Adding a bail

[Elijah Ziemann]

What do/would you use for a bail? I'm wanting to add a bail to the Snow Peak Ti bowl. What do you construct the bail from? I assume most would use a titanium rod/wire. What thickness should I use?

[Gary Dunckel]

I would suggest you not use type 5 (6Al-4V) titanium alloy, as it is harder to bend. If you use any CP (commercially pure) titanium rod (types 1-4), it will be easier to work with. Go with a diameter of .062". That's about the diameter of a coat hanger.

Edit–spelling

[Bill Fornshell]

********************** The following is from one of my MYOG threads from Dec 2006 ***********

I bought one of the new BMW Pots, the one without the handle.

The pot weighs just a small amout under the posted weight. The lid fits only so so. It is close so I am pleased with it. I have boiled water in it and my first thought was that it boiled the water fast. I did not time the boil.

I made a simple Bail for the pot for a handle. The Bail adds 0.12 ounces to the total weight of the pot.

The Bail was made out of

High Temp Wire

like is used for the elements of an electrical kiln. Just some of the Pottery materials I have around for making a type of small Gas Kiln. Look for "Where to buy" for a dealer in your area. The wire is like spring steel in the way it holds its shape.

I punched the holes with my

(item number 44060 Hand Punch)

from Harbor Freight.com. You need to enter the product number in the Search Box. [Note: I think this item is out of production]

No real leakage out of the holes.

[Bob Gross]

Use stainless steel wire. I got some that race drivers use on a car as safety wire.

I drilled the holes in the titanium bowl using a Dremel tool. Titanium is pretty tough stuff. Once the wire was through the hole, I tied a loop knot.

–B.G.–

[Colin Krusor]

I've used titanium fishing leader wire, 1/32" 6Al4V rod, and 1/16" 6AL4V rod. I found the 6AL4V rod very easy to bend with heat. Heating it to glowing red with a propane torch and bending it with needlenose pliers is simple.

However, I've found that the flexible fishing leader wire works fine. The bail doesn't need to be rigid. It sounds like Bob uses thin, flexible wire as well.

[Bob Gross]

"It sounds like Bob uses thin, flexible wire as well."

Yes, thin solid wire, not stranded.

I want it to be strong enough and stiff enough that I can pick up the cook bowl, and it will keep that straight shape and holds a knot. Yet it is flexible enough that when it is time to transport it, the wire folds down into the bowl.

–B.G.–

[Bill Segraves]

I used 0.0787" diameter titanium wire to add a bail to a Snow Peak Ti bowl. Despite tough rep of titanium, I didn't have any trouble drilling the holes. Set things up so that when I fold the bail down, it's more or less flush with the outside of the bowl. I'm sure there are other ways to do it, some of which may be better, but I've been happy with this. The one thing that's tricky is balance. If you don't position your holes precisely enough, or if the bail is otherwise throwing off the symmetry, the bowl is going to tip when you try to hold it by the bail. If I were doing this again, and using light, flexible wire, I'd be tempted to do it with three evenly spaced connections to the bowl rather than a standard, continuous bail – it'd be much more stable.

Cheers,

Bill S.

[Mark Fowler]

Here is my take on a bale handle on an Evernew 900ml pot.

It uses 40kg nylon coated multi-strand stainless steel fishing leader fixed with the supplied ferrules. The wire is stiff enough to stand upright but flexible enough for easy packing. Complete with the Reflectix lid it weighs 68 grams (lid and bale handle are 3 grams). And no – the nylon covering has not burnt off the wire.

To centre the bale handle turn the pot upside down and trace around the rim onto a piece of paper. Cut the circle out and fold in half. Place over the pot and mark off at the crease on either side.

[Tim Anderson]

I was about to make this mod when I realised… I need to be able to hold the pot and mix ingredients, so I'll have to stick with a pot grabber that weighs 20g.
I tried the reflectix as a lid, but steam wilted it. I now glue the reflectix to the bottom of a pie tin to protect it
Thought I'd share.

[Mark Fowler]

I always take the pot off the flame to stir – too easy to have an accident trying to stir while on top of the stove unless it is really liquid. I find I can usually hold the rim to steady it or pop it in the cozy to stir. Without the normal handles it is really easy to put in my cozy.

I found the reflectix lid did shrink a little so I made one 5mm larger in diameter and shrank it to an almost perfect fit.

[James Marco]

I believe this is correct. I have tried very light wire and heavy fishing leader, but always found them unsatisfactory. I thought it was just me. I prefer a heavy guage piece of wire. Around construction sites, you can sometimes find 18" sections of heavy duty houshold wiring. This is usually Aluminum wire twisted fom 10ga strands. The 10ga aluminum wire makes an ideal bail. Over the stove, it never gets hot enough to burn fingers. It cools fast when away from heat, and it is stiff enough to stir with.

Picking a pot off a fire is easy with a stick, or, hanging from a stick for cooking is not possible with fold-out handles. Carrying water back to camp is easier with a bail. Generally much prefered for the versatility. It weighs between 5-10grams depending on the length.

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