steel vs. wood

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I guess wood looks a lil better & it's a lot easier to work with.
Steel might be stronger but i don't got a welder
 
i just built a wood one, and well i must say i didnt trust wood so i went overboard and made it reduclously strong and now it ways a ton... next stand im for sure using steel...
 
Jovial;771571; said:
All metals including gold will corrode if subjected to salt water long enough. You could wipe this thing down everyday and it will still corrode. Different metals corrode in unique ways, some tarnish, some pit, some crack, some flake, some turn into white power but they all corrode. It is a charateristic of metal and cannot be controled only managed. All it takes is one micron of sodium to get past the coating and corrosion will start. The only way to manage it is to periodically sand and recoat or electrically energize the part to break the anode to cathode path, but still this is only a treatment not a cure. After spending my life in the USN combating this problem I can easily tell you that all metals will corrode if exposed to saltwater long enough. I have seen it.

Modern aircraft use a wide variety of metals and composite materials.
So much so that there are specific Corrosion Control programs and workcenters dedicated and implemented in Naval Aviation squadrons to combat corrosion. Coatings whether they be plated, epoxy based or baked i.e powdercoating (some landing gear components) will deteriorate under UV light (most salt water aquarium lighting) and saltwater. The metals used in our jets and ships range from Stainless steel, Aluminum, Magnesium, Iron and Titanium, Gold, Silver, Platnum and Mercury, they will all react in adverse ways if exposed to salt water long enough. Intergranular, exfoliation, filiform, microbiological, stress fatigue or direct suface oxidation all metals corrode.

Heres why:

http://www.efunda.com/materials/corrosion/corrosion_basics.cfm
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agreed.. but keep in mind you're talking about stuff that's out at sea vs. something inside someone's home. I'm no oceanographer/biologist/chemist, but I think there's a pretty big difference between a splash or drop or two of aquarium water and a 97000 ton aircraft carrier floating in the ocean. One has a bit more exposure than the other...

besides.. correct me if I'm wrong but doesn't wood corrode a lot faster than steel when it comes in contact with ANY type of water? ...also I doubt anyone I've talked to on here is lazy enough not to wipe up splashes..
 
synapse989;784769; said:
agreed.. but keep in mind you're talking about stuff that's out at sea vs. something inside someone's home. I'm no oceanographer/biologist/chemist, but I think there's a pretty big difference between a splash or drop or two of aquarium water and a 97000 ton aircraft carrier floating in the ocean. One has a bit more exposure than the other...

besides.. correct me if I'm wrong but doesn't wood corrode a lot faster than steel when it comes in contact with ANY type of water? ...also I doubt anyone I've talked to on here is lazy enough not to wipe up splashes..
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Definetely, wood rots but in a salt environment the salt acts as a preservative even in freshwater cold temps will preserve wood i.e fallen hardwood trees in freshwater lakes. Rotting in wood can be prevented easier than corrosion in metals because of woods porisity i.e pressure treating before exposure or coating with epoxy or using marine grade plywood. The coating soaks in better. For a marine tank cleaning salt creep is a non stop chore, this stuff gets everywhere because there is no wind to blow if off, the water evaporates and leaves a gritty salt residue on everything. It gets anything metal and corrodes it, brass holds up well if polished everyday but will tarnish quickly and turn green if left to the elements. Titanium also holds up well but still requires corrosion control
 
Cripes, even if a molecule of Sodium got through whatever you chose to protect your metal with, what is that going to do? If you built the stand out of appropriately sized steel, it would take a hundred years for the structural integrity of the metal to be compromised. It took 10-15 years to rust through the sheet metal in my old jeep, and that was here in Ohio. They salt our roads 5 or 6 months out the year here, and I never washed the jeep. If you keep a good protective coat on the stand and address issues in a timely manner as they come up, the metal stand will last indefinitely.
 
I think there's two sides here.

Side "A" is availability and usability from a DIY standpoint.

Side "B" is which is actually the better/stronger material.

A person can be on both sides. Myself for one, am much more comfortable working with wood, and it's much easier to get (even in Pittsburgh... ie. steel city). From a strength standpoint, however, I think steel is better if properly sealed.
 
mjmc;787013; said:
Cripes, even if a molecule of Sodium got through whatever you chose to protect your metal with, what is that going to do? If you built the stand out of appropriately sized steel, it would take a hundred years for the structural integrity of the metal to be compromised. It took 10-15 years to rust through the sheet metal in my old jeep, and that was here in Ohio. They salt our roads 5 or 6 months out the year here, and I never washed the jeep. If you keep a good protective coat on the stand and address issues in a timely manner as they come up, the metal stand will last indefinitely.
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People normally associate corrosion with rust (iron oxide) but there are many types of corrosion that are much more threatning to metal that remain unseen. Corrosion occuring along the grain boundaries is called intergranular and is much more serious than surface corrosion. When subjected to cyclic stress or constant loading it will fail. Fatigue corrosion and a few others remain invisible unless specific techniques are used, i.e eddy current or ultrasonic NDI. You will never know until the wing breaks off but then its too late. Lost of aircraft mishaps from corrosion. So although the surface my look fine its the structural integrity of the metal along the grain boundaries that is jeopardaized and usually not noticed until its under a load. I think most stands made of steel are plenty strong and will never fail for fresh water applications and maybe saltwater as well.
Automobile panels usually rot from the inside out, so what is seen on the surface when the paint starts to bubble is usually much worse beneath. Like a cancer.
 
to each his own i guess...
there are pros and cons on metal and wood stands...

it would probably boils down to what the user prefers the most.
i on the other hand love steel stands.
+ so easy to maintain,
+ easy to move around,

- doesnt look as good as wood stands/cabinets.
 
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