Multi-Metal Sculptures Challenge the Creative Process

Fun Projects, Metal Art
Jun 152011
Rob Koehl's multi-metal sculpture of a cutthroat trout combines copper and stainless steel.

Rob Koehl's multi-metal sculpture of a cutthroat trout combines copper and stainless steel on a forged common steel body.

By Frank Ross

Sculpting in a single metal medium such as copper or stainless steel can produce some striking works of art, but combining the two into a single piece to achieve variations in color and texture presents the challenge of joining two dissimilar metals with different bonding and heat dissipating characteristics.

Rob Koehl, a metal sculptor in Cottonwood, Arizona wanted to emphasize the shiny silver back of a trout with the warm red tones of a copper under belly. If you have ever considered working in a multiple-metal medium but avoided it because of the difficulty factor, perhaps you can benefit from Rob’s techniques and tips.

This piece is built on a base of 14 gauge common steel that is forged to achieve the curved body, and then covered with 24 gauge stainless steel on the top and 20 gauge copper sheeting for the fishes belly. Rob uses a plasma cutter, MIG welder and oxy-acetylene torch, and begins the process by drawing out an outline of a fish on the steel with a piece of soapstone. Although the tail gets cut off due to size limitations of his forge, and recreated later, Rob finds that it helps to establish the correct proportions in the beginning. When laying out the trout, he leaves a little extra material to compensate for the curve of the body.

Once the basic shape is cut out, the slag from the plasma cutter is removed and the steel goes into a forge to heat it up for shaping the body using a wooden stump and hammer. Although Rob has done it both ways, his preferred method is to braze the copper onto the steel body first and then clean up the seam by grinding away any excess brass from the brazing process before joining the stainless steel. He begins by annealing the copper, so it is soft and ready to hammer into shape around the curved steel body. The annealing process is achieved by heating the copper in a forge until it is black hot and then dropping it into water. Once the copper has cooled a bit you need to clean up the surface with a finishing pad or brush and treat the surface with silver flux.

“When brazing the copper, you have to bring the area up to heat equally and copper is such a heat sponge so you have to move the torch around quite a bit. It helps to elevate the piece so you can apply the heat from the bottom as well. With brazing you’re not stacking metal like welding. You want to use the capillary action the flux creates to suck the bronze into the gap between the copper and steel. I use Wolverine silver flux with a small brass brazing rod and a number two tip on my torch to join the copper to the common steel. Then I run a bead down that and join the stainless steel next. I’ve found that by attaching the copper first it allows me to braze the copper on better. Ideally you want to get a good half inch of soldered area along that line to make room for the next process,” he explained.

“Once I’ve joined the copper, I hammer it down around the body and go back and clean up the line with a grinder to remove all of the brass so I’m not trying to weld into the brass when I lay down the stainless steel. When forging and joining the other metals together, it’s important to lay the project down on a flat surface to make sure you’ve got a clean line. It will save you a lot of work in the end if you keep the fish flat,” he said.

To complete the look, Rob adds a ferric nitrate patina to bring out the black speckles in the steel in addition to turning the copper a deeper red. “Another technique I’ve found to add color is to heat the metal up and then brush it with a fine brass brush. The brass comes off and attaches itself to the hot surface and adds both color and dimension,” he added.

When the final buffing is done, the result is a trout so beautiful its colors are only challenged by the original cutthroat inspiration.
If you learn better by watching, check out Rob’s YouTube channel for this and other metal working techniques, or learn more about his artwork at robkoehl.com .
For all of your copper, stainless steel or other metal working supplies, shop Rob’s favorite supplier; QuickShipMetals.com.

Posted by Frank Ross at 8:39 am Tagged with: , , ,

Robert Trout, Tin Knocker turned Copper Clad Master Artisan

Metal Art
Mar 142011

Robert Trout is a metal artist with a distinctive style, an eye for detail and a passion for his craft and working with his hands. “I’ve always had art in my life, always had artistic ability but I never pursued it. When I turned 16, cars got in my way and I learned how to fix those. I’ve always wanted to work with my hands but after I got out of the service in 1968, I ended up in a factory job working for Xerox in western New York. About a year later I got the opportunity to train as an apprentice sheet metal fabricator, so I spent four years going to school learning how to become what they call a tin knocker and a welder-fabricator,” he recalled.

