I'm working on a floral gate commission at the minute that uses a lot of small diameter round bar steel wrapped around the frame (leaf stems and climbing shoots) and I realized I needed a way of calculating steel lengths for the wraps etc.

After a bit of research I came across braid on braid mariners rope which is sold (in the UK at least) in the same diameters as round bar steel, which is very handy. I'm sure there's lots of other objects that will do the same job but some plus points are - it's perfectly round, if you're careful with it it doesn't kink and will hold it's round shape when bending/wrapping it at sharp angles, it's pre-stretched, it's colourful so it's easy to find, if you buy each diameter in a different colour you can differentiate each piece without needing a caliper, cheap to buy online (though I bought mine in a shop). I did see some small diameter rope that held it's shape when bent because it had a wire centre, but it was a lot dearer and I think that only come's in 6mm.

Needless to say you can't use it on hot steel.

Solder sometimes can be used. It bends easily and conforms to many shapes. It comes in several different diameters. The length is the contact length, not the center length, so adjust as needed.

You can use the solder to capture different shapes, scrolls, angles, etc.  and then bend the metal to match. Final fit can be tweeked as needed.

 

I like the idea of different size rope.

Because it matches steel bar sizes exactly it works like a charm for mapping out the paths of vine tendrils. Just draw around the rope to mark your path & away you go. Leafy garden plan support structure/bird feeder commission in progress.

Looks 'zippy'

That is a great tip.  An excellent way of accomplishing a difficult task with minimal additional investment.

neat

Very nicely done Joel.

Frosty The Lucky.

I like the idea of getting the right diametre for the job, i've been using stainless steel cable that was left over from a job I did (was used to suspend a sculpture from a ceiling).