Mast Issues & Renovation

[ebb]

Ben,
Like that super soft. Course 8" means trimming the disks for the five inch Makita.
BUT the soft rubber disc could be used in the hand, by the hand, that is.

Just got handed a bottle of "nickel-safe water-cooler cleaner" that lists phophoric acid.
Tried some with a scothbrite pad on the piece of the mast bottom I had to cut off.
Got black stuff off with no reaction from the aluminum, except it got bright and clean in a water rinse. Way down there on the bottom of the mast there seemed to be some recognizable translucent anodize left. Totally gone everywhere else.
Acid doesn't seem to have bothered it or surrounding.
Does look like a lot of scrubbing ahead! The mantra, don't leave the acid on the aluminum, rinse quick.
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Assume dark corrosion is Fe 'leaching' - also reacting to salts.
"Phophoric acid has a unique property of dissolving iron oxide quickly while etching iron very slowly." (Bob Neidorff)
But of course, if that is what happened in that little experiment, then the dark stuff is actually iron oxide and is a surface phenoma (we'll see if there is any pitting ) so far as the apparently un etched aluminum mast is concerned.
Acid etching starts a process of hydrogen embrittlement in the treated metal. So this visual observation is not very scientific. Going to try some more, more bravely.
Other possibles: Navel Jelly is p. acid. Dupont has a product: Quick Prep. Sherman Williams: Metal Prep (auto paint supply shops).
Hydrochloric acid and Oxalic acid will do a quick removal but are too aggressive and not as 'selective' as phosphoric acid appears to be.

[carl291]

ebb, Perhaps you may want to look at what airplane owners/ restorers use/do for corrosion in airframes. I know it spells doom for aircraft but they may have a method to clean and halt further oxidizing. Maybe SPRUCE offers something.

[ebb]

Carl,
Way back when:
I got a brand new set of airfoil spreaders.
They want a new way of attachment to the mast, counter-intuitive to our bolt, socket and pole method.
So I got them out again and discovered the anodising was chipping off on the LEADING EDGE of both foils. They've been going to weather in the carton they've been stored in, sailing around in a wet mineral dream for years & years.

Anodizing is an electro dip method for increasing oxidation on aliminum. It's thicker, but in microns.
Don't know how the prep was done, but somebody screwed up. Greasey fingers.
These pieces of aluminum will now start oxidizing on the leading edges and the remaining anodizing will become a cosmetic problem. Anodizing makes aluminum look sexy, but the metal if left alone will on its own put on a tough protective dull grey coat. After 45 years it needs more help than self oxidation gave it. Where holes pierced it, stuff hung on it, wires slapped against it, salt chewed on it, needs some kind of help.


litlgull's mast has too many imperfections to be sanded to perfection and just left alone to develop the protective coating on its own. There is no way of stopping oxidation from forming. Even on a shabby mast.
In fact aluminum is so eager to get an oxide coating (and then actually stop oxidizing after it gets that perfect thin coat)
that all this BS in the post above about outrageously priced chemicals and hours and weeks of work is dedicated to interrupt that natural process for a cosmetic payback.

If it gets dinged, only the bare, raw oxide layer of an unpainted mast can heal itself - if it has oxygen/air. But if the cosmetic spar, the muti-layered acid etcherrupticus, gets a ding...all hell breaks loose and the mast immediately gets oxide cancer. No matter what has gone before.... whatever expense it took to stop the oxidation process...
those careful layers of corrosion inhibitors, converters, primers and paint.... when a hole gets chipped in there by a shackle or block... the fancy paint job creates a perfect home for aggresive CREVIS CORROSION.
Doom bubbles on yer dream stick!
Which the plain old unpainted mast doesn't get,
except where holes are drilled, stuff attached. Sailtrack, sockets, cleats, winches.

That's why we hear all those guys yelling, Don't paint the damn mast!

[Ariel 109]

One of the best ways to minimizing aluminum from oxidizing is polishing it to a "mirror finish". That is essentially what is done to aircraft. They are not clear-coated. Then keep anyone with moist acidity hands far away. There's a sailboat in my area which has a polished mast, seems to be holding up.

That pitting is your biggest problem. You really need to sand or fill all the pits out if you want to guarantee paint adhesion and have a smooth coat.