Robert Trout works with a sheet of hot metal, manuvering it into position carefully.

“In 1980, my wife came home with a book by Alex Bealer, called The Art of Blacksmithing. I read that book and looked around the shop. I had an anvil and a torch, so I thought, hey let’s start playing with this, it looks like fun! That started a lifelong pursuit of what I call a parallel path. I had a job working with metal that paid the bills and working with metal was my hobby. As a welder and tin knocker for over 32 years, I worked with sheet steel making duct work and stainless steel /aluminum and lead sheet and lead coated copper for roof flashing. I recently retired and now I work for joy,” he said.

Robert’s foundation in metal art began with steel, and he is a member of the Artists Blacksmith’s Association of North America (ABANA). However, in his early days of smithing he discovered there were about 5,000 blacksmiths nationwide and very few were working in copper. Since he knew that copper was king in the arts and crafts world as far as demand, he started ‘playing around with copper” about 15 years ago.

“There was some copper in the shop, and it’s kind of interesting, so I started working with it. Now the majority of my work is done in copper. When it is in an annealed state it responds to the hammer and is fun to work with. At first it was a puzzle to find how to best work with it, but after a while it became easy to work with and once the color was applied it became a work of art with a higher retail price,” he explained.

About 10 or 11 years ago he made the decision to become juried as a Roycroft renaissance artisan. Their headquarters is located near his home and his wife was raised in the village Roycroft restored. He took his wife out for lunch and they attended an art show there, where he saw a pair of strap candle sticks that caught his eye and captured his imagination. He went back to his studio and started working first with steel, and then when he was sure what how he wanted to tackle the entire project he brought out the copper and started work. In the Roycroft guild there are currently five artisans working in copper. Three are located in New York, one in Chicago and another in Alabama. Robert was admitted to the Roycroft Renaissance Guild in 1998 and was elevated to Master Artisan in metal in 2001.

Robert considers this ceremonial baptismal bowl to be his most significant work to date.

Robert is deeply committed to the Asbury United Methodist Church he attends, and he feels strongly that he and his work are guided by a higher source. So, it was perhaps appropriate that through this relationship he created what he considers to be his best work to date. The piece, a ceremonial baptismal bowl is another creation in 14 gauge copper; but careful and close examination of the detail work reveals a complicated series of patterns in multiple series of three, symbolic of the trinity that holds a particular significance to his faith. The bowl measures 24”, featuring three distinctly different hammered patterns. The stand that supports it has three legs and each leg is designed with three separate and distinctive patterns that continue the trinity theme. Making one leg with a bend is easy, but making three exactly alike is more of a challenge, so he created a custom jig to make the bend in the legs.

The stand has the same intricate detail as the bowl, with multiple repititions of the trinity theme.


The bowl was recently dedicated as a memorial to the mother of a member of the church which makes it even more significant to Robert. This project and others he has created for the church have led to his unofficial title “Gift Maker” with his church. The pieces he creates are so beautiful, and highly coveted by those who have seen his work, that church members call upon his artistry when there is a significant gift they want to bestow.

Besides his love of working with metal, Robert has a real passion for sharing the knowledge he has garnered over the years. “About six or seven years ago I was asked to become an instructor at the John Campbell Folk School in North Carolina. In fact, I’m getting ready to leave in a few days to teach my annual class down there. They’re trying to get me to commit to two classes a year because the one class fills up every year,” he said.

The American master blacksmith, Samuel Yellin, had a profound influence on Robert’s work, and he offers this statement of Yellin’s from the 1930s to summarize his life’s work.

By hammer and hand thou craft does stand alone.

I love metal. It is the stuff of which the frame of the earth is made.
And you can make anything you WILL.
It eloquently responds to the Hand at the bidding of the imagination.
When I go to rest at night, I can hardly sleep because my mind is a swarm with visions of all the wonderful metal that I can create by hammer and hand.

From Yellin’s statement, Robert has created his own.

John 1: 9 – The true light ,which enlightens every one.

When I dine with my family at holiday dinner we use all candle at the table and on the walls, where much Joy, good food and wine are used for the celebration for the event of the day. I think much about this verse and what it means to me and how I live my life.

So in closing I hope this helps you understand me a little more.
My craft is a time honored craft that I work at every day, to make fine metal in the arts and craft style and mentor new crafts people along their journey of metal craft. As we remember the time honored statement;
“O the craft so long to learn, the life so short.”

