Star of David for nursing home

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The whole whateveryouwanttocallit bobs back and forth on the stand when ever it’s moved. It’s mine (sigh). I did it….we’re talking a dismal failure that looks barely so-so the more I look at it. I used some type of a 26g steel mesh from the building materials department at Menards and cut it down to 4” x 14” strips which I then folded in half then hammered then folded in half again then hammered again before weaving into the star shape. I set the 211 to 24g and still couldn’t weld the star tips properly even with propping them up on copper. ----The bottom of the star was welded to a piece of threaded rod by pushing the heat onto the rod and letting the puddle drip down onto the mesh…. There was no other way to do it that I could figure out. --I was trying to make a Star of David to give to a local County Nursing Home. They wanted it for one of their gardens. If I leave it outside long enough…. it should rust and hold itself together long enough for me to replace it with a new Star of David fabricated from different materials…. perhaps strips of perforated sheet metal? I dunno. I’m at a loss on this and they’d prefer I not use broken wrenches to form the star as previously suggested by another member in another thread. If anyone has any suggestions for materials that could be used for round II of making a Star of David, I'd be most appreciative.MM 211Smith Tru Lite O/A set, Thanks Bob!Lincoln AC-225--But you must not change one thing, one pebble, one grain of sand, until you know what good and evil will follow on that act. The world is in balance, in Equilibrium- Ursula K. Le Guin
Reply:Use 1/4 or 3/8 flat.  It has enough material to rabbit it to make the weave.  Use a razor wheel for the shoulders, and carefully grind out the middle of the slots/rabbits.It's a lot of handwork, and pretty tedious, but it will work.  Keep the reveal to a minimum on the shoulders of the rabbits, and nobody will see the grind marks where you took out the bulk of the material.  They'll just see the crisp line left by the razor wheel"Any day above ground is a good day"http://www.farmersamm.com/
Reply:pic is just to show the weave, and rabbits, forget the circle thingie"Any day above ground is a good day"http://www.farmersamm.com/
Reply:I'd use the milling machine to do the rabbits, but real world........not many folks have a milling machine.  The grinder will work fine.  Do the rabbits on each piece that mates, taking half the material off of each piece needed to make them fit together, this cuts down the grinding, and makes the piece nice looking when viewed from all sides.  And it allows you to use thin material (1/4 or 3/8)Rabbit fitting rabbit on each joint, see what I'm saying"Any day above ground is a good day"http://www.farmersamm.com/
Reply:"Use 1/4 or 3/8 flat." I have a small piece of 1/4" plate left. It's that blasted AR plate though.... that crap that Superman brought down to Earth from the planet Krypton that I can't cut because I don't have an O/A set up. Tell me exactly what I need to buy and I'll buy it for them. It's a county nursing home and most of the residents.... if not all... are on public aid and have no place else to go so I don't mind. --I don't know what a razor wheel is or a milling machine so I must not own either of them.... I do have two 4 1/2" grinders though and plenty of cutting and grinding wheels for them and learned that I can get pretty clean cuts if I draw out exactly what I want and take my time. --I actually got the weave correct.... it was the material I chose that was going to end up snagging a resident. They'll be able to use it over winter when no one visits the gardens but I'm sure they'll pitch it the 1st warm day next spring. --"Rabbit fitting rabbit on each joint, see what I'm saying" Not exactly but... it's me not your description I'm sure. I'll print off this thread and hand it to somebody who will help me understand so no worries.MM 211Smith Tru Lite O/A set, Thanks Bob!Lincoln AC-225--But you must not change one thing, one pebble, one grain of sand, until you know what good and evil will follow on that act. The world is in balance, in Equilibrium- Ursula K. Le Guin
Reply:A rabbit is a woodworking term for a slot sorta thing.  It's basically a slot cut into the material.  In this  case you'd cut slots where the weaved pieces cross each other.  One on each piece, so that they match when fitted together.A razor wheel is a thin grinding wheel that will fit your 4 1/2" grinder, it's used to cut very narrow slots, or cut metal like a cutoff saw.  http://www.flexovitabrasives.com/fil...y-Flexovit.pdfhttp://catalog.flexovitabrasives.com...f-wheels/f1207Should be available at your LWS, or even the home improvement store nearby.This wheel will be used to cut the straight edge of the slot, so it's straight and sharp looking.  Next, you'd put the regular grinding wheel back on the grinder, and grind out the metal between the razorblade cuts to make the slot.Be careful when making your line with the razorblade, hold the grinder very tight as they like to kick with these wheels.  Just gently apply pressure, and follow your layout line, cutting to the approximate depth you need.Last edited by farmersamm; 10-29-2014 at 01:06 PM."Any day above ground is a good day"http://www.farmersamm.com/
Reply:Something this well made would probably be a permanent fixture in the garden.  It'd be too nice to throw out at the end of the season.  It will develop a nice patina too.Make your slots about 1/8" wider on both sides where it matches the crossover piece, and you'll never see anything but the sharp cut line when looking at it.  Very pretty if done carefully"Any day above ground is a good day"http://www.farmersamm.com/
Reply:Drill a small hole, and plug weld the pieces where they cross, and grind the plug weld down, and flap wheel it so it disappears"Any day above ground is a good day"http://www.farmersamm.com/
Reply:Get some stainless steel safety wire and use it to tie the points through the holes in the expanded metal
Reply:'' Drill a small hole, and plug weld the pieces where they cross, and grind the plug weld down, and flap wheel it so it disappears ''\You are gonna be her hero now , she loves plug welds. I remember her cart where she plug welded the casters. I guess she likes going in circles. It gets me dizzier.
Reply:farmersamm> Ahhhh…. I get it…. with your helpful drawing. Thank you thank you thank you.   I can do something like that!!!  I have a flap wheel.  I’ve got until next May/June to gather materials and to pick up a razor wheel. --I’ve got this thread bookmarked so I’ll for sure post a photo of the new and improved Star of David.--Firemanmike69> The bobbing back and forth didn’t end up being the problem or your fix would have worked. The jagged edges of the wire mesh from where I’d cut it ended up being the deal breaker. Yesterday I was canning in the kitchen with some friends and it was out on the counter so I’d remember to drive it over to the nursing home. My friend caught her sleeve on it and it stuck to her and hung suspended mid air until we detached her from it. I can’t give it to them…. it’s an accident waiting to happen.--BD1> You have a great memory!!!! I did get a kick out of the ‘plug’ welds!!!!MM 211Smith Tru Lite O/A set, Thanks Bob!Lincoln AC-225--But you must not change one thing, one pebble, one grain of sand, until you know what good and evil will follow on that act. The world is in balance, in Equilibrium- Ursula K. Le Guin
Reply:That material you used looks like plaster wire lath.  Nasty stuff to work with !Miller 211Miller T-bolt ac/dcVictor o/aMilwaukee ChopsawDewalt, Milwaukee minigrinderDelta drill pressDelta bench grinderair grinder, die grinderHF pipe benderHF horizontal bandsaw