Hi YouTube, my name’s Geoff and I’m the VegOilGuy.
Probably the most dangerous things about a home metal foundry is pouring the molten metals,
so I decided to make a crucible cradle to make things safer.
This is just a metal cage that surrounds the crucible, and when dealing with lower temperature
metals it really improves handling.
I took some flat bar steel and cut it to fit the shape of my crucible.
Using my angle-grinder stand, I was able to make nice straight cuts.
It was also nice and easy to lightly score either side of where I wanted to bend the
steel.
Clamping it in the vice and tapping it lightly took care of the bends, but it was then necessary
to reinforce the bends with welds.
This was the first time I’ve ever done any welding, guys, so no laughing at my ham-fisted
attempts please.
We’ve all got to learn – and I’ve clearly got a LOT to learn about welding…
Because of the curving sides of the crucible, I didn’t really design the cradle.
I just figured things out as I was going, which isn’t always the best idea.
I knew I wanted a loop of some kind and I originally came up with this.
After a couple of tests I realised it could be positioned better, as I’ll show you later
on.
I doubled up the steel on the bottom to make a level surface for the crucible to stand
on.
I needed something for the cradle to swing from and I’d already got some threaded rod
handy.
After a couple of holes were drilled in, four nuts squeezed the steel sides in just a little.
I didn’t want to permanently enclose the crucible but it did need securing and I had
the idea of a swing arm that could be held in place with the steel nuts.
After a bit of terrible welding, I came up with something that I thought would work.
I also added a small upright at the bottom to prevent the crucible sliding forward.
There’s just enough clearance to lift the crucible in and out.
Here I’ve trimmed things down a little.
It’s actually surprisingly well balanced.
Now then… just when I was feeling very smug about the design, I discovered it would fit
inside my foundry… that’s what happens when you don’t plan ahead.
Luckily cutting the supporting swing arm in two reduced the size just enough - and in
still worked effectively.
With the cradle resting on the foundry I was able to work out where I could cut some slots
for the cradle to rest.
I used some strips of tape to mark the locations.
Careful use of a masonry drill helped me carve out two slots.
Obviously the threaded rod at the top of the cradle makes it difficult to feed the crucible.
But at this stage the steel in the cradle is under tension from the nuts… not a lot,
but if I cut the threaded bar the sides will spring out.
This meant the metal had to be annealed.
So I placed the crucible and cradle into my foundry and heated it until the steel was
glowing as you can see here.
Annealing removes the internal tensions within metals through heat, so I allowed the steel
to cool naturally, then repeated the process a couple more times.
The following day the crucible wasn’t looking any worse for wear.
The welds had all held and the metal tarnished, as expected.
Once I’d cut away a large section of the threaded rod, the sides did ease out a little
I think, but not much.
To lift the cradle in and out of the foundry, I originally came up with the idea of this
old bucket handle.
And it did work, though it never felt very secure to me.
I came up with a much better design using these old barbeque tongs.
I simply rounded the ends with my angle grinder then drilled a hole in each tong just a little
bigger than the threaded rod.
Here you can see how easily these tongs work.
Their natural spring makes things very secure.
Anyone wondering how my home made foundry is doing, or the plaster insulation I later
added can see here.
The foundry is just as good as when it was made and the plaster insulation, several weeks
on and several uses later, is still holding up well.
A few small cracks, a little shrinkage, but still working perfectly and nicely stable.
For the tilting arm, I took some thin steel bar and bent it in my vice.
I notched some grooves with my angle grinder to help adhesive grip it better.
I drilled a hole in an old wooden broom handle, but the bit is a little too large.
To reduce the slack, I cut two opposing slots across the hole to make a crude wooden chuck.
After I’d mixed up a strong two part epoxy adhesive and squeezed this throughout the
hole and slots, I added a couple of jubilee clips to squeeze the wooden fingers together,
gipping the bar in place.
It held a treat.
In use the cradle really does make for a more controlled and safe pour.
Okay I’m doing a terrible job here.
I should be paying less attention to the camera to be honest.
But you can see the benefit I’m sure.
After several outings now the cradle is still good and strong.
It’s sagged a bit under the heat, but it still fits fine and works well.
A circular support frame would have probably prevent this sagging and maybe that’s something
I can revisit another time.
I also mentioned earlier that I repositioned the control loop.
Lower is better I’ve found, so if you’re thinking of building a cradle, think about
that in your design.
I’m very pleased with the cradle.
It feels much safer to me and when dealing with molten metals that can only be good.
The cradle wouldn’t last long in a charcoal foundry, but if you use gas or oil, it should
last a good while.
Mine’s had several outings now and even though I check it before every use, it’s
still good and strong.
And that’s a finished video folks.
I hope you enjoyed it and found the idea helpful.
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Do check out my YouTube channel and of course my other videos – and above all, thanks
very much for watching.