This pair of strap candlesticks was created from an inspiration visit to Roycroft studios.


Robert’s choice of metal brought him to Storm Copper and QuickShipMetals.com, based on the advice of another copper artist. He had been buying copper from another company, but was growing dissatisfied with their company policies and especially their customer service. “The place I used to deal with has a warehouse nearby, but to them I was just a number to chalk up on the broad as a sale. I felt that there was no customer service. With Storm I can buy as little as I need to finish a job. Before, if I brought less than a sheet I was paying as much as I would have for a full sheet, so they were forcing me to buy two sheets or more to get the best price and taking my check book a lot lower,” he said.

Not many people in life have been blessed with the position that Robert now enjoys. He loves his work, his family, his church and the life he has crafted from his love of metal work. Now he has people who are eager for him to teach the techniques he has mastered. “Life is good,” he said.

To learn more about Robert’s classes and work, visit this link: http://www.artsandcraftscollector.com.

Posted by Frank Ross at 10:23 am Tagged with: , ,

Copper Patina - An Art Form Itself

Metal Art
Feb 162011

Celestial Ouranios, an 18" x 24" patina on brass was created by controlling the application of patina solution with paper strips.

While some may consider a patina to be a gratuitous closure to a work that is already finished, copper artist Stefan Alexandres has turned the patina into an art form of its own. Two pieces that serve as an example of this are “Divine”, and “Celestial Ouranios,” two 18”x24” patinas on brass that he created by using a common technique with a subtle twist he developed on his own.

To create these two pieces Alexandres used strips of paper to mask parts of the metal’s surface to control where he wanted the patina is formed. He simply applies the strips of paper and dampens them so they will stick. No glue or adhesive is used. Once the patina has been applied and left to dry the paper comes off easily to reveal the results of this masking technique.

Alexandres advises, “There are many ways to finish copper. Sometimes I leave a piece of sculpture or repoussé unfinished and live with it for a while to consider what type of treatment I will give it.”

One option that he sometimes uses involves paint.

Suspicious Circumstances is a 28x" 28" x 3.5" repousse on copper.

“Metal can be painted. Often I will use a clear base such as varnish, after cleaning the metal’s surface. After the base has dried I use oil paint and wash it out with a damp cloth to leave the paint in the indentations.”

While this technique can add variety to the options for coloration, Alexandres cautions that paint is not permanent. “Paints are made of pigments, and any pigment exposed to light will fade in time. Patinas are created from minerals and therefore the affect created by minerals will last over time.”

Another technique Alexandres uses to add variations and interest to a patina involves rubbing and removing areas to create highlights and subtle changes in the colors or patterns. This can be accomplished by using a scotch bright pad, steel wool or a wire brush on an electric wheel, but he cautions anyone wanting to use this technique to use a protective mask to prevent inhaling the dust created by this process, which can be laden with caustic chemicals that can damage the lungs.

Alexandres stresses the importance of developing your own style and experimenting with both the affects of various formulas as well as the way they’re applied. “What I’m doing with patinas works for me. Maybe some other artists are doing it differently,” he said.

"Man from Poetry" is a 28" x 28" repousse on copper with a patina created by heating the metal with a torch. Note the intricate detail in the two faces at the bottom of the shell.

He also recommends metal artists consider the options of applying patinas, stressing that “Patina’s can be applied either cold or hot, and the results can be very different.”

He also notes that patinas can be created from simple sources. “The water in Florida is very rich in sulfur. On a hot summer day if you coat a piece of copper with water that is rich in sulfur and leave it in the sun, you will see an incredible patina form.”

Alexandres also uses commercially prepared patinas that he purchases from ronyoungpatina.com. After he applies these formulas he uses a solution of baking soda diluted in water to neutralize the action and stop the development of the patina. Take a container of water sufficient to cover the area you are working with and add baking soda while stirring until the crystals no longer dissolve, then apply it to the metal’s surface, wash with clear water and let dry.

Patinas are an ancient technique, but how you use them does not have to be governed by tradition, previous methods or rules that limit creativity. Another great thing about patinas is they not immutable. If you don’t like the results, you can always start over or alter the results by removing parts or adding other minerals to change the affect. The important thing to remember is that a creative work that is rattling around in your head needs to come out. Buy some copper sheeting or brass sheeting and create a piece of metal art today.

