If this is your first visit, be sure to check out the FAQ by clicking the link above. You may have to register before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages, select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below. |
|
|
Thread Tools | Display Modes |
#21
|
|||
|
|||
Needles loved and needles hated
We have found Cast iron items From Biblical times ,,,, Iron Age from
about 750 B.C if i remember correctly take or give a year or 50 ,,, mirjam They could cast iron or steel in the 1550s. And much earlier :-) |
Ads |
#22
|
|||
|
|||
Needles loved and needles hated
|
#23
|
|||
|
|||
Needles loved and needles hated; OT, too much about needles and not enought about yarn.
"Aaron Lewis" wrote in message t... ."Mary Fisher" wrote in message et... "Aaron Lewis" wrote in message et... The cast tools that I had were bought long ago, and very cheaply. But what were they? a bunch of little pliers, wrenches and a claw hammer. They could cast iron or steel in the 1550s. And much earlier :-) China in the 6th century BC, and Europe in the 12th century, but practical availability in Europe was mid-16th century The Victorians had mastered the technology. Look at an 1880's Singer sewing machine. Yes, but only the body was cast, it didn't undergo any stress. No, look at the treadle and the iron frame that forms the legs. You can see mold marks. You can see where the sprues were cut, and ground off. Many of the parts inside the case were cast and machined. Because of the potential for defects in the cast metal, those parts were massive for the trivial forces that they were expected to sustain. The result is that they last forever. A modern designer, using modern quality controlled steel would use only a tenth as much metal for those stresses. The process for cold drawn steel is complicated. While cold rolling was known as early as 1747, and had became an industry in Germany by the 1830s, I think that the first cold drawn steel in a US machine shop did not occur until after 1885. That shop later became a centerpiece of the Carnegie steel empire. Drawing wire is also much older than that. Only for softer metals such as gold, silver, copper, zinc, lead, and their alloys. Not for iron and steel. *Round* steel "wire" is modern luxury. Better, cheaper, bicycle spokes, the steel rods that reinforced theWright Brothers airplanes, and round nails, all flowed from this modern luxury. Cold drawing iron or steel wire requires a very finely graduated draw plate or else the wire work-hardens so much that the wire breaks under the tension of the drawing process as it passes thru the drawplate. Annealing the wire between draws produces scale that can cause problems in the next pass through the drawplate. Therefore, the rate of draw is adjusted so that the heat generated by the deformation of the metal softens and anneals the iron enough that it can be pulled through the drawplate without breaking. Finally, the drawplates tend to crack. It is a very clever process that requires a rather nice bit of engineering. I have cast iron and steel. (I know that it is possible to cast a small amounts of iron at a time because I have done it!) I have forged and tempered good steel tools. I have drawn commercial quantities of silver and gold wire. However, I was never able to draw iron or steel wire. I tried. All I got was a sore rump. (Why did I try? Some "know-it-all" visiting professor told me that I would not be able to do it!) I've been thinking about your mention of shattered dropped 'cast' needles. They might have become brittle due to work hardening. Cast steel and cast iron tend to be quite brittle. Forging, rolling, and drawing cast iron/steel reduces the size of the iron crystals and thereby reduces its brittleness. That is why blanks for high strength parts are cast; and, then the parts forged from the cast blanks. And, why very cheap items are simply cast, without the expensive follow-on processing to reduce brittleness. Fine and superfine lace needles must have been forged. And gansey needles, with their spring action must have been forged. But, why were needle makers bragging about their needles being cast? consistency? stiffness? tradition? roundness? texture? What virtues were those knitters seeking in their needles ? Originally I thought that the bent gansey needles shown in Mary Wright were the result of forged steel needles that had lost their temper. Now, I understand than even my spring steel needles pick up those distinctive bends in a few hundred hours of use. With cheaply available cold drawn steel rod at the local hardware store, it is cheaper to just make new ones, than to try to reforge and retemper my old needles. I love modern steel rod. And, I can use my old knitting needles to toast marshmallows. Aaron Mary There are so many details wrong with what you say that there's no point in continuing this or it will be seen as an argument. And you still haven't explained how casting needles could be done :-) Mary |
