From Rusted to Reused. Metal Projects for Beginners.

We drove by this old rusted muffler a few times before finally deciding to pick it up. We weren't sure what we were going to make with it yet, but were curious about what was inside.

We thought it would make a really cool planter, so we got to work cutting out the insides. We switched back and forth between an angle grinder and a reciprocating saw. Both worked well for cutting steel.

There was quite a bit of rust on the muffler so we tried two different ways to remove it: a wire brush on an angle grinder and a stripping disc on our drill/driver. Both worked well, so we recommend using the one that you're most comfortable with.

We used an angle grinder to smooth the edges, and secured the two layers of metal together with rivets. We pressure-washed the muffler, and let it dry. Then we sprayed it all with Rust-Oleum rusty metal primer to create a protective layer prior to painting.

The muffler had holes on both ends, so we created plugs to fit inside. We used plywood and a piece of dowel to create one plug, and a piece of a spray-paint can lid for the other. We then used a hot glue gun to secure the plugs in place and seal around the edges.

We cut a wood dowel just a little bit longer than our muffler to hang it from. We drilled holes in both ends of the dowel, wrapped rope around the ends of the muffler, and threaded the rope up through the dowel holes.

We hung our shelf brackets, and tied off the ends of the rope to keep it from sliding through. We added a layer of gravel to the planter bottom for drainage, then planted some low-maintenance succulents.

On another trip, we came across an old stove. The insides had all been ripped out, but we thought the front of the drawer would look great with some hairpin legs.

The stamped sheet metal was pretty thin and flimsy, so we added a piece of plywood as a reinforcement. We cut the plywood with a circular saw, and rounded the corners with a jigsaw. Then we made some plunge cuts to allow for the metal fins that had originally been used to attach the drawer parts.

We rounded over the edges of the plywood using an orbital sander. Then we scuffed up the paint with 150-grit sandpaper, wiped it clean with acetone, and applied three coats of Rust-Oleum spray paint in a nice teal.

We spray-painted our Hairpin Legs, but you can skip this step with our powder-coat finishes. Use a drill and driver to attach your hairpin legs, and you're done! Next time you're out and about, be on the lookout for old discarded pieces of metal.