Tumble weeds are rolling around here......
Tumble weeds are rolling around here......
Not whole lot of activity in this forum. Why come??? I got a question for ya'. Any idea where one might find info on the process of metal stamping? I have been Googlin', but that is a freekin' joke for the most part. I have been looking for info on embossing. Not an all out search mind you, but whenever I have time and actually think about it. The tonnage varies for different guages of material, the amount of metal being displaced, and the length(or depth) of said displacement. There are most likely other factors to take into consideration as well. Say for example I wanted to make a raised letter on a piece of 16ga stainless? And I only want to raise it about 3/32 of an inch. There are numerous factors to take into consideration here. Right?? Right. Any thoughts? Comments? I'm not looking for material specific information here, just general practices and informative content.
I always like to learn, but I don't always like to be taught.
Lee,
you can emboss by cutting out the pattern you want to emboss, index it to your panel and, by rolling it thru rollers, hand hammering with mallet, rolling it with your english wheel, let you helve/pullmax/power hammer hammer it for you. Stainless is rather hard, aluminum would be easier. some detail is lost in the transfer, the higher the emboss the harder it becomes. What are you trying to emboss? If Jacin answer, he has done some flames in aluminum i believe he used his planishing hammer. tt
you can emboss by cutting out the pattern you want to emboss, index it to your panel and, by rolling it thru rollers, hand hammering with mallet, rolling it with your english wheel, let you helve/pullmax/power hammer hammer it for you. Stainless is rather hard, aluminum would be easier. some detail is lost in the transfer, the higher the emboss the harder it becomes. What are you trying to emboss? If Jacin answer, he has done some flames in aluminum i believe he used his planishing hammer. tt
clueless near st.louis
Metal stamping
I haven't decided what I'm doing yet. I guess it really depends on how involved it is, and the machinery required. But I'm more interested in production-type embossing, like with a OBI press or perhaps hydraulic for thicker material. I'll try anything once.....unless it breaks 
. Then I'll try it again to see WHY it broke 
. My pole barn isn't quite finished yet, but as soon as it is, I have a bunch of things I want to experiment with to come up with an actual "product". What better way to spend the winter?? But I know there is more to the process than smashing a piece of metal between a positive and a negative profile. Lot's of physics going on....that is kinda the information I am looking for. Hell, I'd settle for someone suggesting a good book with lot's of pictures. Do they make a "Metal Stamping for Dummies"??
. Then I'll try it again to see WHY it broke . My pole barn isn't quite finished yet, but as soon as it is, I have a bunch of things I want to experiment with to come up with an actual "product". What better way to spend the winter?? But I know there is more to the process than smashing a piece of metal between a positive and a negative profile. Lot's of physics going on....that is kinda the information I am looking for. Hell, I'd settle for someone suggesting a good book with lot's of pictures. Do they make a "Metal Stamping for Dummies"??I always like to learn, but I don't always like to be taught.
Embossing
Can't help any for the "real" (production) embossing - all's I've done is one off stuff in aluminum - pretty much like Terry said - except mostly with the Ewheel.
I tinkered a wee bit with my 55 ton press - takes a bunch of pressure to do the harder materials. The thing is that when embossing (drawing?) the metal you need to achieve the yield strenght all at once - using a Pullmax, Ewheel etc you can sneak up on it - making the more difficult stuff a little easier at home when you might be limited by equipment capacity.
I saw some really neat work done by using a power steering pump and hydro forming it - easy enough for a home shop guy.
I tinkered a wee bit with my 55 ton press - takes a bunch of pressure to do the harder materials. The thing is that when embossing (drawing?) the metal you need to achieve the yield strenght all at once - using a Pullmax, Ewheel etc you can sneak up on it - making the more difficult stuff a little easier at home when you might be limited by equipment capacity.
I saw some really neat work done by using a power steering pump and hydro forming it - easy enough for a home shop guy.
Drawing or embossing?
I'm not sure which term is correct. Drawing sounds more appropriate I guess. That's the term they use for doing things like sinks and the little metal caps that go on the "clicker" end of retractable ball-point pens. But those things are made using progressive dies and multiple "draws". Maybe embossing is a 1-op deal and drawing requires multiple ops?? Hmmm..... 
My only experience with embossing (if you can even call it that), is when I was about 17 or so I made a shop press of unknown tonnage (I just had an old bottle jack laying around so I used it), to try it out I pushed a 5/16 bolt through a piece of 3/16" plate. After I removed the bolt and turned the plate over it reminded me of a volcano. Coolest thing I had ever saw/done. Well, at least at that age. I will keep digging around to see what I can come up with for information. I'm not going to go dumping money into a bunch of books at this point. That' pretty much a crap-shoot as far as getting a high percentage of "usable" information. But if anyone has any experience, or information about this mysterious process, I'd love to hear. 
I can't really do much experimenting until my laboratory, um I mean pole barn, is done..... 
My only experience with embossing (if you can even call it that), is when I was about 17 or so I made a shop press of unknown tonnage (I just had an old bottle jack laying around so I used it), to try it out I pushed a 5/16 bolt through a piece of 3/16" plate. After I removed the bolt and turned the plate over it reminded me of a volcano. Coolest thing I had ever saw/done. Well, at least at that age. I will keep digging around to see what I can come up with for information. I'm not going to go dumping money into a bunch of books at this point. That' pretty much a crap-shoot as far as getting a high percentage of "usable" information. But if anyone has any experience, or information about this mysterious process, I'd love to hear. I can't really do much experimenting until my laboratory, um I mean pole barn, is done..... I always like to learn, but I don't always like to be taught.