There are some good books on auto-finishing. This guy is even more fanatical than you Ebb!

http://www.amazon.com/Advanced-Custo...ef=pd_sim_b_15

[Tony G]

I'll be jiggered! Ben that does indeed look like it could be a contender. What do you suppose the "side" holes are from? The larger hole certainly could be drilled at an upward angle to favor the feed of the wires to the steaming light. And the wear below the hole could be from a disconnected wire just a flappin' in the breeze. I sure hope not! But I seem to remember 113's former owner catching his replacement boat on fire from an electrical "short" in the v-berth.

Ebb, if you're going to spell it with two Ts, well then no, I don't have any smutt I thought after the sanding exercise the Phosphoric acid wash was part of the "clean and prep" for aluminum that really prepares the surface for the chromic acid and then use your choice of primer. Just spouting off here.

[ebb]

Carl, et al, anyone having to paint aluminum. Many times ended up on DIY airplane sites.
Many times couldn't understand a word. Yes, we do have aluminum in common. Also have different problems.
May be wrong, most small plane aluminum structural parts are fabricated and finished off with anodizing before assembly.

Aircraft Spruce "Everything For Planes & Pilots" is a source for coatings and attracts guys like me who are looking for authentic products but feel pretty much like a kid outside the candystore with his nose pressed against the window. Here's the problem.

In the online Covering Materials section I concentrate on prime coatings avaiable after the Alumiprep 33 cleaner and chromate coat Alodine. That IS the coversion coat, right? OK, What's next?

The primer cycle:
AircraftSpruce pushes this brand as numero uno: PTI Speciality Paints Epoxy Primer
(accompaning photo shows aerosol cans - but none available - aerosol theorectically would make fogging thin even coats possible. Almost all aircraft coatings are sprayed on. I'm a roll and tip kind of kid because I don't have the sprayer, don't have the air suit, don't have the facilties or the facility for spraying. Most of us are in that boat, right?)
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This Epoxy Primer is a 2-part, 1 to 1, no thinner necessary (only prices for thinner shown). It has strontium (chromate?) in it - not listed on product page. Do I need another dose of chromate? There may be a roller version but that's not important to 'Spruce. Product description does NOT say the primer can be used after a conversion coat.
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PTI Acid Etch 'AirDryWash' primer. 3-part, 4 to 1 plus reducer. Polyvinyl butyral (auto safety glass), contains zinc chromate and phosphoric acid. May blush. If you put it on too thick, any next coat won't stick. Spray or dip. Prices for reducer only. Their version of Alodine.
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Zinc Oxide primer. "Chromate free, environment friendly". AEROSOL available. $9.95, coverage?
Epoxy? Petroleum solvents, waterborne?
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Zinc Chromate primer. AEROSOL available. [Can't be environment friendly.]
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PTI Waterborne Epoxy primer. 2-part, 4 to 1. Reduces with water Thincoat spray. Prices for 1 pint catalyst and 1 gal kit.

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Epibond Epoxy Primer Kits. 3-part. Single can shown in pic. Qt kit $79.50. No info.
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Stewart Systems Ekoprime Primer/Sealer. Single part, waterborne. No chromates, no catalyst, low VOC, no HazMat shipping fee (assume). Spray, but foam roller OK. Actually says it goes on after the conversion coating. $34.85 QT. Eko-material not stated.
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Stits Epoxy Primer Kits. 3 part, 2 to 1 plus reducer. Fast dry, cures down to 35F. Separate price for each part.
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PreKote Surface Pretreatment. [So what is this? A wash? A conversion treatment? An epoxy substitute? Is it waterborne? Is it 2-part? When do we use it?]
"Non hazadous, non flamable, odorless, provides corrosion protection, biodegradable, non-toxic, chrome free, enhances paint adhesion." So we slosh it on over the alodine chromate because we suddenly got eco-friendly? Seems to be reasonably priced.

There's no article covering this, no pros and cons, no advice or recommendations. Nobody talking about how this intricate system gets put together, what sticks best to what, using any of these products. Solvents in a new coat might wrinkle the previous coat. Temps,Timing, Humidity facts.
Waterborne coating can provide a solvent barrier - a solvent coating may become a tie-coat because of its solvents. Coatings with solvents require a careful cure time so no solvent outgasses into a later coating.
Private sites, blogs? .... man, I don't have the time anymore.
Snooty know-it-alls!


