Angle iron heart

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Wanting to make a heart out of angle iron, then put some expanded metal as a base to make a little basket out of it. Wide had requested I make her a heart when she bought me the lincoln. Has anyone ever notched angle iron to bend into a heart?  I'm sure I could get it with trial and error or some calculation on graph paper, but figured I'd check here. Thanks!
Reply:I've always just went at the angle with a grinder cutting kerfs and bending until I got the shape I'm looking for. If you want to do it "mathematically" you will want to draw the heart to scale, both inside and outside lines.The outside measurement you won't really be able to change much. The inside length will get shortened. How much will be the difference between the two lines in length. If you are doing CAD and can lay out perpendicular lines from the outside, that will show you where some of the cuts will need to be made where they hit the internal line if that makes sense. It's easier to show probably than explain....No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we'll ever see on this earth! Ronald Reagan
Reply:here's a few "heat and beat" hearts I've done, maybe they'll give you some other ideas... Attached Images.No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we'll ever see on this earth! Ronald Reagan
Reply:Those are cool. Ideas ideas......
Reply:Instead of trying to bend angle iron which is hard to form like this. Why don't you just use strap to form the sides. If you're going to put expanded metal in the bottom you could just weld it to the strap and be done.Millermatic 252XMT 304'sDynasty 280DXHypertherm PowerMax 1250Miller Trailblazer 302 EFIOptima PulserXR feeder and XR Edge gun and more athttp://members.dslextreme.com/users/waynecook/index.htm
Reply:I was thinking something like irish fixit.May be a bit ahead of you as I have a plasma.  But if you have a way to cut out a heart you could do the bottom piece of the angle.  Then weld and bend a piece of strap around it.  Or like he said just use strap and expanded metal.
Reply:Yeah I have strap I could use.  I just pictured the angle iron as looking better, with the extra thickness. I like the idea of bending it too, seems like if I figured it out right, I would be easy to notch and bend uniformly, cause it would stop itself when I bent it to the gap I notched. Of course I just got a box of old horseshoes today.......  So now I have those to work with.
Reply:here's a couple of Youtube vids on making the horseshoe hearths..No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we'll ever see on this earth! Ronald Reagan
Reply:Cool videos. I want to try that now, but I'll need more tools!
Reply:We always need more tools... There have been several forge threads done here you can look at to build yourself. They aren't all that hard to do. Push comes to shove, they could be heated with a torch. You'll need some sort of anvil or a heavy block of steel and a pair of pliers and a hammer..No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we'll ever see on this earth! Ronald Reagan
Reply:Quite often I have made a series of cuts on the angle iron then after its bent weld it up, grind it down and it usually comes out quite nice. I've done flat bar that way too.
Reply:I was pondering this one, why use angle? why not use flat stock and just weld the expanded metal to that? yeah, I get that you'd end up with more surface to weld too, but for just a pretty basket, do you really need that much welding surface?There are no problems. There are only solutions. It's your duty to determine the right one.Hobart Handler 210Airco 225 Amp MSM Stinger
Reply:Well, the way I see it is by using the angle, I can make a template and get the bends just right.Going with strap I would rely on bending it just by feel, you know?And for some reason I picture it looking cooler out of angle iron, more 3d, I may not even do the expanded metal part, it was just a though.
Reply:Use 2" plate and a milling machine, seems easy enough to me.I forgot how to change this.
Reply:Originally Posted by LawsonWeldingLLCUse 2" plate and a milling machine, seems easy enough to me.