QuickShipMetals.com has a great selection of copper sheeting and copper foil, as well as brass sheeting that will please even the most demanding creative spirit.

Posted by Frank Ross at 10:50 am Tagged with: , , , , ,

Metal is the medium for this artist with an outdoor flair

Metal Art
Feb 012011

By Frank Ross

This copper repoussé of a Native American dancer is filled with intricate detail.

Kirk Sullens has a gift when it comes to seeing the hidden beauty in metal. He is the sole proprietor of Kirk Sullens Metal Arts, located in Mount Dora, Florida. His work, over the past two decades, marks the waypoints in a long and winding path that began by simply turning the pages of a book. Sullens describes himself as a bookworm, a dedicated bookworm, and relates back to the tome that started him on his journey to becoming a gifted metal artist. For him the first step toward his future was taken innocently during the 70’s, in what he described as his “back-to-the-land movement.”

“I picked up a book titled The Complete Blacksmith by Alexander Weygers and that changed my life,” he said. To him, blacksmithing looked cool and from the moment he read Weygers book he said, “I was hooked.”

He started out in his backyard and then got some instruction. Now, some 22 years later, he says he couldn’t imagine doing anything else.

Sullens was a long distance operator for AT&T when the company began cutting back its work force and offering to retrain their employees in another field. Seeing a great opportunity to further his passion for metalworking, Sullens asked if he could be trained as a blacksmith. Although he was told that he could never make a living as a blacksmith, and should choose some other line of training, he persisted and ultimately convinced them to finance his new passion for metal, heat and hammer.

Before his boss cooled on the concept, Sullens struck while the iron was hot.

This Native American themed lantern is one of a pair that graces the entry of the Bass Pro Shops/Outdoor World store in Broken Arrow, near Tulsa Oklahoma.

“I started looking for a school to train me and discovered the Blacksmith’s Gazette, published in Washington State. There was an ad in it for a school near where I lived in Missouri, but when I called about enrollment the instructor said that ad was old and he had stopped teaching,” he explained.

Either Sullens was destined to be a blacksmith and nothing was going to stand in the way, or he is one persuasive salesman because he convinced Bob Patrick, one of the country’s top blacksmiths, to teach one more student and he was soon pounding out 6 weeks of one-on-one training.

One thing led to another and Sullens found his way into a great job building custom designed metal art for Bass Pro Shops/Outdoor World many retail stores. After 15 years of creating all types of animals, countless metal railings, fireplace doors, lamps, lanterns and assorted decorative items he decided it was time to open his own studio.

Sullens uses a torch to bend a piece of steel forming a pair of antlers.

While his goals is to develop a trade catering to the horse people that are abundant in central Florida, he also creates commissioned projects for clients around the country, as well as following the many ideas that take root in his fertile imagination.

He is currently working on a sign for St. John’s Cycles a bicycle shop located in a nearby town. As fortune often smiles on Sullens, he was in the cycle shop to get a bike repaired and struck up a conversation with the owner, who was looking for a metal artist to build him a sign from an 1880’s advertising. The work features a steel shield, a bicycle and a copper repoussé of a naked woman with long flowing hair. He has completed the copper repoussé and expects to have the entire project finished before the February 14th grand opening.

This copper repoussé is part of the bike shop sign, and measures approximately 29 inches wide.

Sullens picked up his copper working style over time but he feels that his techniques became more refined after attending a workshop put on by George Dixon, whom he says is currently one of the best in the business. “I enjoy working with copper but it presents different challenges from doing repoussé in steel. Copper is very yielding to the tool and tends to show every tool mark, while steel is a much harder metal and doesn’t show the telltale lines created by tooling the metal into a raised form,” he said.

It was during the process of ordering materials to build the bike shop sign that he became involved with Storm Copper, and true to Sullens’ luck, this relationship has become one of tremendous satisfaction.

“I was ordering copper from another source but after several frustrating experiences I became very dissatisfied with their service, so I started surfing the Internet and that’s when I found Storm Copper. There was a little mix up with my order and I called their customer service department and spoke with a very nice lady who took down my information, then I got a call from another person who quickly followed up with more details. It seemed to me that everyone in that company had taken ownership of my problem and took a personal interest in resolving it and making sure I was happy with my purchase. I haven’t seen customer service like that in a very long time. I’m a Storm Copper customer for life,” he said.

