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A draw plate is a type of die consisting of a
Before drawing, the draw plate is held securely in a vise or other fixture. The plate is oriented so that the wider end of a tapered opening can receive a metal wire which is to be pulled through it.
Annealed soft, ductile wire is filed at one end to give it an initial taper. The tapered end is inserted into a tapered hole with a final diameter just smaller than its current width. Special
The origins of wire-drawing are uncertain. One of the earliest known written references to wire-making is Exodus 39:3, which suggests that gold was hammered into sheets, cut into strips, and then these strips were made into gold wire, but the precise technique is not clear. The oldest clear written descriptions of the method are the twelfth-century '' De diversis artibus'' by
A draw plate is a type of die consisting of a hardened steel
The term hardened steel is often used for a plain-carbon steel, medium or high carbon steel that has been given heat treatment and then quenching followed by tempering (metallurgy), tempering. The quenching results in the formation of metastable ma ...
plate with one or more tapered holes through which wire is drawn to make it thinner. A typical plate will have twenty to thirty holes, so a wide range of diameters can be drawn.
Drawing wire
Before drawing, the draw plate is held securely in a vise or other fixture. The plate is oriented so that the wider end of a tapered opening can receive a metal wire which is to be pulled through it.
Annealed soft, ductile wire is filed at one end to give it an initial taper. The tapered end is inserted into a tapered hole with a final diameter just smaller than its current width. Special pliers
Pliers are a hand tool used to hold objects firmly, possibly developed from tongs used to handle hot metal in Bronze Age Europe. They are also useful for bending and physically compressing a wide range of materials. Generally, pliers consi ...
, called draw tongs
Tongs are a type of tool used to grip and lift objects instead of holding them directly with hands. There are many forms of tongs adapted to their specific use. Design variations include resting points so that the working end of the tongs d ...
are used to hold the tip of the wire and pull it through, sometimes with the aid of grease or wax as a lubricant
A lubricant (sometimes shortened to lube) is a substance that helps to reduce friction between surfaces in mutual contact, which ultimately reduces the heat generated when the surfaces move. It may also have the function of transmitting forces, ...
. Small-diameter wire may be drawn manually, while very thick wire may require a drawing bench with a crank to produce enough force.
Typically, a wire can be drawn three times in sequence before it needs to be re-annealed. This must be done because drawing wire hardens it, which causes the wire to become brittle. Brittle wire that has not been annealed may snap during the drawing process (or develop microscopic or macroscopic cracks, which may weaken the piece or "grow" with further working).
With a mandrel
A mandrel, mandril, or arbor is a tapered tool against which material can be forged, pressed, stretched or shaped (e.g., a ring mandrel - also called a triblet - used by jewellers to increase the diameter of a wedding ring), or a flanged or t ...
, a draw plate can be used to draw tubes of metal. Plates are available in many different sizes and shapes for drawing different shapes of wire, including round, square, oval, half-round, and hexagonal.
History
The origins of wire-drawing are uncertain. One of the earliest known written references to wire-making is Exodus 39:3, which suggests that gold was hammered into sheets, cut into strips, and then these strips were made into gold wire, but the precise technique is not clear. The oldest clear written descriptions of the method are the twelfth-century '' De diversis artibus'' by Theophilus Presbyter
Theophilus Presbyter (fl. c. 1070–1125) is the pseudonymous author or compiler of a Latin text containing detailed descriptions of various medieval arts, a text commonly known as the ''Schedula diversarum artium'' ("List of various arts") or ''D ...
and the sixteenth-century ''De la pirotechnia
''De la Pirotechnia'' is considered to be one of the first printed books on metallurgy to have been published in Europe. It was written in Italian and first published in Venice in 1540. The author was Vannoccio Biringuccio, a citizen of Siena, I ...
'' by Vannoccio Biringuccio
Vannoccio Biringuccio, sometimes spelled Vannocio Biringuccio (c. 1480 – c. 1539), was an Italian metallurgist. He is best known for his manual on metalworking, ''De la pirotechnia'', published posthumously in 1540.
20th Century translation by ...
. As of 2023, the earliest known draw plates dated to around the sixth century.
See also
*Tube drawing
Tube or tubes may refer to:
* ''Tube'' (2003 film), a 2003 Korean film
* "Tubes" (Peter Dale), performer on the Soccer AM television show
* Tube (band), a Japanese rock band
* Tube & Berger, the alias of dance/electronica producers Arndt Rör ...
*Cold working
In metallurgy, cold forming or cold working is any metalworking process in which metal is shaped below its recrystallization temperature, usually at the ambient temperature at or near room temperature. Such processes are contrasted with hot wo ...
*Die (manufacturing)
A die is a specialized machine tool used in manufacturing industries to cut and/or Forming (metalworking), form material to a desired shape or profile. ''Stamping (metalworking), Stamping dies'' are used with a machine press, press, as opposed to ...
References
{{Jewellery Jewellery making Metal forming