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General control line discussion => Open Forum => Topic started by: Russell Shaffer on October 01, 2006, 07:11:23 PM

Title: Bending music wire
Post by: Russell Shaffer on October 01, 2006, 07:11:23 PM

I have been heating music wire to get a sharp bend, then letting it cool.  Is this good, or should I quench it to re-harden?  Or is heating a bad thing?

Title: Re: Bending music wire
Post by: RC Storick on October 01, 2006, 07:13:20 PM

Bend it cold

Title: Re: Bending music wire
Post by: Richard Grogan on October 01, 2006, 08:37:41 PM

Hammer* + Vise = Bend !!      (*Requires muscle!) **)

Title: Re: Bending music wire
Post by: Crist Rigotti on October 01, 2006, 09:03:03 PM

Be sure you have a radius on the bend or you'll put in a stress point.  Radius the vise jaws some or use what I do the K&S bending jig.  The small one.  I'll bend 1/8 music wire with it.

Title: Re: Bending music wire
Post by: Tom Perry on October 02, 2006, 07:09:23 AM

Russell,

If you absolutely must heat the wire to bend it, it will be to soft to function properly.  To fix this you should heat it then plunge it in cold water.  This will leave it too hard and subject to breaking.  You can try to re-temper it by heating it in an oven to about 450 degrees and then letting it cool slowly.  This will bring back some of the temper or toughness.  Sparky gave the best advice "bend it cold".  The tempering heat is based on the carbon content of the steel so the 450 degrees is just a ball park guess.

 %^