Larry Jaques wrote:
On Thu, 12 Mar 2015 20:26:03 -0500, "Terry Coombs"
wrote:

I want to make a small branding iron to mark my bee hives , and am
looking for suggestions for what /how to do that . I was thinking
about using something like 1/16 x 1/2 inch iron , but am unsure
whether to heat and bend to shape or to weld small strips . There
will be at least one shape that must be bent , the number 2 . I have
a logo designed , consists of a nested A and W , with a 1 & a 2 in
the vees of the W for "The 12 Acre Wood" . It's been suggested to
bend it up from heavy wire , but I'm not sure that'll be rigid
enough to get a uniform imprint on the flat wood surfaces . Any
alternative suggestions ?

Buy:
Try eBay. You can have a fire-heatable iron made for $45 or an
electric custom iron made for about $99. (in case the price changes
your mind about building)

Build:
If I did my own, I'd cut and mill them from 1/4" CRS plate. That
might have enough mass to retain enough heat to do 2 or more brandings
in a row, it would be flat by its nature, and it could take numerous
reheatings well. For a cleaner look, use CNC.

I take it from this that you're now building hives to supplement your
future retirement income?

Not really an income supplement by design , but the income will be welcome
.. I'm already retired ... We've wanted bees for several years , now that
we're out in the woods literally we can . It's partly about pollinators ,
partly the produce , and partly just because .
I've decided on a tentative way to do this , using narrower strips . Only
the number 2 needs bends , the rest is all straight lines . I have stock ,
tooling , and time .
--
Snag