Gayle Brooks Posted January 15, 2012 Share Posted January 15, 2012 Share a small side coffee table project24" wide x 44" long and 16" tall. Bad boy weighs 67 lbsLink to work in progress pics: http://isolatedreality.com/featured-articles/hand-forged-coffee-table-garbduthmak/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trinculo Posted January 16, 2012 Share Posted January 16, 2012 Very Nice. I really like your work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beth Posted January 16, 2012 Share Posted January 16, 2012 love it rory - looks like leaf springs somehow - but with better gorgeous texture - would love to see it from above... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FieryFurnace Posted January 17, 2012 Share Posted January 17, 2012 That really looks great! I hope I can design/build pieces that look that good some day. Just beautiful! I do have a question! I am familiar with the process of drawing a project, transfering it to a steel table via chalk and silver pencil, and then forging to fit the drawing. It looks like you forged the table to fit the paper drawing, skipping the transfer step. Is that correct? If so, how do you keep from burning the paper up? It seems like you would have to compare the hot metal to the drawing, for adjustment. Or, with practice, experience, and just doing it all the time, are you able pretty much to visualize and forge the steel to the drawing without constantly comparing it to the drawing? I'm very interested in how that works. I also checked out your websites......really really neat! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HWHII Posted January 17, 2012 Share Posted January 17, 2012 NICE! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
r smith Posted January 17, 2012 Share Posted January 17, 2012 Nice work as usual. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gayle Brooks Posted January 18, 2012 Author Share Posted January 18, 2012 @FieryFurnace Most of the side jobs I get are small and have to be able to remove it quickly if I need to make room for the larger project. So no I dont typically transfer to the table and yes I have to be careful not to trash my full scale paper layout. Work around this would to paint some Masonite and transfer / mount the layout on that. Then you can store it and leave the work area available. In this situation I knew what my radius for the legs were and bent them to that measurement. I could take my material measurements off of the drawing and get to forging. Everything else was done cold for tweeking and adjusting. When the table went 3d and I stood it up, my layout on paper was now a reference and my job now was to finish it so its function was that of a table. Though I might in-vision what it will look like when it is done, I am always in awww when its nearing complete. The importance of that drawing and layout is so important, in that you can visualize and for see any issues before you really get working. Good questions and thanks again :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FieryFurnace Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 Thanks for the detailed response. I like how you classified this as a "small side job." A table like that would be a momentous project for me. LOL The biggest project I've done is a toss up between a fireplace mantel and a 3-foot by 4-foot fireplace screen. LOL I did get to price a large table once....17-inches wide, 12 feet long, 30-inches tall. Guess the client didn't want to pay four grand though. He never responded. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dillon Sculpture Posted January 19, 2012 Share Posted January 19, 2012 Nice table Rory, inspired by a bridge? The double decker is a great idea! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gayle Brooks Posted January 20, 2012 Author Share Posted January 20, 2012 @FieryFurnace In relation to what Dragon Forge LTD does this was a small job. This table had its challenges and at one point the whole thing has racked on me and was turning into abstract art. I hope I didn't portray this as a simple project, because it wasn't. At times some of these small projects are like family...you love to seem them arrive...happy to seem them go! @ Danger Dillon Not sure where the design really originated from. I had a week off of work and brought the client into the studio and we started to design it. I knew I was trying to focus on something simple and appealing. The smaller shelf inside the table appeared in the 11th hour when I saw there was actually room for such a thing. I had tried to get some brass straps and collars in there, but he declined the idea. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FieryFurnace Posted January 20, 2012 Share Posted January 20, 2012 I can only imagine it being racked! LOL That'd be tons of fun! The last class I took out at John C. Campbell had a couple of racked pieces including mine. One guy made a three bottle wine rack and it was racked in every direction known to man. The teacher was exasperated. My project was off a bit....the frame was about a 1/4" off. However we were able to adjust it. (Design pictured here. http://www.davesdiscourse.blogspot.com/2011/10/last-of-drawing-pictures.html) Another student had a table that racked pretty bad too. One of my teachers told me that his disclaimer was "design subject to change under progress." Sounds like that almost became the table's story. You didn't portray it as a simple project. It definately isn't that! I always think it's funny though when I compare my "small job" to an established full timer's "small job". "Small job" is a custom colonial hook for me! Whenever you have time, post more pictures of what you're working on. It's neat looking at nice pieces and seeing how they were made and designed. I've looked at some different work by very skilled artisans and craftsmen, but I've only seen a couple where I particularly like the style. I really like the style of work that I've seen in the pictures of y'all's work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kustomsteel Posted January 27, 2012 Share Posted January 27, 2012 Excellent work Rory! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gayle Brooks Posted February 17, 2012 Author Share Posted February 17, 2012 thank you! :) Owner loves it. Send me a picture recently and was happy to see it doing its job as a table Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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