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

[Daniel Phelps]

> I'm curious to ask what is this "EB printed relatively close in
> time to its
> casting"

An 18th century edition of the Encyclopedia Britannica? I believe it
is that old, at least.

Yes EB is Encyclopedia Britannica printed in the very late 1700's.   Sorry
it was opaque.

> and why does it holds more value describing the bell alloy than the
> actual metallurgical analysis done on the actual metal samples from
> the
> Liberty Bell.  Definitely not a homogenous alloy according to their
> findings, but that does seem to offer a pretty solid description of
> the bell
> metal composition that would be more sustainable than a reference
> entry on
> general composition of alloy?  I am just missing something with the
> EB here.

I think the question addressed is not what the EB (whatever it may
actually be) thinks the Liberty Bell is, but rather what "standard
bell-metal" tends to be.

Yes what is bell-metal/bronze and what is brass.

My question  is whether this alloy is merely non-standard bronze,
bronze with impurities in its tin content, or actual brass, according
to whatever "recipe" may be out there.

My understanding of the sources that I have that are near contemporary is
that it falls within the "definition" of bronze, i.e. copper, tin and zinc
and, with an add mixture in the melt of pewter, lead and antimony.   My
sources suggest that brass of the period did not have zinc in it and could
be hammer worked where bronze could not.

Daniel