So this shows, doesn't it, the quandry a nose-to-the-glass customer faces.
Who knows how to put the quarts in order?
Who's used the aerosols or the Prekote on an old mast?

Where does the third cycle actually begin? That's the last set with an epoxy sanding primer and final paint coats?
Are we here yet?

[Ariel 109]

Sand aluminum mast to give paint something to hold on to. Degrease aluminum mast thoroughly. Paint with an epoxy primer such as PPG's DPLF, two coats. Finish off with PPG's DCC Concept Acrylic Urethane Single Stage, two coats. Paint costs estimated around $600.00 once you have included all the harders and thinners you are going to need.

There is no need of pretreatments and acid etching if you have sanded the mast, degrease it, then use two coat of epoxy primer. I've sprayed a lot of aluminum furniture parts and can testify on the superiority of Acrylic Urethane finishes once they have dried and cured.

[ebb]

mouthful.
PPG is Pittsburgh Plate Glass Co. DPLF is DietPepsiLeftField. But it probably stands for DualPurposeLeadFree. Some guys have an issue with it and say the old DP was better.
It is a sealer/primer epoxy of choice for a whole other world of expertise. Hotrodders, Auto restorers, Airplane builders, RVers, Cyclists, Speed boaters with outdrives, Aluminum furniture painters etc.
Everyone of those guys knows how to spray paint or are a young wannabe/wannadoo.
Not one of them has ever heard of roll-and-tip, if they did they'd assume it had something to do with steering, or wrestling or dating.
Forum crawling produced a lot about everything epoxy including guys saying they liked BEST the epoxy primer from Southern Polyurethanes, Inc.
Did some hunting on that stuff and without checking their techline yet found in their extensive interactive forum (www.spiuserforum.com) a ref to rolling the primer on. That's about all I need to be converted to a coat! Turn coat?

POR 15 is another epoxy primer I believe. Here are three pages from a guy with a Mercruiser outdrive he painted.
google> Painting Merc Outdrives with POR 15
[that's the title, they start talking about it, but the subject soon changes]
http://www.rinkerboatowners.com/foru...ic=6679.0;wap2

OUTDRIVES that come into the marina yard are always the most corroded pieces of metal you can imagine. Hard to fathom why anybody wants their engine half in/half out of their boat in salt water. These 3 pages are about how the guy ('raymillsus') prepped and painted his drive
AND this drive comes out of the water 4 years later without any corrosion issues at all - for a "refinishing" - pay attention to that bit.

He calls Alodine the 'negotiator' because it "adheres tenaciously to aluminum and paint tenaciously to alodine."
He is suspicious about self-etching primers because the etched contaminates are incorporated into the completed paintjob. How durable is that, he asks.
Zinc-Chromate Primer, "very good coating on etched aluminum, but not under water! Think about that for a moment?"

As to litlgull's disreputable old mast, how many metals do I want to layer on? Chromates and oxides? Cast aluminum (Almag 35, the mast base) proved to be a huge problem with the extrusion. Cast cleats, the same. Stainless steel of various 300s spiked to the beast....you know, so why introduce another metal? Even out of the water.

This guy for color uses SPI paint - "epoxy polyuretanes" he calls them, "extremely durable, flexible (hard paints crack)". Downside is spraying these coatings.
At this moment for the color I'll roll-and-tip the thin aluminum filled urethane called Aluthane. Won't be pretty pretty, but maybe I can see it as the equivalent of letting bronze naturally go patina?
The epoxy primer we're looking at here is another important 'negotiator' for the enamel color coat as alodine is for the primer. This interface is where another 'system', any favorite brand finish coat, can be conjoined. The primer has to stick to the alodine
but so does a sandable hibuild epoxy need to stick to the epoxy primer and/or any choice of finish.
Repairing a wound in the painted mast. (adapted from raymillsus) Sand and scuff with 80ALgrit.
Etch with Alumiprep 33. Rinse. Alodine (do not leave this step out!). Rinse. Apply your epoxy primer, fair with any epoxy hibuild and sand fair with 220ALgrit. Couple coats of color. Good as new. That repair is a copy of the mast schedule.
Maybe I got the picture!

Ben, I will take a look at that other stuff you mention ASAP.
The PPG DCC CAAUSS plus 2. Thanks!