This ornate metal screen features a copper repoussé of a four-foot alligator.

Although Sullens prefers to work in heavier gauges of copper, the airborne copper lady for his latest project was made from 18 gauge copper sheeting. Should you have a copper project in mind, Storm Copper has the perfect piece of copper to meet your needs and expectations. But if something should go awry between the order and the execution, one thing you can count on as sure as copper’s golden hue, the customer service can’t be beat.

You can see more photos of Sullens’ artistry at his page on FaceBook.

Order on line, or call our friendly customer service department toll free at 888-334-2177.

Posted by Frank Ross at 10:09 am Tagged with: , , ,

Copper Elements Art, Anne Goddard’s Passion for Color and Copper

Metal Art
Aug 192010

By Frank Ross

Anne Goddard is a bundle of artistic energy with a copper core. For the past 20 years she’s been working with metal in one way or another, and loves this versatile metallic medium. While Anne began her life’s work as a math analyst, when she got married and moved to North Carolina she added a second major in art to her math degree and her relationship with metal began to unfold.

“I was creating enameled jewelry for 17 years, but that required a lot of travel, going to art shows all over the country. My husband and I have three children, ages 13, 12 and 10 and I was ready for a change in direction that didn’t involve so much travel. I had money in the bank and a lot of inventory to sell, so I gave myself six months to experiment and find another passion,” she explained.

“I had seen a painting on a cylinder at an art show and loved it, but when I tried applying cloisonné techniques to a cylinder I had all types of problems with cracks. The cooling rate of the copper was different than the enamel and it wasn’t working for me. I tried doing some work with wall hangings on straight copper but that didn’t satisfy my creative spirit. I just started playing around with cylindrical, square and half-round structures and strips of copper, using a torch to get different colors and really liked the results. I don’t care for using chemicals, so for me the torch is the best tool for creating different colors in copper. The thing I like about applying heat to copper is surprise of color the torch can produce. You may be trying to get a particular color and end up with a different color that is just as beautiful, but unintended,” she said.

Her work involves a number of different types of copper, from flat sheeting to various types of wire and mesh in a dazzling array of striking colors that serve to brighten any room or decorative theme. Once a piece is finished, Anne coats it with clear lacquer so the colors are sealed and the copper won’t tarnish. The source of inspiration for Anne’s art work is found in that illusive spirit that speaks softly to the individual artist. Her source for copper to follow the muse’s whispered direction is QuickShipMetals.com of course.

Anne works out of two studios in Lincoln, Nebraska and her work can be found in numerous galleries around the country. If you’re looking for an unusual piece of artwork for your home or office, check out Anne’s work at copperelementsart.com. The combination of bold and subtle colors with a variety of textures and shapes creates strikingly beautiful accent pieces that may speak to your spirit as well.

Posted by Frank Ross at 7:30 pm Tagged with: , , , , ,

Techniques for Tooling Copper

Metal Art
Apr 162010

This beautiful piece of embossed copper art was created by Sheri and Ralph Meldrum. It was embossed then painted in oils, and is available at their Web site: http://www.sherimeldrum.com/new.html

By Frank Ross

Tooling is a process used to create designs in thin sheets of relatively soft metals such as copper. This can be done by several methods including embossing, pressing or stamping objects into the metal, transferring by overlaying and rubbing, and using various tools to dent, pierce or and hammer a design or shape.

Since the Bronze Age, copper has been a popular metal because it is soft and easily stretched and molded. Copper has similar tooling properties to gold and silver, but it’s far less expensive. The thickness most often used for this is 36-gauge, which is several times thicker and stronger than aluminum foil found in any home kitchen. Thicker copper sheeting can also be tooled, but they require greater force and are more challenging to cut. Foils are thin and conform to shaping and embossing with little force. Copper and brass foil can be readily cut to the desired size with a pair of household scissors or a utility knife.

A metal’s relative softness or stiffness is due to its temper. Tempering is a heat treatment designed to make metal more durable. Metal with a harder temper will feel thicker even though it measures the same as a softer metal. Metals with a higher temper will also be more resistant to tooling and shaping.

Copper foil is shipped in a roll while sheeting is shipped flat. Ripples or folds resulting from rough handling can be flattened by rolling the foil with a smooth rolling pin or piece of PVC pipe on a completely smooth surface such as a countertop or glass table.

