Small update, but rather depressing. My wing bender didn't quite work as planned. I'm on the right track, but I need different materials...
TDP - I suspect you're probably familiar with the different tempers of available brass, but for the benefit of other members, I thought I'd pass along some things I learned about brass sheet. Typically, for projects requiring brass parts (sheet, rod, tube, etc.), I'll end up getting
K&S Engineering material because I can buy it from most local hobby stores or hardware stores. (I hate paying postage). K&S lists the types of
material they supply. The Brass Sheet & Strips is Alloy 260 1/2 hard ASTM B36. For most projects, this is a good easily machined, corrosion resistant alloy but, because it's hardened, it also resists bending as well. For projects that do require bending or forming, "dead soft", or "fully annealed" is preferred. This brass, of course, is slightly more expensive and not as readily available. I've found it on-line from
Rio-Grande, Amazon, and eBay. (28 AWG is equivalent to 0.0126 inches). Alloy 230 is available as "dead soft" and is also referred to as red brass, NuGold, Jeweler’s Bronze, Merlin’s Gold, or
C230. Interestingly enough, as with most metals, when this soft brass is bent, the bending itself causes the brass to harden. (This is why a paper clip will break if you bend it back and forth a couple of times).
Alternatively, a hard or hardened brass can be soften by a process known as
annealing. By using a torch, the brass is heated to a dull red glow, and allowed to cool either slowly in air or quenched in water. Of course this process then requires purchasing a torch, and taking all the necessary associated safety precautions. Since heating the brass with a torch discolors it, I would think that for the Snitch wings, it would be best to soften the brass before etching to make it easier to clean.
ATL
