[Sca-cooks] Bells and their Casting was Cast Iron pots??

[Saint Phlip]

On 6/4/06, Daniel Phelps <phelpsd at gate.net> wrote:
>
>
> The metals of significance are probably copper, tin, lead and zinc as
> according to my Volume III of the EB, published in MDCCLXXI, pewter is
> made
> "...by mixing at the rate of a hundred weight of tin with fifteen pounds
> of
> lead and fix pounds of brafs, see Metals.
>
> Befides this compofition, which makes the common pewter, there are other
> kinds compounded of tin, regulus of antimony, bifmuth and copper, in
> feveral
> proportions.
>
> Thus my understanding is that the L bell was made, per the EB printed
> relatively close in time to its casting, of bronze which was formulated
> presumably by mixing copper and common pewter.  The hit of antimony
> suggest
> that there might have been an admixture of some of the less commonly
> formulated pewter in the melt as well.  Brass of the period, again per my
> EB, does not have lead or zinc in the mix but just copper and tin.  Bronze
> was cast but not worked, i.e. hammered cold as it was brittle.  Brass was
> worked cold and in some formulations heated.  I'm uncertain regarding the
> casting of brass as found in funeral brasses of that time period.
>
> Daniel


Antimony and/or arsenic may well have been added as hardening agents, or as
unremovable impurites, depending on where the ore itself came from. Please
keep in mind that at that time, and until fairly recently, while it was
possible to make a substance quite pure, the techniques  for extreme
purification of alloys and ores weren't developed until the use of
electricity became common. In period documents, and even up towards modern
times, there are often comments made about specific ores from specific mines
being better for some purposes than others. Even today, blacksmiths drool
over the opportunity to get smithing coal from a specific mine in West
Virginia, Pocohontas #3, and referring to coal as, "It's Pocohontas #3" will
immediately tell any knowledgeable smith that it's good coal.


Saint Phlip , who has actually driven by Pocohontas #3, but never stopped to
get coal, because she didn't need a ton or so in her vehicle at that time.

Don't like getting old? Beats the Hel out of the alternative.

The purpose of life is not to arrive at the grave, a beautiful corpse,
pretty and well-preserved, but to slide in sideways, thoroughly used up,
totally worn out, proclaiming, "Wow! What a ride!"
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