Stretching lead

Nov 06, 2003 7 Replies
B

While stretching some lead this afternoon I got to wondering, by how much should you stretch it anyway? The way my homebrew stretcher works it yanks it by about 3 to 4 inches. That's enough, too much or just about right?



From the classes I took some time ago I remember you do it to the make the came stronger, smooth out the nicks etc. Wondering though, would the lead to to "unstretch" itself, thereby tightening everything in the process?



Bart.



custom compensated banjo bridges, tabs, stained glass:

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**may your moments of need be met by moments of compassion**
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C

you're work hardening it by stretching it. no, it won't unstretch.

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J

Conventional wisdom is to stretch it till it gets straight. That may be

1/2" or a few inches. Stretching it does almost nothing to add strength. An urban legend.
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G

"jk" wrote in news:UnEqb.32611$ snipped-for-privacy@news4.srv.hcvlny.cv.net:

JK, can you clairify that statement please? Lead does indeed stress harden by stretching so I am not sure what you mean by 'strength'. Most all metals can be hardened by bending or stretching. This is the reason they get brittle and break.

Regards, G^2

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M

In article , Glenn@lg- studios.no.frigging.junk.com says... [...]

A good article on lead stretching and why it doesn't really add strength is at

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The short version (as I understand it): the hardening is temporary, and you're actually making the lead weaker in the long run if you stretch it too much.

cheers, Marc

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E

Another (lengthy) posting on the subject is here

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in UK

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M

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Elizabeth in UK>

Actually, that's the article I just posted. I just ran the URL through tinyurl.com first so that it didn't wrap the screen and cause problems for some newsreaders.

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D

Sinrod has it right - it's an urban legend that stretching lead increases it's strength. The only reason to stretch lead is to straighten it. If you didn't mangle it, there's no reason to stretch it.

Not only does stretching NOT strengthen lead - it permanently weakens it. If you use the lead as it comes from the box, you'll have a stronger panel than if you stretch it before using it.

Dennis Brady DeBrady Glass

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