#24
|
|||
|
|||
Needles loved and needles hated
If you do not want to use them, give them a mist of WD-40 and keep them very
dry. For things like that I have little packets of desiccant (drier) that I get at camera shops. The desiccant gets redried every few months and really stops any sort of moisture problems. Aaron "Vintage Purls" wrote in message oups.com... On Jul 26, 10:53 am, "Aaron Lewis" wrote: If I had old nickel plated needles, where the nickel had worn through and the steel rusted, I would spray them with WD-40, put them aside, and make a new set of needles from steel rod from the hardware store. Over all, I would say that just making a new set of needles from steel rod is easier than dealing with the plating issue. I think that you are going to have ongoing corrosion, with little, sharp flakes of nickel peeling up from the steel. Those little flakes of plating catch the yarn. . . . Sorry! I noticed no nickel plating coming off but I dare say once I attack the rust I may notice something. I don't really want to use them - I prefer lighter needles. I bought them because of their vintage nature (I'm sure you've noticed my attraction to vintage knitting things), but I don't want them to sit with rust on them either. Ta, VP P.S. Thank you Mary for your advice too. |
#25
|
|||
|
|||
Needles loved and needles hated
Rubbing the tips on a stone floor will at least keep the tips from being
slippery G All you folks trying to knit lace from those super-slippery synthetic yarns might remember that. LOL Aaron "Mirjam Bruck-Cohen" wrote in message ... When i learned to knit , on both cast iron and first Aluminium needles i was taught to `Always sharpen your needles on the stone floors we have. This habit is so known that some ladies went on doing it with the more Contemporary needles whatever they are made of . mirjam Remember, the knitters of old routinely reshaped their knitting points on whet stones or even roofing slates. |
#26
|
|||
|
|||
Needles loved and needles hated
I never touch synthetic yarns ,,, mirjam
s" wrote: Rubbing the tips on a stone floor will at least keep the tips from being slippery G All you folks trying to knit lace from those super-slippery synthetic yarns might remember that. LOL Aaron |
#27
|
|||
|
|||
Needles loved and needles hated
In article .com,
Vintage Purls wrote: On Jul 26, 10:53 am, "Aaron Lewis" wrote: If I had old nickel plated needles, where the nickel had worn through and the steel rusted, I would spray them with WD-40, put them aside, and make a new set of needles from steel rod from the hardware store. Over all, I would say that just making a new set of needles from steel rod is easier than dealing with the plating issue. I think that you are going to have ongoing corrosion, with little, sharp flakes of nickel peeling up from the steel. Those little flakes of plating catch the yarn. . . . Sorry! I noticed no nickel plating coming off but I dare say once I attack the rust I may notice something. I don't really want to use them - I prefer lighter needles. I bought them because of their vintage nature (I'm sure you've noticed my attraction to vintage knitting things), but I don't want them to sit with rust on them either. Belatedly... Rust will continue even when it seems dry. The WD-40 will help a little. You may also use one of the commercial rust removers such as Naval Jelly and then clean the chemcial and rust off, dry the needles, and then spray them with WD-40 spray. My usual method is to use fine sandpaper or emery paper, but I'm not trying to preserve the antique value or vintage character, I just want to knit with them. =Tamar |
#28
|
|||
|
|||
Needles loved and needles hated
Thanks Tamar.
On Aug 8, 7:40 pm, (Richard Eney) wrote: Belatedly... Rust will continue even when it seems dry. The WD-40 will help a little. You may also use one of the commercial rust removers such as Naval Jelly and then clean the chemcial and rust off, dry the needles, and then spray them with WD-40 spray. |
Thread Tools | |
Display Modes | |
|
|
Similar Threads | ||||
Thread | Thread Starter | Forum | Replies | Last Post |
About SM Needles FYI | Pat in Virginia | Quilting | 7 | August 23rd 06 04:41 AM |
DPN knitting needles for sale (double-pointed needles) | marilyn safier | Marketplace | 0 | October 5th 05 07:41 AM |
Where are the needles? | Bronwyn Ferrier Ms | Quilting | 0 | August 1st 04 09:13 AM |
Needles | DKiely33 | Sewing | 4 | April 1st 04 02:39 PM |
Best loved and hated paintings - was Fiberart speaks | Pat Porter | Needlework | 3 | August 29th 03 01:55 AM |