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▲ 0 r/metalworking

Zink

(Sorry Zinc) So we had the idea to create a proper Zinc Countertop on our cooking island. But apparently Zinc is difficult to get in the size 4260x1260 millimeter.

Anyone with a great idea why it would work. The net size of the top is 4200by1200

Question: do you know techniques that would make a good connection (folding?!) between the sheets, without to big bumps?

Ps yes we know zinc wil change and patina will make its way to the top, that’s part of the deal. And no zinc is not lethal.

Look at zinc countertop on Pinterest or google, it’s been done and has many benefits.

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u/AdInevitable7025 — 11 hours ago
▲ 0 r/metalworking

HELP! How do I remove these scratches?

I accidentally used the rough side of a sponge to clean this mirror polished stainless steel tray without knowing that it would leave scratches like this. I dunno how to remove it now... I tried using baking soda paste and it did seem to lighten the scratches a bit... please let me know if there's a way to restore it to its original state.

For context, it's the drip tray of my espresso machine.

EDIT: I couldn't find replacement parts being sold online. I know the drip tray being like that doesn't affect its purpose in any way, but the look just irks me a lot. It's a personal preference to want it to look the way it did before the scratches and I'm about to try the suggestions mentioned below. Thanks for the ideas

u/EfficiencyHonest9381 — 9 hours ago
▲ 0 r/metalworking

Finally tried a power cutter on my small project… why did nobody warn me it feels this good??

Okay I just want to share this because I’m still smiling about it 😂

I’ve been doing small metal projects for some time now, mostly basic cuts with a hacksaw and sometimes an angle grinder. Nothing serious, just learning slowly. It always felt like work, like real effort every single cut.

Then last week I got access to a power cutter from a friend. Not even a high-end one, just something simple he had lying around. I didn’t expect much honestly. But wow… first cut and I just paused. It went through the metal so clean and fast I actually laughed. Like where has this been all my life??

I tested it on a few scrap pieces first because I was scared of messing up. After that I used it on my actual project, some small brackets I was making. The lines were cleaner, less stress on my hands, and I finished way faster than normal.

I did look online before trying, saw a few cheaper ones on Alibaba. Some looked okay, but also reviews were mixed, so I didn’t risk buying yet.

Only thing I noticed is you really need to respect the tool. It’s fast, like no second chances if you slip.

But honestly, small win for me. I finally feel like I upgraded a level in metalworking 😅

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u/myjeffreyjefferson — 16 hours ago
▲ 76 r/metalworking+2 crossposts

Found a railway track offcut—looking for advice on cleaning it up into a usable small anvil

I found a free railway track offcut and I’m planning to turn it into a small anvil for jewellery work (silver, small forming, etc.).
The surface is quite rusty and slightly pitted, so I want to clean it up and make it usable rather than aiming for a polished finish.
I’ve got access to an angle grinder with flap discs, but I’m a bit concerned about accidentally making the face uneven if I go at it wrong.
What’s the best approach here?
My current thinking is:
Use a flap disc to remove rust and high spots
Try to avoid “digging in” and creating waves
Focus more on usability than a perfectly flat surface
Main question:
How do I clean and level something like this without over-grinding and ending up with a lumpy surface?
Any tips on technique (or things to avoid) would be appreciated.

u/Then_Marionberry_259 — 23 hours ago
▲ 2 r/metalworking+1 crossposts

Difference between metalworking bits and nail bits?

This is pretty niche, but is there a difference in terms of safety/quality of diamond bits? I’ve been interested in doing a Russian manicure on myself for a while and have a bunch of diamond bits + a flex shaft. However, they are technically made for working with metal, not nails. Do I need to buy a new set specifically for Russian manicures, or is it safe and effective to use the bits I already have? If I have to buy new bits, any recommendations would be super helpful!

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u/broken_caramel — 13 hours ago
▲ 9 r/metalworking

New welder

Hey so im pretty new to welding and I recently got a larger welder for free. It's a 255 power mig by Lincoln and I am having a hard time finding a way to power it lol. Its apparently a phase 3 welder so I have significantly less options to get it running. Im not sure whether I should get a massive generator to start it or some kind of inverter or if im better off selling it and getting something smaller. Anything suggestions help lol

u/placentademon — 19 hours ago
▲ 6 r/metalworking+1 crossposts

Trailer Repair

Is this repairable? My son accidentally used the wrong ball size towing our enclosed trailer and it came loose while driving, denting the front corner/door frame area pretty badly. The trailer itself still seems okay, but the door area is pushed in now.