[ebb]

There is a problem here that is not a problem if we believe the raymillsus story.
(Whether it is raymillsus is debatable as the contributor's name may have been omitted in the sequence that tells the tale.)

The data sheet for SPI Epoxy Primer does not actually say that it is an acid etch primer. It does say in bold type:
>This epoxy eliminates the need for an acid-etch primer.<

Later on in even bolder type the datasheet say this:
>NEVER use SPI Epoxy over Acid Etch/Wash Primers or Rust Converters.<

My understanding of that is this: If we use this SPI Epoxy Primer we do not want to use Alumiprep33 or need to use the Alodine to neutralize it. We would paint, as Ben says, the primer straight on to freshly sanded aluminum. And go immediately to a hibuild sanding epoxy if needed and then color coat. I'd assume Ben would agree with this?

If you read that Mercruiser post, you will notice that the SPI warnings were disregarded but Mercruiser did add the Alodine to his recipe at exactly the correct moment - applied, and left it on the aluminum as a coating. Not only a conversion or neutralizing, but a barrier coat
In Mercruiser' case the double etching on the aluminum outdrive seems to have worked out perfectly.

I believe, I am convinced, that the etching/deep cleaning of surface contaminates on the aluminum is the only way to go for success. Now, whether I would duplicate the double dip, can't say (it's 1 AM right now). But I like the idea of the Alodine.
And Alodine and Alumiprep33 seem like sisters to me.

[Ariel 109]

Ebb,

The acid etch primers are for metals that have a smooth surface, no sanding grooves. The primer is what is really holding the paint on the metal. Most of the old acid etch primers I've seen are not superior to epoxy primers on sanded bare metal, they are less costly though.

I suspect why people are getting good results from all sort of different methods has a lot to do with how good metal finishes are today. We no longer have five year old automobiles with rusted out rocker panels strolling our streets.

I still think the key to a good finish is getting all the surface imperfection out first by sanding, just like you would do with wood. You should be able to sand out all the pitting and scratches quickly with the right equipment. I don't think anything in a bottle will do a better job. Really deep pitting you could bead blast to clean up.

Ben

[ebb]

Ben, I really really appreaciate this exchange of substance.
Seriously enjoying it - facinating subject....
The focus, obviously, is to try saving a 45 year old weathered and neglected spar.
With enough gained knowledge do it the best way.
And do it only once, if possible, so it lasts another 45! Ya sure.

99% of all internet discussions are about smooth surface prep with I suppose very little sanding (to get tooth) as well. Our related posts are mainly about old age aluminum spars - not outdrives and door panels.
Could describe the mast here as having a curdled surface.
The canyons have dark bottoms. The peaks are easier to sand. To smooth the surface, as far as I'm committed will take too much effort and time, and maybe removing the slopes of the canyons too much material will be sacrificed.
After sanding a 3-4 ft section with 60 and 80grit using an ocillating 5"Makita - for what I would describe as plenty of time - the dark canyon bottoms are still untouched. Can only intuit this, but I just don't want to take any more material off, even tho it could be argued that not much good material is actually taken off. The tool is pleasantly light in weight - possibly should use a heavier sander.

So I've convinced self to Alumiprep (phosphoric acid) the whole stick first off. Can always do it AGAIN fresh just befor Alodine - if I am convinced to go that way. My 'test' section where I used dilute liquid per instructions and a medium scour scotchbrite pad produced a much cleaner BRIGHTER and smoother surface....even where I had not yet sanded. Plenty of rinsing.
Seems to me better to work on a clean stick. My early attempts at filling corroded spots using solder/weld metal repair are dramatically revealed and now easy to inspect.

OK, Ben, are you totally against acid cleaning?
If you've seen it here, it looks like phosphoric acid is a more controlable, more selective, and less aggressive way to do the deed. Didn't impress my new orange nitril gloves and scrubbing by hand with pads and rinsing with warm water a fairly contained exercise.

Still have dark areas, more separated, but still there in a bit less 'curdled' surface. Might say they are paler. With a final whole stick pass using scotchbrite, might convince self that the premier
first coat of whatever system will be happy to BOND there. Bond is the operable intent. It will take some faith. Of which I'm in short supply.
The whole mast, after its first one or two primer coats will need to be filled and sanded fair with a sandable epoxy 'primer'. That is if I want smooth mast!

