Brass wire: it bends, it breaks!

[Mollusc]

I'm seeking advice on how to bend brass wire without it breaking. I've searched this forum without success and I'm a total noob so apologies for asking something which is common knowledge. 

I've got a Billings kit that needs various fittings to be made from the supplied brass rod. Some of them are very tight, eg an eyelet. There's another one that has the wire folded back on itself to make a sort of double rod. 

 

I've got a limited supply of wire, my first couple of attempts have resulted in snapped wire so I've stopped to ask here before I ruin any more of it. 

 

Many thanks 

Mollusc 

[Louie da fly]

You need to anneal the wire. Heating it up makes it softer and more ductile (able to bend stretch etc). Others are more knowledgeable than I am on this. But brass is a particularly difficult one, unfortunately -  bending it 'work hardens' it again, so you need to anneal it again every so often. I should think there are tutorials on annealing on Youtube. Here's one. I can't vouch for how good it is.

 

Steven

 

[Mollusc]

That was a fast response, thank you! 

I've heard of annealing but thought it was only for photoetch parts. 

I'll be digging out the brulée torch from the kitchen and giving it a try 👍

[druxey]

The brulée torch is perfect for modelmaking as well. Heat the metal in dim light to cherry red and then let it air-cool to room temperature. Take care not to burn yourself - or anything else, for that matter.

[Kauz]

Hello,

be aware that there are different kinds of brass alloys. Hard alloys are made for machining, you won't have much success annealing them. For bending, use the soft alloys.

[paul ron]

i bought brass wire at michaels that is soft brass and is very workable. they have the wire in several gages. 

 

 

[Snug Harbor Johnny]

  Soft wire sold at hobby stores is indeed bendable, but also 'unbendable' if later put under tension.  Then again, with the flexibility of some yards and masts, the rigging has to have minimal tension to avoid bending.

[thibaultron]

You can buy Hard, Half Hard, and soft wire from Amazon, Ebay, and other internet stores. The wire is fairly cheap, I bought some of the Half and Soft, as future stock.

[Mollusc]

Lots of great advice, very much appreciated. I don't know the exact type supplied by Billings but I'll know what to look for in future. 

The kit is generous with the wood stock, which has allowed trial and error(s) but is a bit mean with the brass wire. 

[barkeater]

As an alternative, you can use silver wire sold for jewelry making. It is stronger than the brass wire sold in craft stores and comes in a variety of gauges and hardness. It solders well using silver solder paste and blackens nicely with brass black. I use it instead of brass wire.

Richard

[NoelSmith]

If the wire is to be painted anyway, maybe copper wire being more malleable might be a good alternative to brass.

Richard's suggestion about using craft wire for jewellery is good too. I think you can obtain it pre coloured as well, so there may be a black option that will save painting or blackening.

[KeithAug]

On 7/31/2024 at 9:30 AM, Mollusc said:

I'm seeking advice on how to bend brass wire without it breaking.

Mollusc - it would be good to know the diameter of the wire.

The above video might not be all that helpful as the process is for bending bar at high temperature. It should be possible to bend brass cold for smaller brass diameters.

If brass is hard it can be softened by heating it to cherry red and then allowing it to cool. It will then be soft but will harden as you work it. Repeat the process to soften it again. Be careful not to melt the brass. This is very easily done with small diameters.

[Mollusc]

On 8/4/2024 at 8:44 PM, KeithAug said:

Mollusc - it would be good to know the diameter of the wire.

The above video might not be all that helpful as the process is for bending bar at high temperature. It should be possible to bend brass cold for smaller brass diameters.

If brass is hard it can be softened by heating it to cherry red and then allowing it to cool. It will then be soft but will harden as you work it. Repeat the process to soften it again. Be careful not to melt the brass. This is very easily done with small diameters.

I'm not sure of the diameter but the mini blowtorch worked a treat. The first bit drooped which was unexpected but by pure chance it gave me the exact curve I needed for the piece. 

 

I was more careful after that and managed to make the shapes I needed, thanks to all your advice. 

 

I also found some zinc coated garden wire - very strong, and some thinner black flower wire which has been useful. I now find myself looking at all sorts of household things and thinking how useful they might be!