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Aug. 16th, 2006 06:30 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
afmetalsmithIt occurred to me today as I was carving wax in an intricate Celtic pattern for a casting, that it is very odd in some ways that waxwork is a metalsmithing skill! The process has pretty much nothing whatsoever to do with working with actual metal; it's just that since the goal is to make a metal thing out of the wax eventually, it's sort of an honorary metal skill.
I can see why there are those who specialize in it alone, though, some of whom don't work with metal at all!
I did a few rounds of depletion gilding on the cloisonne backings, after smoothing off the surface some more. Another pass or 2 should do it.
I also did some more work on the repair/reworking of my trillium pin/pendant. As I was fiddling with the central tube rivet to get the stone's "stem" to fit through it, the petals started to rotate again. So I acquiesced to the inevitable and drilled another, 1mm, hole very close to the central one- close enough that the stone will cover it when replaced- and riveted it a second time with a tiny piece of 18 ga. wire. Ha! Now just TRY to rotate! I was again grateful for my wonderful mini-stakes, because a couple of them made this process relatively painless, and it would not have been without them. I also see that I could if necessary glue the "stem" of the stone- it sticks out from the back of the cab setting- into the central tube rivet hole if necessary. This is a relief! I'm not sure that I have enough length to re-rivet it, plus of course hammering on the other end of something that has a large citrine cab on one end is a somewhat dangerous proposition!
Now that I know more or less what I'm doing, I can do the same work on the other pin, thereby fixing its problems and then being able to offer it for sale. I will be much happier sending it off when the petals and leaves aren't rotating like a pinwheel, and the pin is steel!
I have not yet begun the meanders around the features on my plique smiley; I'm planning on working on that, and on texturing the cloisonne metal, tomorrow while my student is here. Both are easily interruptable, which make them good candidates for that time.
Tonight J is planning on getting some new pictures of some of the work I want to put up on Etsy. Cool! I did add an enameled bat tie tack yesterday, but the photo I had was a bit low-res so it's grainy at full size. (The url is http://afmetalsmith.etsy.com, but so far there are only 2 things up. I'm looking to change that ASAP!)
I can see why there are those who specialize in it alone, though, some of whom don't work with metal at all!
I did a few rounds of depletion gilding on the cloisonne backings, after smoothing off the surface some more. Another pass or 2 should do it.
I also did some more work on the repair/reworking of my trillium pin/pendant. As I was fiddling with the central tube rivet to get the stone's "stem" to fit through it, the petals started to rotate again. So I acquiesced to the inevitable and drilled another, 1mm, hole very close to the central one- close enough that the stone will cover it when replaced- and riveted it a second time with a tiny piece of 18 ga. wire. Ha! Now just TRY to rotate! I was again grateful for my wonderful mini-stakes, because a couple of them made this process relatively painless, and it would not have been without them. I also see that I could if necessary glue the "stem" of the stone- it sticks out from the back of the cab setting- into the central tube rivet hole if necessary. This is a relief! I'm not sure that I have enough length to re-rivet it, plus of course hammering on the other end of something that has a large citrine cab on one end is a somewhat dangerous proposition!
Now that I know more or less what I'm doing, I can do the same work on the other pin, thereby fixing its problems and then being able to offer it for sale. I will be much happier sending it off when the petals and leaves aren't rotating like a pinwheel, and the pin is steel!
I have not yet begun the meanders around the features on my plique smiley; I'm planning on working on that, and on texturing the cloisonne metal, tomorrow while my student is here. Both are easily interruptable, which make them good candidates for that time.
Tonight J is planning on getting some new pictures of some of the work I want to put up on Etsy. Cool! I did add an enameled bat tie tack yesterday, but the photo I had was a bit low-res so it's grainy at full size. (The url is http://afmetalsmith.etsy.com, but so far there are only 2 things up. I'm looking to change that ASAP!)
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Date: 2006-08-18 06:11 pm (UTC)What exactly makes something 'production stuff'? If you make more than one cast from a design?
The problem with a full 3D thing is that it requires one to be a decent 3D modeler to take decent advantage, and I am NOT.
It just so happens that my friend
I think it'll help to have products up, of course.
True, that.
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Date: 2006-08-18 07:35 pm (UTC)And as it is, once the pro casters have the master, we can just cll them up and order however many of a design we want, and for $2 extra per piece (usually) they'll send it to us all clean and shiny and ready for sale. See, they have lots more and better equipment for the prep and clean-up than we do, because it makes sense for them and not for us, seeing as we're not pro casters. And so I think having them do it is a win-win for everyone!
I would like to get secure enough with our process and equpiment that I'd feel comfortable casting a wax-carved one-off ourselves rather than sending it out... but right now, I'd rather send it out, pay lots more, BUT be sure that my hours of carving work will not go to waste with a failed casting!
I'm very intrigued by the portentail of CNC milling for up to 2.5D. But if I'm working in a full 3D, right now I'd rather do it hands-on and not on a screen! I can see there's a lot of advantages to doing design virtually, of course- like, being able to trivially create a patterned ring in ANY SIZE! But I just don't think it's for me, at least not right now.
How are your kits coming along? It sounds like you've been doing some cool stuff!
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Date: 2006-08-18 08:30 pm (UTC)It certainly looks that way, yes. I have the same thing with the printed circuit boards: I have the equipment to make my own, but I can't do more than two layers, I can't do silkscreening or soldermask, which means my PCBs won't be of sufficient professional quality.
Yes, PCB manufacturers are more expensive, but if I want to sell PCBs professionally, I need to outsource the PCBs to them. Some of them give a discount for repeat business (after all, they already have the film and all on file).
I still use my own etching equipment for test runs, so that I know the layout 'works' before I send it off to the manufacturer.
be sure that my hours of carving work will not go to waste with a failed casting!
I guess that is the one big 'problem' with wax casting: you can't 'undo' the melting of the wax!
I'd rather do it hands-on and not on a screen!
It takes a certain type of mind to be able to translate the 3D model you have in your mind into lines on a 2D screen. I certainly don't have that talent, and I think it is even harder for people who are used to shaping things with their hands.
being able to trivially create a patterned ring in ANY SIZE!
Just blow it up to two times the size, and away you go! I guess it would be perfect for serial work in custom sizes.
How are your kits coming along? It sounds like you've been doing some cool stuff!
I am (still!) working on the site. It's come a long way, but there are still some holes to be patched. Then I will need to select a PCB manufacturer for the kits I wish to start with and get those made. And then I need to get the parts for the kits and do some test runs. And I need to get going on the administrative side of things: getting an entry with the Chambre of Commerce, etc.
Also, I need to start cracking on those miniature LED lights!