Make a Ball and Chain

My friend is getting married, I'm best man. I always told him I'm going to make him a ball and chain when he gets married. Having my previous instructable
Medieval shackles https://m.instructables.com/id/MEDIEVAL-SHACKLES/
I decided to use that concept to make my ball and chain sculpture for his wedding gift.

For this you will need a
-grinder( I have three plugged in, one with a flapper disk, one a wire wheel, and the last a grinding disk)
-A welder
- c clamp
-gloves
-drill
-wire wheel(for drill)
- square
- sharpie

-A shackle made for leg,
To see how to make shackle visit
https://m.instructables.com/id/MEDIEVAL-SHACKLES/

-scrap steel
- I used rings that were wrapped in plastic, used as a seat on a dining patio chair, 4 rings in total

Using a piece of cardboard, and a 45 degree angle mark a 45 from a corner of the cardboard.

Placing your ring on the perpendicular edges, the drawn line will give you your centre on the rings.

Mark on your ring Both sides for centre

Using the marks you put on the rings in the previous step as a guide, cut 3 of the rings in half. Leaving one full ring.

On 4 of the half rings. Measure an inch down from the cut. Draw a line . Draw a perpendicular line in the middle of the ring , and draw two lines making a triangle(see picture)

Cut alone this line making the rings ends into points

Leave the other two half rings with a flat end

Making sure the half ring is as close to 90 degrees as you can weld the first half ring in place. Flip it upside down placing it in a vice to weld the second half ring.

Use a c clamp to pinch one end of the half ring in place, it makes welding the free end easier. Using this method weld the 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th half ring in place

I had these ubolts with nuts welded in. I figured I could use this to connect the chain. Using your grinding disc cut out the nut. Grind out the welds and clean up ubolt.

Link the chain through the ubolt, place it in vice so it's easier to work on.
Weld nut back in place.

Weld a washer in the centre where all the rings meet. Weld inside of the washer

. Then weld the ubolt over top the centre of the washer. Your shackle is now connected

Using more big washers, weld them on both the insides where all the rings meet and on the other outside .

Taking a larger ball bearing , weld them in the centres of the washers.
Doing this hides most of the seams and welds holding the ball together

Using the drill wire wheel, grinder wire wheel, and flapper disc, clean up the metal, clean the edges, and the welding marks and spatter.

Thanks visiting my bachelor party idea/ wedding gift. Feel free to post your own. I made this so it can be put in a garden or hung up and just leave it laying around

A friend had a big steel ball in which I acquired it. Wrapping it with steel straps and welding a chain and shackle on I was left with a different style ball and chain. Less bulky , more heavy.