I am looking for tips on bending cast brass
If it’s a casted material, it can’t be bent.
Tester
What is it going to be used for? Bending brass requires annealing it, which changes the mechanical properties.
The usual approach:
Heat it to a dull red. Cool it (quench or air cool). Bend it a small amount very carefully. The Brass will work harden so you may need to repeat as necessary until the part is sufficiently bent.
Be warned: This is easy to screw up. If you don’t get it sufficiently warm it can crack. If you try to bend it while it is too warm it can also break. If you get it too hot you can also cause damage, or even melt the part.
It sounds like you can do it, if you’re a skilled metalworker. Course, you wouldn’t have asked if you were, so I’d skip it.
I have some metal experiance however i am a woodworker by trade. I have successfully bent cast steel but was not as concerned about messing up. This one is important. I have a small but expensive cast brass statue that I am going to use as a sort of hood ornament.
The advice givan by Seraph confirms my thoughts on the mater os im going to go for it. however if anyone has more (or beter) advice please let me know. I want this to come out rite. Thanks
Be sure that you have an accurate way of measuring the temperature of the brass as you heat it. The melting point of brass is about 940 degrees, Fahrenheit, so bending it means getting fairly close to that temperature, but not so close that the statue actually melts. What type of forge do you intend to use?
OK, if you’re going to do it here’s a metal casting forum that might also have some additional advice: http://www.metalcastingzone.com/metal-casting-forum
I’d be inclined to either grind in the angle I wanted or grind an adaptor mount. The casting process used for statuary is not of the quality that the brass used in structural parts is. It’ll likely have inclusions (contaminants) and occlusions (pores) that make trying to bend it highly risky even if you anneal it.
Also, if this is going to be a hood ornament on an actual running car, OP will not want to weaken it in any way, hate for it to crack and fall off over a bump.
Or bounce its rough fractured edge down a nice paintjob. I get the willys just thinking about it.