water, water, everywhere, nor any drop to drink

[hpdrifter]

This is what I have to put up with:

[45nut]

looks like I should have some,, what is it exactly?

[hpdrifter]

99.9% pure tin; approximately 1000 lbs and I can't have any of it.

It's for what we call the Tin Bath. Glass floats on top of melted tin which makes plate glass so smooth as it's made.

[docone31]

Now, that is something.
I never knew that.
It explains a lot. Must be a deep bath also. Can't take any, it is too hot to hide!
That is amazing.

[hpdrifter]

imagine a pool ~120' long X 15' wide about a foot deep.

[fatnhappy]

not just plate glass. It produces glass so flat on the tin side that even high end optics don't require grinding on that side. When I say high end, think observatory telescopes.

[Jack Stanley]

I've heard of Float glass before , but I always thought it was done on lead . Maybe the next time the boss places an order you could get in on the bulk purchase ?

Jack

[runfiverun]

or call the same place that it is ordered from, i used to know a gal that worked at a place and she would tag on 20 lbs of pure tin for me on an order so i could get the [much,much lower] bulk price. like 3.50 per lb.

[Charlie Sometimes]

Obviously they must add to the bath, or they wouldn't continue to buy ingots.
When do they replenish the bath and why?
Maybe you can get some of it then.

[jhrosier]

I sure would like to be around when they empty the 'bathwater'.

Jack

[dominicfortune00]

Obviously they must add to the bath, or they wouldn't continue to buy ingots.
When do they replenish the bath and why?
Maybe you can get some of it then.

Well, I figure all that molten tin exposed to the air must oxidize really fast when not covered by floating glass.

When they skim off the oxidized tin, the level drops and they need to replenish the tank.

Wonder what they do with the oxidized tin they skim off?

[hpdrifter]

Well, I figure all that molten tin exposed to the air must oxidize really fast when not covered by floating glass.

When they skim off the oxidized tin, the level drops and they need to replenish the tank.

Wonder what they do with the oxidized tin they skim off?

there is an oxygen free "atmosphere" that is pressurized within the "Tin Bath". Nitrogen and other gases that keep the oxidation to a minimum. Of course, some does oxidize but very, very little.

Two years ago, we had a furnace rebuild. The tin bath was drained; made into ingots. It took better than 4 days. We had, I believe ~22 tons all stacked up around the plant. The fun part was that some of it wouldn't drain so we had big "splotches" that had to be drug out and hand melted into ingots. Of course, some of it hit the ground and I'll let your imagination take over there.

Before I was employed there, 1980's, I here tell that tin, when bought would be brought in in armoured trucks. They said it was a "critical" element and was very guarded.

[StarMetal]

My best friend's dad, when he was alive, worked at Pages Steel up in Pa....they made chainlink fence. One of the processes was they drawed the wire through a big pool of molten lead. A worker was stationed there to just watch it. He would take moulds for muzzle loaders and and cast ball & bullets for hours. We had that supply plus my friend had an inexhaustable supply of babbitt. Boy, the good old days.

American Glass use to be in the home town I grew up in. They moved to Okmokie, Ok before I was born. Their method was pulling a sheet of glass vertically. When the wife and first moved to Tulsa, Ok there was a then new Ford plant there that just made glass. They supposedly pulled the longest sheet of glass at that time. Can't remember I want to say one quarter mile.

Joe

[Echo]

Wow. What we learn on this forum...

[qajaq59]

They had a show in TV on how that was done. Pretty hot work........