In the realm of metal alloys, brass and bronze have consistently captured our fascination. Though they may appear similar at first, these alloys boast distinct properties that render each of them perfect for diverse applications. In this exploration, we examine the contrasts between brass and bronze, taking a closer look at their production, historical origins, and unique uses — particularly in the maritime sector.
Centuries ago, sailing involved many more challenges, especially threats that put the integrity of wooden ships at risk. But copper and brass were the solution that paved the way for a new era in maritime innovation.
It has been long way down until we got to the brassware we have available nowadays. Likely created through the smelting of copper ores with high concentrations of zinc, the earliest brass alloys had variable compositions. Producing brass was extremely challenging due to the high melting and boiling points of pure zinc, but the ancient managed to find a solution.
A magnetic compass can, sometimes, lose its ability to track the Earth's magnetic North. One of the most common causes of this is that the compass might have spent too much time close to magnetic sources, don’t worry, though – there’s a very easy way to fix this! But first, a little bit of history: Compasses throughout history A ship's compass was one of the most important items in the early days of seafaring. The compass was frequently stored within and attached to a box via a gimbal so that it was always level and the compass needle could easily settle to magnetic North. "Binnacles” was the name given to more modern gimbals. Compass on a binnacle However, most people...
Brass is widely known as one of the most versatile alloys, perfect for several engineering and decorative applications. The pure copper+zinc alloy called “brass” has three types based on different crystal structures, as discussed in a previous post. But the versatility of brass is largely due to the myriad of possible combinations with other metals that change its characteristics based on what you need from it — the brass alloys. A few characteristics that can be manipulated by adding small percentages of other metals to brass are: Softness; Malleability; Hardness; Color; Resistance to corrosion; Stability. Below we’ll present some examples of brass alloys: Naval Brass Naval brass is a high-strength and especially corrosion-resistant brass alloy, which makes it, as its...