To make an impression in the copper foil, place the metal on a soft surface such as a piece of foam, several thickness of soft cotton towels or a soft rubber matt. A stack of newspapers will also work, but not as well because it just doesn’t give as well when trying to create deep impressions. Metal art created in this manner are often referred to as a “copper relief.”

You can either tape a paper sketch onto the copper for a pattern, or make a rough sketch of your intended work with a soft-tip erasable marker. This will be the backside of your work. If you sketch your pattern, rub some wax paper lightly across the backside of the metal to be tooled. This will make your tools glide more smoothly when working the surface. Be sure not to get wax on the front side of your work because that will affect the patina of the copper. Following your outline, press down firmly with a blunt tool or ‘stylus’ to indent the metal and check to see if the desired embossed effect has been achieved on the reverse side. If you desire a higher relief, carefully repeat the process until the correct height is achieved. Blunt tools or styli are used to avoid accidentally poking a hole in the metal.

Your finished copper relief can be easily colored or darkened with prepared patinas. Also, by brushing paint or stain over the metal a similar effect can be obtained, but those are subject to being fragmented or chipped off with rough handling.

Another treatment consisting of buffing of the high lights with an abrasive pad gives an antique appearance.

As a piece of copper or brass is worked it will become stiffer. For high relief pieces that may be easily dented you’ll want to consider filled them with plaster from the back so they will not become damaged by handling. Another option for shallow relief pieces is to use hot glue, candle wax or paraffin will work if the finished work will not be placed in the sun or a hot environment.

Stamping, punching and piercing are very similar techniques that involve striking a tool against the metal with a mallet or hammer. Stamping leaves only an impression while punching and piercing produce a hole in the metal. You may be familiar with the most commonly available stamps for creating impress in metal; punches or stamps for numbers and letters. Without much effort, you should be able to obtain a variety of tools that create many different shapes and designs from commercial sources as well as improvised objects around your home or work area. In the early years of our nation’s history lanterns, boxes and pie safes were created with intricate stamped and pierced designs using only a screw driver, an awl or similar tool. Experimentation is always the key to innovation.

Create your own drawing and use that image to emboss your copper foil or sheeting.

Create your own drawing and use that to emboss your copper foil or sheeting.

Rub-transfers are another excellent option for creating intriguing designs by tooling metal. Designs and textures can be rubbed from many ready available things. Any raised surface with a design, from a coin to a piece of embossed jewelry can be placed under the copper sheet and transferred by rubbing or burnishing the metal over the object of choice with a rounded tool. Be creative in your thinking. The bark of a tree, a rubber stamp in your office desk, plant leaves, natural or any object with an irregular surface has the potential to add interest to a copper relief. The amount of pressure required to obtain a successful transfer will depend on the intricate detail of the object or texture that you have chosen to transfer.

Hammering a metal surface is also known as Repousse (pronounced rep-o-zay). By repeatedly pinging the metal with a dome shaped or balled peen hammer from the reverse side you can create a high relief shape in the obverse. Hammering can be used on thinner metal but care must be taken because working the metal too much makes it hard, brittle and therefore more likely to tear. By hammering metal repeatedly, you create a pebble-like texture that can be burnished out by rubbing it forcefully with a round, hard object. A wooden ball works well. For larger pieces, thicker metal is used so it can withstand much more hammering. However, there is always a trade off. Once the thicker metal becomes brittle it must be heated to a red hot temperature and quenched in a process known as annealing.

Brass is another option for tooling. It is a more tarnish resistant alloy of copper and zinc with an attractive gold-like color. It has similar properties for tooling compared to copper, although it is a bit stiffer to work with.

The best way to learn about working with metal is to do it, and there is no time like the present for starting a project. Quick Ship Metals has all the copper and brass foil and sheeting you’ll need.

For all your copper or brass foil or sheeting needs, shop QuickShipMetals.com online or give them a toll-free call at 1-800-334-2177.

To see more of Sheri and Ralph Meldrum’s work, it’s available online at http://www.sherimeldrum.com/new.html

Posted by Frank Ross at 10:41 am Tagged with: , , , , , , , ,

Enjoy a Metalic Momentic

QuickShipMetals Announcements
Mar 032010

As a collective society we tend to think of ourselves as very sophisticated, more refined and better educated than our ancestors. To some degree that may be true. After all we have the iPod and the iPhone, and some of us can actually use them.

