Do you need an idea for what to do with scrap…
I have my 3 year old daughter on my lap hugging and kissing my arm right now, being goofy, while I am trying to type on my laptop, making it very interesting on this task! :)
…wood and metal?
Now she is pinching my face and arm, laughing! This is going to be very interesting tonight!
Anyways, lets see what we can get done here…if there are misspellings or what seems to be missing information, OH WELL!
Okay, that was quick...she is gone for now...
The two bottle openers you see above were made from two pieces of scrap:
- 1 scrap piece of wood; any kind will do, 3/4″w x 1″d x 2″l is ideal. The length can be longer if you wish, but I would recommend keeping with the 3/4″w and 1″d if you can.
Scrap wood - 1 scrap piece of metal; a metal steak, like the ones you see for marking underground utilities that have the colored whiskers (known as a Marking Whisker) are great for this.
Scrap Metal
You may also want:
- Wood stain
- Sand paper
- A drill bit that is the same diameter as the metal stake you picked out
- Glue
- Something to heat up the metal (A forge is helpful here, but you may also be able to use a torch or build a wood fire)
- Hammer
- A hard surface to hit the metal on (An anvil is great for this. If you do not have one, maybe you have a metal bench vise that has a flat plate on the top back?)
- Tongs to hold the hot metal
I am not going to go into how to do blacksmithing right now...that will be for a later time.
Wooden Bottle Opener
This is a quick and easy one to make and just about anyone can make it with the typical tools most people have.
I started off with finding the piece of scrap wood and shaping it to what I thought felt pretty comfortable in my hand.
Drill the hole about 1″ deep with a drill bit the same diameter as the metal stake.
Cut off the head of the metal stake 1-1/4″ long from the bottom of the head. This will allow for 1/4″ space between the bottom of the head and the wood when assembled. (The beer bottle caps are about 1/4″ thick).
Add some glue into the hole and then insert the cutoff head of the stake. You may need to hammer it in. Remember, there should be 1/4″ space between the wood and the head of the metal stake to fit the beer bottle cap.
Sand it. Stain it. Change the shape. Carve some name or saying into it…finish it how you want.
You should be done!
Metal Bottle Opener
This one is also pretty easy to make, but does require a couple tools that are unique and may not be available to everyone.
The extra piece of metal you have left over from the first bottle opener is used for this next bottle opener.
I am going to briefly explain my process with the tools I used. You may need to get creative if you don't have blacksmithing tools.
Heat the metal in the forge to where it is glowing red.
Take it to the anvil and taper one end.
Reheat the metal on the other end and flatten it out, keeping the shape straight.
Once you get the ends flattened and tapered, you can start thinking of the design you want.
Uh Oh! She is back!
Bend the flat end over and allow for a 1/4″ gap. This is for the beer bottle cap.
I chose to add one small scroll on the tapered end to allow for the maximum length left of the metal stake.
Near the flat end, add some kind of bend to it that will rest on the beer bottle cap. This will be the pendulum point. I chose to make mine at about a 90 degree angle.
At this point, you should be able to clean up the metal with either a wire brush or sand paper.
You are done! Be creative and try other shapes and profiles.
Wasn't that a quick tutorial!? Keep an eye out for a future post on ways to start up on blacksmithing, cheaply.
If you are wondering, both of these bottle stoppers work great and are easy to use!
Keep that small scrap wood and rusted metal. You never know what small project you might think of.
Well, that is about it on this post. Go make a bottle opener and enjoy a beer or other bottled beverage!