Can this usually be pulled back out/fixed by a trailer or welding shop, or are we looking at major damage? Any idea on rough cost or recommendations aroundSarasota County? He’s devastated.

u/Fix-Icy — 1 day ago
▲ 3 r/metalworking+3 crossposts

Family startup making foldable food carts – completely lost on how to cut our steel sheets. Metal shear? Rotary? Hydraulic? Advice needed!

Hi everyone,

My family is in the early stages of turning our idea into a small business – we want to design and build foldable / collapsible food vendor carts for local customers. The carts will be made primarily from steel sheet, with multiple panels that need to fold down for transport and storage.

We’re complete beginners when it comes to metal fabrication, and we’ve hit a wall trying to figure out the best way to cut our steel sheets down to size. The sheets will be used to make the flat rectangular panels that form the main body, shelves, and work surfaces of the carts. The thickness we’re looking at is around 2 mm (could be mild steel, but we may need to use stainless for hygiene – we’re open to hearing how that changes things).

We’ve been researching tools, but we’re honestly drowning in options and would really appreciate some real-world, practical advice. The main choices we keep seeing are:

  • Manual or powered metal shears (bench shear, foot-operated guillotine)
  • Rotary shears / slitting shears
  • Hydraulic presses (or maybe we’re confusing hydraulic shears with something else?)
  • We’ve even heard mention of nibblers, angle grinders with jigs, and metal circular saws.

What we’re trying to understand:

  1. Which type of cutter makes the most sense for a small production setup – cutting multiple identical rectangular panels over and over, with straight edges and good repeatability.
  2. What’s the difference in edge quality, squareness, and safety between these methods? Food carts need clean edges that won’t cut someone or trap food scraps.
  3. Is it realistic to get accurate, square cuts without spending a fortune? We’re willing to invest in the right tool, but we can’t go straight to a full industrial laser cutter.
  4. If you’ve worked with 2 mm stainless steel sheet, does that rule out certain tools that would be fine for mild steel?

We’d also love any other guidance you think we should hear as first-time metalworkers: jigs we should build, bending solutions, welding tips – honestly, we’ll take anything you’ve got. We’re a family that’s great with ideas but totally green on the fabrication side, and we want to build something safe, durable, and professional-looking.

Thanks in advance for helping us find our feet!

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u/YakTop6566 — 1 day ago
▲ 9 r/metalworking

BHK : Ronin #2

BHK : Ronin #2 !

If you've been waiting to see how the other Ronin is looking wait no longer! This W2 blade will be getting paired with Toxic @fatcarbon scales ( unless someone who wants to give it a home really wants to see something else on it )

Just like the other Tanto both will be getting Hamon heat treats in my new forge! The companion to this blade is a W2 Tanto Ronin with Red FatCarbon Scales.

u/Black_Hand_Knives — 23 hours ago
▲ 71 r/metalworking+1 crossposts

miss

Two years ago, I worked in the metal crafts industry, and I still miss those days very much.

Most of our work involved large copper religious crafts, traditional Chinese-style metal buildings, pavilions, temple decorations, and custom architectural structures. We were responsible not only for the design work, but also for the actual fabrication and installation on site.

A lot of the process was completely handmade — welding, grinding, polishing, surface coloring, assembling internal steel structures, and fitting decorative copper panels piece by piece. Some projects took weeks or even months to complete.

The work was physically exhausting, especially during summer, but it was also one of the most meaningful periods of my life. Seeing raw metal slowly become a finished structure always gave me a strong sense of accomplishment.

Now I work in furniture development and structural design, but I still miss the atmosphere of the workshop, the sparks from welding, the smell of hot metal, and the feeling of building real things with my own hands.

Not a business post, just sharing some memories from a previous stage of life.

Sorry if my English is not perfect.

u/Then_Marionberry_259 — 1 day ago
▲ 76 r/metalworking+1 crossposts

Industrial task chair made of steel and reclaimed wood with custom corner brackets and X-shaped side braces.

The frame is completely hand-welded with Co2 from 30x30 mm square steel tubes and has solid 20x20 mm X-braces on the sides for maximum stability. The corner reinforcement is made of 5 mm sheet metal, cut, welded and ground. The rivets are fake, they are welded on. I left the metal raw under a transparent varnish so that all the workshop details remain visible. The bottom of the legs is protected against scratches.

u/HandmetalDesign — 1 day ago
▲ 2 r/metalworking+1 crossposts

Advise on layout marking

Hi,

I need to weld this piece at a certain angle to another piece. For that I want to have a scribe line, axial, at the very top of the part, in the current orientation (so, thinnest point facing up).

I cannot think of a good way to do that though. I might hold it in a V block and find the highest point but then I'd have to eyeball the orientation.

It doesn't have to be micron precision, but ±0.1mm would be nice.

