"Snap, crackle, pop! metal" Topic

I bought one of the Copplestone giant carnivorous birds, and set about preparing it for painting last week. I thought I'd use my pliers to bend the neck into a different position. Now, the neck is probably a bit thicker than the waists of most of my 28mm figures--a substantial piece of metal. Anyway, when I started to turn it, the metal began making snap, crackle, pop noises. I stopped immediately, assuming this was a Bad Thing. Can anybody tell me what this means (i.e., would the head have fallen off if I twisted it farther), and is there a better way to turn the head, oh, say 30 degrees?
Grelber

Sounds like the metal is being fatigued/broken, possibly internally, where you can't see it.

Many of the modern, lead-less, or reduced lead metals used for miniatures are much more brittle than those made of lead, back in the Dark Ages (a decade, or two ago).

You might want to inquire with the manufacturer to see what type of metal they use, and what they recommend.

That sound is probably not a good thing, but the manufacturer should be able to advise you on how much you can bend the miniatures, without breaking.

Antinomy & lead free pewter (basically tin with a percent or so of copper) will squeak when bent – the technical term is 'cri' – but it doesn't break. However most modern pewterers add antinomy to their alloy to avoid that.

Try moderately heating it, perhaps?

Surely that would make the metal more malleable…

If you want to ruin a figure that is no longer in production try all of the above. Best bet is to leave it alone and paint it.

Good idea Bob.

I have had that happen before to me too, and I always wondering what that was…

Even with the older, more malleable metals, I always used to hold the target between my fingers to warm it slightly. With the more brittle metals nowadays, more direct heat may be required, and even that may not be enough to save from an undesired snap.

Ah, squeaking metal, reminds me of my old mechanical engineering class in college, it does.

:)

I got told thats how you tell a miniature that contains lead, against one that does not. Hold one close to your ear, bend a thin bit, if it 'crackles'it's lead free(ish).

Casting…it's an art not a science!

Sounds like I did the right thing when I put the figure aside. Guess I'll have to live with the head as it is.
Thanks very much for all the advice.
Grelber

You could try to bend it further, and if it snaps off, just pin it, and apply some epoxy putty to blend in the join.

That will take some time, and modeling skill though, so not sure if you want to deal with that.