In general, the equipment is quite simple - both in operation and in design.

Cold forging metal

• The basic tool that both an experienced craftsman and a beginner lover of cold forging should have is a gnutik. With this device, you can bend a metal bar at any angle with your own hands. Gnutik will also help in creating beautiful arcs with any radius.
• The snail allows you to create spiral elements. Finished tools are most often limited to a bar diameter of 12 mm, however, you can create a homemade snail for any diameter of the workpiece.
• Flashlight - a snap to create an element with the same name. This equipment allows you to bind iron rods in a special combination. With the help of a flashlight, you can also make the "Basket" element. For work, you will need either metal bars with a cross section of up to 30 mm, or squares with a cross section of up to 16 mm.
• Another tool for cold forging is a wave. The name corresponds to what it does - as a result of drawing a square or rod through the tool, you will get a wave-like detail. On this tool, you can process a wide range of rolled metal with your own hands - from round tubes of small cross section to a hexagon.
• Of course, a master of cold forging cannot do without a twister. With the help of this equipment, a bar or a square profile is scrolled around the longitudinal axis. This operation can be carried out with a square section up to 16 mm. The twister will help make ordinary rods in the product more refined, attractive, without loss of strength and integrity.

Twister for scrolling the bar around the longitudinal axis

Without these tools, it is impossible to do cold forging with your own hands. It is not necessary to purchase everything at once - perhaps the first thing to do is to get a gnutik, then a twister, a snail, a wave, and then you can buy or make a flashlight yourself. When you fully master all the tricks with one tool, buy a second one. You can put aside the curly blanks received during your studies - they will definitely come in handy when creating your first masterpiece.

When the first tools are bought, skills in handling them are obtained, it's time to create something more worthwhile than a couple of curls. If you plan to turn this hobby into a profitable business, then the best advertising for you is finished products, such as gates for a country house, window bars or flower stands. In a word, everything that catches the eye. Surely your neighbors and friends will notice the changes in the arrangement of your home and want to buy such useful decorations for themselves.

Gate for a country house

The creation of any product begins with a sketch - carefully draw and mark all the details on a piece of paper, maintaining the scale. Having put down the dimensions, it will be easier for you to calculate the number of necessary elements and the volume of material.

The sketch will help you make all the details the same. Then you can go shopping. To begin with, try to purchase rods and square profiles of medium section - it will be easier to work with them. Large-section metal is difficult to bend by cold forging, you may need stronger and more massive tools than those that you already have.

Medium square bars

When the material is purchased, carefully set the settings on the equipment. Correcting mistakes is sometimes very difficult. In addition to working with cold forging equipment, do not forget to master the welding machine - the easiest way to connect parts is by welding. Be careful when working with thin-walled parts - they are easily burned through.

Elements of cold forging often imitate the forms of the plant world. However, all these twists and curls look incomplete - like a tree without foliage. Leaves are excellent metal products for decorating window bars or metal gates. You can get by with purchased ones, but for the same money you can make twice as many leaves.

Making metal leaves is not at all difficult. To get started, you will need one or more templates. Tear off the leaf you like from the apple tree, transfer its shape to thick cardboard. If you need a lot of leaves, then the patterns should be different so that the finished ornament does not look monotonous. Templates should differ from real leaves in only one detail - special ears should be left on the tips on one side, with which these elements can be fixed on the frame.

Leaves of metal

For such a decor, an ordinary thin sheet of metal is suitable. It can be stainless steel or a sheet of steel - the thinner the better. We also need sharp ones. To begin with, cut the required number of leaves according to the template with your own hands, then grind sharp edges and burrs, smooth out angular shapes. Then mark the lines on the outside, as on live leaves.

Walk along the marked lines with a chisel. Knocking out the contours is not difficult at all, the main thing is not to overdo it and not to break through the metal. Substitute a thick wooden block under the metal - so there will be less noise, and it is more difficult to break through the metal, and the bends after the chisel are more natural. First, walk along the center line, and then reflect the side lines - in the process, you will see for yourself where the metal bends and how best to deploy it.

Chiseled leaf contours

If the leaves are large, then they can be used as separate elements directly to decorate forging. Small leaves can be collected into wire branches. It is visually easy to understand how many elements are needed on each side of the branch. With the help of the ears, the leaves are easily attached to the wire, and only then you yourself must determine how best to bend your branch and where best to direct it. If the leaves scroll, then each element can be fixed with a soldering iron or electric welding.

Using the same technology, you can make more complex grape leaves or ivy leaves with your own hands. In a word, do not stop there! After these decorative elements are securely fixed, all that remains is to paint them - black paint with golden or silver glimpses looks very good.

But this thing can be made at home with a minimum of tools. But the brazier will serve for many years, delighting you with a delicious barbecue. The dimensions of the brazier depend on your needs. The width is always the same - 30 cm, this is just the necessary distance for convenient placement of the skewer, on which a portion of the barbecue is strung - 8 pieces of meat.

Barbecue dimensions

The length of the brazier is calculated based on the number of skewers. Each skewer is allocated 10 cm, so consider that in order to cook a barbecue for a company of 8 people in one go, you will need a brazier 80 cm long. The depth of the brazier is usually done within 20 cm. so that it cooks evenly and does not burn. Height is a strictly individual matter, and is calculated according to the height of the barbecue at the level of the arm bent at the elbow.

You will need a heat-resistant or ordinary sheet steel with a thickness of 3–4 mm, 4 meters of a corner, a grinder with a metal cutting disc, a welding machine and a drill. If you want to make a collapsible brazier, then the welding machine should be replaced with bolts and nuts, but in general the manufacturing procedure remains the same. For the legs, steel corners with a shelf of 20–30 mm are used.

Manufacture of a welded product

First of all, we make markings on a sheet of metal with our own hands in accordance with the calculations made earlier. Then, according to the markup, the elements of the brazier are cut out: walls, bottom. The fastest way is to cut with a grinder, but you can also use a hacksaw for metal or a jigsaw. In the lower part of the future walls, holes are drilled along the entire length - they are needed for oxygen to access the hearth. Holes can also be made at the bottom of the brazier. Don't forget to cut out square or triangular holes on the top edges to secure the skewers. Then it remains only to collect all the elements in one design. If the brazier is stationary, then all parts are fixed with a welding machine, if collapsible, then holes are made for nuts and bolts, and only corners with holes for fasteners are welded to the walls.

If you want the legs of the brazier to be unscrewed, then nuts should be welded to the walls, and threads should be cut at the ends of the reinforcement segments and the segments screwed into place. In this case, the brazier becomes more mobile - the legs can be unscrewed, and the box can easily fit in the trunk of a car.