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Working With Brass
I'm going to make the electrical pieces of the switch
out of brass. There are two reasons for this: First, brass is a good
conductor which is something I need because this is a real working
switch. Second, it should be a nice contrast with the color red that the
box will be painted with.
The angle below is 1 1/4" X 1 1/4" X 1/8" thick X 24" long,
and the flat bar is 1" X 1/8" thick X 24" long. Instead of explaining
what I'll be doing with each piece I think it would be easier to just
see what I make as I go.
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First I gave each piece a good sanding
with 100 and then 150 grit paper.
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I'll start work on the flat bar first.
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I'm laying out some pencil lines at 8" apart. These lines represent
the spots I'll be bending at.
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I'll be heating the brass before I bend it so it doesn't crack or brake.
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I used my machinist vise to hold my work with and then bent one end at a
time to 90 degrees, making a U shape out of it.
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Here I'm machining each leg square and to the
same length. Now it's time to work on the angled pieces.
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I'm cutting the brass angle just over 1 1/4" long, leaving a small
amount to machine off.
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Here I'm machining each piece to 1 1/4" long. A keen eye will see the
use of a V block that I'm using as a nest to help hold the angled pieces.
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Here is what they look like after machining.
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