Ben, have to agree that modern paint chemistry makes great coatings.
Like a True Believer I minutely examine the bibles of Salvation Hype, Data Sheets and MSDS Gobbledegook.
We pay a dear price for their use. They are corporate, they are produced by imco unethical techology, they are petro and therefor inherently dirty. That's my greenside wailing. I am more and more inclined to go a cheaper, easier, less nasty chemical way. BUT......
Somebody said it: These chemical systems we think we have to subscribe to make the chemical giants (and their vendors) more rich than they deserve. Or have a right to! BUT.....

Politics never saved an old aluminum mast.
And if I truely was into saving the planet I wouldn't be involved in this endless refurbishing project.

Bead blasting seems to be acceptable for an aluminum surface. It would be great to do it. It happens that a sandblaster is onsite, I'll ask. But it may not happen in the small residential gravel surface parking area in front of the house the mast is living on. I'll ask. He's $100 hr not including the media.


You know, part of this exercise for me is to find the easiest and cheapest way for anybody (but certainly this fool) to resurrect their mast and boom. Or at least see if it is feasible. It looks like a long shot at this point.

[Ariel 109]

Ebb,

I've got nothing against using acid solutions to prep an aluminum surface for painting. PPG recommends using a prep solution if you are going to use only a single coat their epoxy primer.

Can't stress enough the superiority of a thick foam 8" sanding pad on a variable speed polisher for finishing a shape like an aluminum mast. With an random orbit or vibrator sander it will take forever and you will waste so much sandpaper. With the 8" sanding disks lubricated with beeswax you will likely use only 5-10 disks on such a project as an Ariel / Commander mast. Labor, half a day!

[Tony G]

Politics never saved an old aluminum mast.
And if I truely was into saving the planet I wouldn't be involved in this endless refurbishing project.

It is a cruel and somewhat clumsy cunundrum isn't it, Ebb. I can not always do as I espouse.

Ben, what is the best degreaser you have found for removing beeswax? I haven't touched a wad of that stuff in 30 years and from what I remember it seems that it would be difficult to remove. Being the paint isn't going to ge any cheaper we might as well try to control costs where we can.

[ebb]

Tony, yup, we gotta look after what we looking forward to!
BEE'S WAX on the aluminum???
That's a good contamination question. I know it's used to prevent clogging the grit, and aluminum does a good job of clogging grit. Those soft rubber blocks used to clean moving sanding belts might be helpful - is it worth investigation to avoid waxation frustration?

Ben,
Polisher, Somewhere in the armory I might locate my old two-arm no-plastic 20# Craftsman Grindodinosaur. Switching it on near tore it out of your grip! Have't seen it for decades. Good thing it went its own way, can't imagine swinging that beast around the mast!
Had a pricey but real nice 'marine' set of foam pads for it. Recall wet sanding something without getting shocked!
I'm sure Mike up at the shop has a $600 Festool polisher with every attachment I can borrow - but Harbor Freight has a variable speed 5/8"/11 polisher for $39.99 OR the upscale electronic version for $49.99. Got the small liteweight 5" Makita with bottomwork in mind, but, as you are pointing out, it would be smart to have a light weight sidewinder as well.
Will find a supersoft at a local autopaint emporium or even a well stocked hardware. The Craftsman grinder had one noisey flatout speed, and spun all foampads like a centrifuge and allowed no bending to any curve!


Going to SimpleGreen the mast again today using the hottest water I can get to it. Rinse.
Then I'll use Alumiprep and experiment with the icemachine phosphoric acid liquid I was given. I think it is more concentrated than the Alumiprep.

Alumiprep and Alodine (the Rinse Sisters) are made by the same company: Henkel.
You can buy them separately but we buy them as a pairing.
ALUMIPREP is available from AirCraftSpruce (but I've seen it $5 cheaper). It is an aqueous soluton of about 5%(?) phosphoric acid that we dilute 2to1 with water to use.
Cannot be allowed to dry on aluminum. All is not lost if it happens: wet the metal with more acid solution and proceed to the RINSE.
This sister, while not benign, isn't total disaster if consciously used. Should be awake.

ALODINE is something else. If this sister can be removed from your mast painting fun then DO IT!
BEN WANTS US TO!

