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This piece was made with a battery powered Dremel using abrasive polishing bits. To get straight lines I used blue masking tape to mask off the area I was working on and then used the Dremel polishing bit to grind the metal. Because of the barrel shape of the bits, the grind marks are also straight. The two main keys to keep in mind when doing this is to cover each masked segment with grind marks that are consistent in their direction, and to not let any two neighboring sections have the overall same direction for those grind marks. Hope this helps :)

@@NightStoneArt very much so, much appreciation

The only way to get around using thin aluminum for the panels is to have the frame it is mounted on include supports. So instead of just a box that is roughly the size of the metal, it would have crossbars in it as well. Before you get to this point, however, you also need to have a solid and flat surface that is large enough to support the entire piece for when you are working on it. Any amount of flexing of the surface is going to cause potential problems once you start applying paint and then any form of resin or other sealer. I don't have a lot of solid information about adhesives, but for a large piece, you might consider using the thin aluminum, but before doing any work on it, glue it down to an equal size piece of 1/4" MDF. This should result in a little more rigidity, but not as much weight overall. However, the size you are working with is going to need a framework behind it to support it if you want to save weight yet have it not flex. Ultimately, a brazed or welded aluminum frame made of square aluminum tubing or U-channel aluminum would be best, but that gets into tools, equipment, and techniques I have no knowledge of. Last point would be that while a customer might want a 6ft by 4ft piece, and that is their choice, if you are looking to create a piece that will take up a larger space, but doesn't have some of the issues you're running into, a multi-panel piece is a good option. Some artists will create a piece that has a 6ft wide footprint, but it will be comprised of multiple panels (I've seen as many as 7). Again, if you want to save weight, you need to look at a frame that would be attached to the back of the metal itself, and/or having something like an MDF backing glued to the metal. If you choose to try the MDF backing, do not jump into it without studying laminating techniques, because if you don't get the right glue and get it spread evenly, then apply even amounts of pressure, you could wind up with small variations in the aluminum sheet.

road sign are made out of aluminum......just saying....

Hi. I use various different types of abrasives to get different effects ranging from Maroon pearl abrasive surface conditioning discs, to Maroon 2" die-angle finishing discs. I have a video that covers a number of different abrasives. (ruclips.net/video/HzfIl6plDc4/видео.html)

The colors are from the "Candy2O" line by Createx Colors. If I recall correctly, I used the Marine Blue, and Carib blue

Presently, we are using a custom made "frame" on the back of the piece to allow them to be mounted on the wall either affixed permanently with a strong adhesive or industrial velcro. If you have the ability to braise aluminum, it would be best to do that with some u-channel for hanging (much more secure).

@@NightStoneArt Thanks for the reply.

Framing is somewhat open to interpretation. I for the pieces I originally made starting out I used industrial velcro, however after some experimentation, I have since switched to using wood frames that have larger surface area contact with the aluminum and a layer of lock-tite adhesive. This holds really well. That said, the best method of doing an "invisible" frame is to weld an aluminum frame to the back. Other artists use post style mounting, which requires a hole to be drilled in each corner of the artwork, and others still use notched mounting posts that are made for holding glass. Overall, many artists who make ground aluminum art tend to prefer minimal/invisible frame to give the art the "floating" look when on the wall. Sorry for the lengthy delay in response, it's been a pretty crazy year (2020/2021).

Great question! We work with 32nd of an inch to 8th of an inch, though our preference is 16th of an inch.

We are very sorry that it has taken so long to reply. Due to a major life event, we had to focus our attention elsewhere (not art or RUclips) for most of this year. In answer to your question and if you are still interested, yes, we do sell our art. If you are interested in anything that you see, please contact us through our FaceBook page, facebook.com/nightstoneart/, or link found in the banner of our channel.

There are quite a few variables there. Assuming the metal is ready to go and doesn't need any prep work? A clock face like this will take about 5 to 10 minutes to grind out, but a larger piece will take longer due to size. Some of it depends on whether or not I want to use different tools for different grinding effects and so on. :) That is just the grinding though. :) I usually paint them with an airbrush/spray-gun and then put resin on them.

Amazon and a few other locations (like ebay) have 2" Roloc disc attachments. However, you have to be sure to find one that has the 1/8" shank on it in order for it to fit into the dremel chuck without to many issues. Sources for these seem to vary. The set that I purchased mine with (which included a bag of 2" wheels) does not appear to be available any longer on Amazon. As for the discs themselves, I prefer the maroon 2" Roloc discs as they are more of a medium grit.

I was going to answer you on this, however it would seem I'm not the only one using the Rolocs. Though my primary tool now is the Milwaukee M12 polisher. However Neural Blankes is correct about how hard it is to get the smaller shaft for using the rolocs with the dremel. I purchased a 1" attachment, and a 2" attachment, and then un-screwed the shafts from both and swapped them so the 2" now has the 1/8" shaft. Works well, but since the M12 came with a 2" attachment, I don't need the dremel as much anymore unless I want to ensure I have a consistent speed that is higher than the M12 can put out (it's batttery powered)

@@NightStoneArt thanks... been looking at the 1/8" shank 1 & 2in sanding kits; seems the biggest complaint is them bending when using on the Dremel. I do mostly wood/custom paint art but am about to ty adding some ground aluminum ( greatly helped by your vids ); have grinder w/120 disc and conditioning pads for drill but think Dremel might be more useful than trying to maneuver the drill. LOL

@@TOEC thanks... been browsing Amazon as well. I played with a 1" roloc kit from HF and much preferred the maroon as well; trying to get something accomplished on the cheap; the right angle on the Dremel seemed a cheaper alt. than a full on air grinder/compressor, etc.

@@jimboh5131 hmm.. I'm pretty sure that you'll wreck or completely break the right angle long before you bend the 1/8" shank. With aluminum you don't need to be pressing down that hard anyway. When I apply pressure with the dremel, it's more about keeping it steady and stable for where I want to pull the mark across the aluminum, not about applying pressure to get deeper marks. That may be the case with steel, as it's a lot harder, but if you're using 5052 or 6061 Aluminum, it's soft enough that if you so much as wipe the face of it with a rag that has a couple bits of sand in it, you'll be looking at long streaks cut across the face. Hope this helps :)

beautiful " blank canvases "..... thanks for sharing.

I used the Auto-Air "Candy2o" airbrush paints by Createx. Poison Green and Emerald Green. :)

That is the next tutorial style video on my list to make. :)

@@NightStoneArt AWESOME! want to try to use some of the grinding techniques in some wood art I have been doing. I truly appreciate your sharing your skills with us....