Much of our national pride in anchored to technology, but just a few years ago only one in 10 homes in this country had a telephone. These wooden boxes with gleaming brass bells mounted prominently above the mouthpiece were considered a luxury. They were mounted permanently on the wall, connected to the world with small copper wires.

Politicians like to take credit for the fact that our nation put a man on the moon, but I can remember standing outside in our front yard, looking up in the dark sky, as the Russian Sputnik passed overhead. Sunlight reflecting off of its metal surfaces glowed brightly as neighbors remarked that people have lost touch with reality.

Sadly, they were right, but not for the reasons they were considering. In our rush to adapt new technologies, we have lost the connection to and awareness of things that were common knowledge for elementary students only a generation past.

For example, on a really cold winter’s day, people often say, “It’s cold enough to freeze the balls off of a brass monkey,” snickering at the visual image and sexual connotation that remark conjures up. But, historically, the term had nothing to do with the animal, nor its anatomy. In the early history of the world’s navies, power was projected with a fleet of wooden warships bristling with cannons and the will to use them. In battle, it was critical to have a ready supply of cannon balls placed in strategic positions on the gun deck. To keep them in place, they were stacked on a metal plate with indentations to keep them from rolling away. Starting with a base of sixteen, these square-based pyramids could hold a supply of 30 cannonballs in a small area next to each cannon. These monkeys were made of brass, so they wouldn’t rust in the harsh environment of salt and sea. Unfortunately, one thing the navy didn’t consider is brass contracts faster than steel. When it was really cold, the brass contracted so much it would literally squeeze the steel cannon balls out of the rack and they would roll about on the deck, while sailors scampered about to gather them.

And what about the term, right-hand man? We use it often, and although there is a general understanding of the meaning, the origin and importance of the term has been lost to a population with a disdain for history. During this same period in time, a gentleman defended himself with a blade of cold steal that he carried on his left side. If an enemy wanted to do you harm, all they had to do was win your confidence to the point that you allowed them to walk on your right side. When an assailant approached, the deceiver only had to do keep you from drawing your sword by restricting the motion of your right hand, and in the flash of a blade of steel you were done in. Therefore, only your most trusted friend was allowed to walk on your right side, and he became known as a right-hand man. Unfortunately, as Caesar found out the hard way, right-hand men could be bought for a price or the promise of power.

Only a few years back, every community had a blacksmith. Although scarce today, there are still many men practicing this time-honored craft. The term “smith” means they make things, or are craftsmen, and the “black” part of “blacksmith,” means that he is someone who works in “black” metal — iron — as opposed to the “white” metals such as tin or silver. While Hollywood has popularized the image of a man pounding out horseshoes in the old west, these craftsmen were important because they created many things that were necessary for our daily existence. From plowshare to wagon wheel, hinge and hearth as well as the cooking vessels than hung on the hearth, if it was made of iron, it came from the village blacksmith’s forge.

While we may have lost the awareness of these men and their skilled craftsmanship, we have not lost our affection for things of metal. In our homes and offices, we surround ourselves with metal décor and accent our rooms with stainless steel, copper and brass. Sure, it’s serviceable, durable and beautiful, but I think the reason we love metal around us runs deeper than we might imagine. There is a sense of strength and permanence in the touch of metal that connects us back to a simpler time when things were made to last.

In the coming weeks, I’m going to share an occasional “metalic moment” with you, and take a look at the techniques used to work with metal. Who knows, you might have the heart of a blacksmith waiting to be discovered.

In the meantime, if you’re considering a purchase of metal for a project, please evaluate the wide variety of metals offered at quickshipMetals.com

Posted by Frank Ross at 11:57 am Tagged with: , , , , , , ,

Sean Alton Enamel Artist

Metal Art
Jan 152010

Sean Alton creates beautiful metal art using copper and various enameling techniques. “The majority of my work is in copper. You can’t beat it,” Alston said.

Just watching the video will make you want to give it a try. Call our customer service staff to order your copper when you’re ready. 1-888-334-2177.

Posted by Frank Ross at 1:55 pm Tagged with: , , , , ,
© 2011 Quick Ship Metals News-Blog Suffusion theme by Sayontan Sinha