Thanks!

u/Uxcis — 1 day ago
▲ 27 r/metalworking

Trying not to potato-chip 3mm stainless enclosures

if you've ever run longer seams on 3mm stainless, you probably know the stupid part. it looks fine sitting on the bench, then you put a little too much heat into it and suddenly the whole panel wants to become a potato chip.
had a small batch of stainless enclosures and really didn’t feel like spending the rest of the day straightening, grinding, and cleaning heat tint. tried doing this one with a Denaliweld JET 2000 handheld fiber laser, but set it around 500W instead of pushing the machine anywhere near full power.
the biggest difference was heat control. the panels stayed flatter than i expected, and the cleanup was way less annoying.
prep was the annoying part. the fit-up had to be tight, like basically no daylight between the pieces. clamps mattered a ton. filler wire too. i don’t think i’d try outside corners like this autogenous unless everything was sitting perfect.
i didn’t grab a backside/setup pic, so i can’t say much about backing or penetration from this photo alone. just judging it as finished-side cosmetic box work, running the JET 2000 down at 500W felt like a pretty useful setup for this kind of stainless box work.

u/Frustrated_Goat2 — 2 days ago
▲ 4 r/metalworking+1 crossposts

Welding, body work, and safety glasses

I had a quick question for the brain trust here. I’ve done a bit of welding in the past but it was before the fancy auto darkening helmets. I know I can trust them but I’m on the paranoid side, comes from everything I’ve done. My question is about safety glasses. I’ve been doing some research and see they make safety glasses rated to protect your eyes from arc flash. Obviously not a replacement for your hood but I was wondering if anyone had opinions on them and what the best choice would be for a hobbyist?

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u/dread-pirate72 — 1 day ago
▲ 444 r/metalworking+1 crossposts

How much would this cost to make and maybe install, city just paid something like 2 million for this

u/NecesitoSubaru — 2 days ago
▲ 2 r/metalworking

How to effectively remove paint and red kote from German style ww2 Jerry cans

i tried putting gasoline and paint thinner inside with small screws inside and shake it but is highly ineffective there is always some left behind and has those small tubes for air to escape and red kote is all around and inside of them so some liquid chemical will probably be only option but what to use??

i tried putting gasoline and paint thinner inside with small screws inside and shake it but is highly ineffective there is always some left behind and has those small tubes for air to escape and red kote is all around and inside of them so some liquid chemical will probably be only option but what to use??

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u/deangr — 1 day ago
▲ 67 r/metalworking

Any US based folks that could make forged hammered O rings (brass, titanium, stainless) like this?

Looking for a US based metal worker who might be able to make something like this. This one is solid brass and 1/4" thick, 4.2" internal diameter (ID), but standard sizes for these are all 1/4" thickness in 2.5" ID (size M), 3" ID (size L) and 4.2" ID (size XL).

They're for keeping passes of fabric in place while carrying weight in the fabric, most commonly 5-50lbs, but sometimes more, so they need to be pretty strong. I've read that these might be super simple to make for the person who knows how, so hoping someone goes, "I could totally do that!" Thoughts?

u/sarcassidy — 2 days ago
▲ 1 r/metalworking

Finished my welding table

https://preview.redd.it/n4caob76pa2h1.jpg?width=4000&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=fb21cfe742f4c7512a0e13c78e347de28eb780c1

https://preview.redd.it/dl16b638pa2h1.jpg?width=3000&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=017918782473f71e60510900bf9568bf1a4a0b64

https://preview.redd.it/m6rl2y8bpa2h1.jpg?width=4000&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=22e973b08f2ffdd44127ba9bd1103e0c1cd65f83

I finally got this little welding table completed on a weekend, I drawn it up in cad a little over 3 years back.

The tops 1000mm x 1000mm x 100mm 6mm, legs are 80mm x 80mm total height i think is 900mm

It's a nice size for me for the weekend stuff.

Total cost for this welding table:
£306: Laser cutting materials (plus VAT)
£129.24: 7.6 meters of 80mm x 80mm x 3mm tube ( inc. VAT/delivery )
£53: Caster wheels.
I still have a fair bit of the 80mm square tube left over so that bring the total cost down a little

So the total cost was a little over £450

Bare in mind it's a DIY welding project and is not comparable to
Premium/Industrial: Siegmund, BuildPro (Strong Hand Tools), GPPH.
Or Mid-Range/DIY: CertiFlat, Mac Industries
you get what you pay for.

And that kind of money would have been a total waste for me.

Let me know your thoughts, Do you think the laser cutting plus 6mm steel was expensive or not bad?

.................................................................................................................

https://preview.redd.it/0juo0o8soa2h1.jpg?width=2852&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=3a2bc9ffd8247a45f268eefaf28bd2c0f31af498

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u/Popular-Internet-189 — 1 day ago