View Full Version : Make your own Titanium Billy
Stainless steel is great but I'm pretty partial to Titanium cookware ever since first trying it. However, I've yet to find a small Ti billy so the only solution was to make one.
I bought a Snow Peak 900 (my favorite pot) and I was going to make the bale from scratch but had trouble finding Ti wire or aluminum, either of which would have suited me. I started scrounging around and found an aluminum Swedish army cookset I never used and noticed that the bail is aluminum as well. I have two aluminum Swedish cooksets and the other has a steel bail so you can't count on an aluminum cookset having an aluminum bail. :dunno: Anyway, I robbed the aluminum bail and mounted it on the pot. A lot easier than making it from scratch. :) For rivets, I cut some lengths off an aluminum darning needle and peened them. So the whole project is pretty easy to do.
Here's what it looks like. Just finished it this evening so it's still a virgin. :)
http://www4.gvsu.edu/triert/images16/tibilly1c.jpg
That is an excellent idea. I like the Zebra billies, but man are they heavy! A titanium one would be perfecto!
Maybe I can try my hand at making my own too. We'll see how that works out.
Cheers!
bushman762
25-08-2006, 09:03
The inventiveness and craftmanship on here and on BB never ceases to amaze me..... well done!
Best Regards,
Hoodoo
That is a really nice looking piece of kit, congrats :)
Moduser
Err, I can't see the pic??? even when I put the URL into it's own page :(
jdlenton
25-08-2006, 09:58
now thats a nice idea great work as always hoodoo:)
gregorach
25-08-2006, 09:59
Gotta be a problem at your end Tony - I can see it fine.
And very nice it is too! :)
Spikey DaPikey
25-08-2006, 10:20
Pic works fine here...
Give it abit of time, it may pop back, as that heppened to me a few weeks ago :o
British Red
25-08-2006, 11:33
Very, very nice Hoodoo. Lovely craftsmanship as always!
Red
Thanks guys. This is something I've been looking for for a long, long time and just got fed up waiting for some company to provide it. On a recent canoe trip I took, more than once I had wished my pot had a bail on it so I decided to get off my butt and make one.
http://www4.gvsu.edu/triert/images16/campfire1c.jpg
I do think there's a Ti billy out there but IIRC, it's a huge one.
Sorry Tony, I have no idea what the problem is. :confused:
Stainless steel is great but I'm pretty partial to Titanium cookware ever since first trying it. However, I've yet to find a small Ti billy so the only solution was to make one.
I bought a Snow Peak 900 (my favorite pot) and I was going to make the bale from scratch but had trouble finding Ti wire or aluminum, either of which would have suited me. I started scrounging around and found an aluminum Swedish army cookset I never used and noticed that the bail is aluminum as well. I have two aluminum Swedish cooksets and the other has a steel bail so you can't count on an aluminum cookset having an aluminum bail. :dunno: Anyway, I robbed the aluminum bail and mounted it on the pot. A lot easier than making it from scratch. :) For rivets, I cut some lengths off an aluminum darning needle and peened them. So the whole project is pretty easy to do.
Here's what it looks like. Just finished it this evening so it's still a virgin. :)
http://www4.gvsu.edu/triert/images16/tibilly1c.jpg
Great idea hoodoo, mind if I ask what are the dimensions of the pot?
Ahh, now I see it, cool :You_Rock_
Acccording to Snowpeaks website 5" x 5.5" inch. http://www.snowpeak.com/gears/scs008t.htm
akraven
Ì was trying to make a removable bail for mine snowpeak 900, it never worked out...
Just checked...
Pot Dimensions:
4 3/4"d x 4 1/4"
Lid Dimensions:
5"d x 1 1/2"
Stowed Dimensions:
5"d x 5 1/2"
Total Weight:
6.2 oz / 175g
Materials:
Titanium
4.75 inches dia is 12cm, it looks to me like it's a very comparable size to the 12cm zebra billy.
Just checked...
4.75 inches dia is 12cm, it looks to me like it's a very comparable size to the 12cm zebra billy.
Yup, only the 12 cm Zebra weighs 16 oz on my scale and this weighs 8 oz, with bail. With a hand-crafted bail, you could make it even lighter as this bail is pretty robust.
Also, this pot has an extended handle on the lid that makes it more useful than the lid on the Zebra.
gregorach
25-08-2006, 15:55
Ì was trying to make a removable bail for mine snowpeak 900, it never worked out...
If the pot has a lip, you might find my Crusader Cup Hanger (http://www.bushcraftuk.com/community/showthread.php?t=8257) useful. Or perhaps not - I'm not sure how well it will work on a round pot.
If the pot has a lip, you might find my Crusader Cup Hanger (http://www.bushcraftuk.com/community/showthread.php?t=8257) useful. Or perhaps not - I'm not sure how well it will work on a round pot.
I have the cup hanger, it just doesn't work well with a pot that size. Works like a charm on my cup though.
I was thinking of useing those metal clams, you know the kinds you find on pie backing thingies ( how do you call those things again?) and make a attachment for the bail arm. Making it much sturdier, but easily removed when not needed. Well that was my idea, just still not able to do it right.
Yup, only the 12 cm Zebra weighs 16 oz on my scale and this weighs 8 oz, with bail. With a hand-crafted bail, you could make it even lighter as this bail is pretty robust.
Also, this pot has an extended handle on the lid that makes it more useful than the lid on the Zebra.
Yes, I can see the benefit. Are the rivets water tight? How did you brace them on the inside when you were peening the outside?
Yes, I can see the benefit. Are the rivets water tight? How did you brace them on the inside when you were peening the outside?
I haven't tested them to see if they are watertight but I would be very surprised if they weren't. :)
As for my methods, well, they are a bit on the crude side. :o
Essentially I chucked a ball peen hammer in a vise and taped a copper washer to the end of it. The rivet end inside the pot sits in the center of the washer as you pound on it from the outside. This lets the rivet mushroom on both sides.
http://www4.gvsu.edu/triert/images16/tibillyanvil1c.jpg
Once you get it mushroomed fairly well you can flip it around, place the rivet end on the outside on a hard surface, and using a SMALL hammer, flatten the rivet a bit more on the inside.
You need to make sure the material you use for a rivet is nice and soft. I would practice by using a flat piece of metal, drilling a hole in it, and pounding a rivet through the hole. This will also give you a good idea how long to make your rivet to begin with. You can always file the remainder down a bit if you need to after you are finished.
I just filled the pot up with water and boiled it and no sign of a leak. Now I need to let it cool and see if the expansion/contraction will affect it.
I also should point out that the rivets should be a tight fit. No slop. My drill bit mics at 0.123 (supposed to be 1/8") and the aluminum I used for rivets 0.121.
Spacemonkey
27-08-2006, 21:31
What's the metric capacity of the can?
What's the metric capacity of the can?
It's called the Snow Peak 900 so I'm guessing, um, 900 ml. ;)
British Red
27-08-2006, 22:51
Cant be more than 898 now - its got 4 rivets inside :D
Cant be more than 898 now - its got 4 rivets inside :D
True... :D