rough and ready repousee

[Dan P.]

I don't post here (or anywhere else) very often, but I thought somebody might enjoy these photos of my repousee process.
This was a job I did quite a while ago. I was making some leaves and other elements to replace those on an old gate that had rusted away. I was sub-contracting for a metal restoration company, and I'm afraid I've no idea where it ended up, but I like to think it was somewhere rather grand.
So, to start with, find a spot in your workshop that is comfortable, uncluttered and clean;


Preferably with an inspiring view;


Then trace your pattern onto your steel (in this case I used an existing leaf that i had flattened out);


Here it is traced out;


Here is the punch that I use to do the outline, it, like all my punches, is made from coil spring;


Here is the outline partially done;


And completed;


Then the rest of the details are penciled in;


Here it is with some of the surface detail added. you can see the two punches involved, one blunt and one somewhat sharp;


Which you can see better here;


Then works starts from the back;


Etc.;


The punches used from the back;


Then it's worked from the front;


And from the back again;


After going back and forth to my satisfaction (I can't tremember if I normalized or not), the shap is cut out;


Using this carefully heat treated chisel (the punches are not heat treated);


And here's the lead I used to work on;


A bit rough, but adequate for the job and to speed!
Hope this is of interest to someone.
-Dan

[Bad Creek Blacksmith]

Thanks Dan, I like it might have to try it some time and add it to a project.

[Dick L.]

Dan that is a great step by step account of the process with photos and explanation! Thanks for sharing .

Dick

[kasper]

Thanks Dan this is the kind of work and infoe i enjoy seeing on this site,a breath of fresh air,thanks for sharing.

[ironstein]

beautiful work!

[Bentiron1946]

That was a lot of pounding! Thanks for the how to do it. B)

[pkrankow]

What thickness metal did you start with?

Very inspiring. Thank you for sharing.
Phil

[beth]

thankyou so much dan that was vrey beautiful and fascinating - like soomeone just said - not so much of this kind of thing on the forum but its something im very pleased to be shown ! thanks for posting - post more!!! :)

[Pat Roy]

Nice demonstration Dan. What material are you working,gage etc.? How long does it take to make one? How much do you get for these? Looks like a lot of work, but I'm interested in trying.

[Dan P.]

Thanks to all for the kind comments.
I do not remember all the details of this job. I think the material was 1.2mm or 1.5mm. They took about 45 minutes each. I used a big hammer to get them done quicker. The finish on them is rough, I am slightly embarrassed of it. If I were doing it again, I might do a final pass from the back on the anvil (rather than the lead) to get a smoother finish.
I do this type of work very, very rarely, and that being the case I am not sure what the correct procedure is until I've done about five. It is often a safe bet that at least the first will not be fit to be submitted to the customer. I have done a considerable amount of repousee-ish sheet work since doing this job, and I'm sure next time they'll look a lot better.
How much did I charge? I think it was between £35 and £45 per piece.
-Dan

[Pat Roy]

That's awesome Dan, Thanks again. Hmmmm...I don't have any lead.

[Shakeypm]

Dan,
I know that I am a day late and a dollar short because you wrote this so long ago. I think you nailed it as to producing a teaching tool! very informative and to the point!
I love doing Repouse' and use it regularly to highlight a piece of work. a small star or heart or any other "Detail" seems to add a great deal to what otherwise might seem a simple piece. I did a "leather fire helmet" in steel that got Repouse' on the front shield that was made of copper giving a very "leatheresk" feel to that piece.

Thanks for the post!
Steve

[Dan P.]

Thank you Steve, I'm glad you found it interesting. Repousee seem often to be overlooked, perhaps because people think it too "dry" a technique, or a bit girly, or too difficult, but it really has a lot of applications, even practical ones.

[Dodge]

Fantastic demo!! Thanks, Dan!. My only question is: Was the whole thing done cold? You mentioned normalizing but just wondering if heat was used during the hammering. Thanks again :)

[Frosty]

Repousse is not only a legit form of metal work but has all kinds of room for learning and uses. A really good way to learn the technique is by using Altoid or cookie tins. Attached is a cookie tin I gave it a try with. It's a rough piece but the tin holds my repousse tools and it puts a grin on my mug.

Frosty the Lucky.

[Dan P.]

Thank you, Dodge. I did it all cold. With material of that size there would be no point to do it hot. Doing it hot requires a little more tooling, stakes and so on, but not a lot. I think I may have started out "normalizing" but by the end I had ceased to bother. Mild steel is very forgiving and can be pushed pretty hard.
Dan

[Dan P.]

Repousse is not only a legit form of metal work but has all kinds of room for learning and uses. A really good way to learn the technique is by using Altoid or cookie tins. Attached is a cookie tin I gave it a try with. It's a rough piece but the tin holds my repousse tools and it puts a grin on my mug.

Frosty the Lucky.

Frosty, that is awesome!

Not in reference to your piece, Frosty, but using repousee you can nail your family Xmas gift list in an afternoon; bracelets, belt buckles, gew-gaws etc. using bits of scrap and what have you. It is September already! Repousee; for profit and for fun!

[Frosty]

Thanks Dan. Repousse is great for gifts, especially the tins. They're deep draw steel so you can move them quite a bit without annealing and with minimal practice you can decorate them and they'll still work. Maybe best of all you HAVE to empty them first!

Frosty the Lucky.

[Dodge]

Thank you, Dodge. I did it all cold. With material of that size there would be no point to do it hot. Doing it hot requires a little more tooling, stakes and so on, but not a lot. I think I may have started out "normalizing" but by the end I had ceased to bother. Mild steel is very forgiving and can be pushed pretty hard.
Dan

Yeah, I re-read and saw the material thickness. D'oh!! I'm going to have to give it a try. One more thing to add to "The List" :rolleyes:

[ThomasPowers]

Frosty; I recognize the self portrait; but who is the little guy standing in front of you?

[Ted T]

Dan, Thank you very much!
I always appreciate when members take the time to share their knowledge and talent with us.

About 7 years ago I was fortunate enough to have some Repouss’e training by Naham Hersom who is a blacksmith and lives in Boise Idaho

He is considered to be a highly accomplished craftsman in the skill of Repouss’e, especially by the older generation of the craftsman community who knew of his work.

The training was fast, direct, and demanding. I am glad I did it, but I would not put my self through it again. He was in his 80’s and I was in my 60’s. He just never stopped going from early morning to evening time. But it was all worth it!

Over time I have learned how to incorporate Repouss’e pieces into my blacksmithing protocol. I believe some of the nicer looking bits of work that I have turned out were enhanced by combining the finely detailed pieces of Repouss’e with the stronger, robust, and supportive material that was created over the forge and anvil.

I would strongly suggest that if someone is looking to enhance a special project, you may seriously consider combining some Repouss’e into it.


The best of forging to you all!
Ted Throckmorton (AKA) Stone

[Frosty]

Frosty; I recognize the self portrait; but who is the little guy standing in front of you?

A snack with it's own tooth pick.

Frosty the Lucky.