Henkel makes a range of Alodines, most we'll never see.
It is an aqueous chemical anti-corrosion treatment that is brushed on undiluted, left on for 2 to 5 minutes, then rinsed off before it drys. Rinse! If we used it often we'd match the color changes it produces to the aluminum we were using it on.
It will turn the metal to a transparent yellow or tan color. But in our case it's a guess as to what hue.

ALODINE 1201 Conversion Coating we can also get from AirCraftSpruce. It goes on at .002 thickness, a very thin gel film. This process creates a very dependable surface for glues and paint to stick to. It can be the final coating on aluminum.*
Fragile until 24 hours later when it gets hard enough to move the spar. One quart will treat 100sqft - theoretically twice the sqft of our A/C mast.

OK, here's the bad. Alodine is a HEXAVALENT CHROMIUM. That's what chromate is.
Hexavalent chromium is a human carcinogen especially when inhaled. But SWALLOWED is even worse:
It was the PG&E Hinkley drinking water COVERUP of contamination that gave us the amazing ErinBrockovich.
This stuff has been front page in other serious groundwater events.
Hexalalent chromium causes health problems with stainless steel welders. Windblown dust from cement plants contaminates neighborhoods. Leather tanning runoff destroys water and everything living in it. And so much more.

Well, what about the rinsewater runorff from my bornagain mast?
Eyes, skin....

SPECIFIC to what we buy from the internet aircraft catalog vendor, see:
DGR Industrial Products, Inc. (Henkel Alodine 1201 Chromate Conversion Coating #680-109)
http://www.chemical-supermarket.com/...?productid=364

Henkel's Technical Process Bulletin is a very useful exact process datasheet for its Alodine 1201.
However, it allows only that the liquid is "non-flammable, chromic acid based...that will produce a chrome conversion on aluminum."
If you are going to use it, educate yerself (as well as they allow.)
__________________________________________________ __________________________________________________ ________
*APPEARS TO BE AN ARGUMENT IN FAVOR OF ALUMIPREP/ALODINE
The chromate film can be left uncoated. But we mast-&-boomers need REDUNDANT protection and a better look. So paint comes into the mix.
If Alodine is the coating of choice to protect the metal aluminum, arrest oxide formation and make a great surface for other coatings to adhere to,
then no other primer or paint with acid or chromate needs to be layered on. Wouldn't you think so?
We can go directly to urethane, skipping epoxy altogether. Depends on your cosmetic expectations.

[To hammer the nail home: the unanswered argument is that without the conversion coating the mast will get crevis corrosion (often described as "virulent") if a painted mast gets a ding that penetrates thru to the metal. We have to expect dings and irresponsible fasteners.
That imco says we need something pretty dependable on bare aluminum as corrosion inhibitor if not using Alodine. What's that?]

It appears, from internet research, that using Henkel aluminum prep and passivication solution DUO
makes later and incidental REPAIR and refinishing very easy** on an already painted aluminum spar that has used those two sisters.

That MIGHT be reason enough, the only practical reason, to use those chems and to have them in the bosun's paint locker?
Assume that after painting aluminum we have created a maintenance issue.
That requires fast and easy and permanent MAST UP fixes.

(Ben, acid cleaning OK, good.
If you will paint directly on top of raw etched aluminum your epoxy primer will by definition have chromate in it, something has to keep corrosion at bay. This runny epoxy primer would have to have a long standing good reputation for direct contact with aluminum. Part of my complaint with the flakey AirCraftSpruce catalog is the pecking order of their epoxy primers, what do you use?)

**The Henkel convenience fix for cancerous AL is a very expensive 'pen' that may have shelf life issues and application issues imco.

[Ariel 109]

Chromate conversion coating? I don't think you'll be able to get consistent results over such large surface such as a sailboat mast with that product Ebb. I also don't think it will last very long in a marine situation. Iridite or chromate coating is an industrial process with big heated immersion tanks and plenty of toxicity issues. A machine shop I use does chromate conversion coatings, mostly on parts for the military, they are carefully monitored by the EPA.

Beewax residue removal? I usually melt it off with a torch and finish by wiping with a solvent. There shouldn't be too much residue on the mast after you've sanded. WD-40 works well also as a sanding lubricate.

Ebb, I'd buy the sanding pad from Ron Fournier's company. Automotive paint supply shops usually don't sell those exact pads. Fournier Enterprises is a great company. Ron Fournier through his books, videos and workshops revitalized the art of metal-forming with hand-tools and simple methods.