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Instructions for Using and Maintaining
DURSTON Rolling Mills Page 7 of 7
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ROLLING MILL
PRINTING (cont.)
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TO ETCH STEEL:
Use one part nitric acid to 3 parts water or 2 parts hydrochloric
acid (muriatic) to 1 part water. ALWAYS ADD ACID TO WATER NEVER
THE OPPOSITE! If you are not familiar with acids and their dangers,
do not try this! Read about etching in a printmaking book for more
details before you proceed. Use resists that a printmaker would
use (asphaltum etc.). Use in well ventilated area and wear rubber
gloves and eye protection. Do not inhale fumes.
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NON ACID ETCHING OF COPPER, BRONZE AND
BRASS:
Ferric chloride is a salt which gives a clean etch to copper-based
alloys. Follow directions on the bottle. Wear rubber or latex gloves.
Tapes such as electrical tape or brown packing tape can be used
as resists. The real bonus of this material is that permanent markers
used for writing on plastic will resist the etching action which
allows you to draw or write (remember to reverse the letters for
imprinting) directly on the metal .The ink can be removed with methyl
hydrate (alcohol - use a fume hood and rubber gloves). The piece
to be etched must be suspended upside down (design facing down)
below the surface of the ferric chloride. Agitate occasionally for
better action. Check the depth of the bite frequently. Clean the
metal very well with dish detergent and water. Then clean with toothbrush
or brass brush and baking soda to ensure the etching action is neutralised
(important!!!). The finished piece can be used to imprint - the
etched away sections will emboss.
INCREASE EMBOSSING EFFECT:
When roller printing a thin gauge of metal, you can enhance the
embossing by padding the back of the metal with layers of paper
and rolling with more compression.
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OTHER
USES OF THE ROLLING MILL
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SOLDER INLAY: Designs can be
impressed into a sheet of metal and the recesses filled with solder.
FOLD FORMING: Linear patterns
can be produced on metal by folding and unfolding the metal. Because
metal has a memory due to work-hardening, the fold remains as a
raised line on the service. Fold metal and pass through the rolling
mill to compress the fold. Anneal, unfold the metal and pass through
to compress and flatten the top of the fold line. Metal can be folded
and unfolded many times, creating parallel or intersecting lines.
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TWISTED WIRE LAMINATION: Twisted
and braided wires of different metals, soldered together, can be
rolled to create square decorative wires.
MONKUME 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.
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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.
OTHER DISTORTIONS: Metal shapes
can be purposefully distorted using the rolling mill. 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. Rolling wire in a paper sandwich gives slightly raised edges
to the wire which now has a soft paper texture and is broadened.
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| ROLLING A TAPER:
Wire can be forged into a graceful tapered end which can be used in
many ways (spirals or tendrils etc). The rolling mill provides a shortcut
version. Anneal the wire to be tapered. Begin rolling at the first
groove and roll as far up the wire as you wish the taper to extend.
Move to the next groove along and roll part way up the wire, leaving
part of the first rolled section unchanged. Continue rolling until
the wire tapers in a series of 'steps'. Once you have rolled the taper
continue refining the taper with a hammer on an anvil. Smooth the
ridges between the steps with the hammer, turning the wire as you
work to round out the squared off edges. If you wish squared taper,
do not turn the wire. Once the ridges are smoothed out, file, sand
and polish the tapered wire. If you wish to shape the taper, anneal
and pickle before sanding and polishing. |
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