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I Forge Iron

Leaf and flower swages


Ted Ewert

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I've been trying a number of swages and shaped tools to aid me in the making of flowers and leaves. Here's a few I have built recently..

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The rings are nice for bending the edges of the leaves or ends of the petals. The one with the three 1/2" round bars I use for putting ripples in the leaves. I also stuck a 3/8" fuller on the end just cause I needed one. 

Here's a couple of the products these helped me make...

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Ted

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I have a small utility anvil I built which I attach my fixtures to. They bolt down nice and solid and I work the piece there. My system isn't very traditional but it works for me. 

The stems are the trickiest part to get right. I usually weld them on and then spend a lot of time carefully grinding and filing. I have a MIG welder with flux core wire and it's anything but a clean attachment. I over weld and then grind to suit. Nice clean metal helps, but I still get pin holes. Someday I'll get a nice TIG welder. 

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I forgot to add that the leaf above was not welded, but part of the parent stock. This makes the transitions smoother, but I also used a guillotine tool with a fullering die to help taper down to the stem. 

Nevertheless, I seem to get better leaves when I cut them out of sheet metal. Maybe it's a result of fewer heats, less scale and an even thickness. 

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I get a good stem transition by doing my necking- down on the horn with a rounding hammer. I neck in close to where I want it, then work my way up till I'm happy. Then I just go the other direction to do the stem. I do the whole thing on the horn, with minimal cleanup on the face.

Steve

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