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I Forge Iron

Hanging Plant Holders


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Howdy folks,

Lately I've been focused on some basic, traditional items. I've wanted to do sign holders for a while, and I thought a hanging plant holder would be a good place to start. I did this piece from start to finish last night. It was the first one I've done like this so it is a little rough. The scrolls are all done by hand. It would be nice to get a jig set up so that they are a little more even.

They aren't the best of pictures, but please feel free to offer any advice or critiques. I think I will be giving this to my Sister as a belated birthday present.

hanging-plant-holder-2.jpg

hanging-plant-holder-1.jpg

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Two rivets through the scrolls, and a tenon on the end of the lower bar with the hook. One thing I did mess up, was trying to flatten out the places for rivets on the scroll. I should have scrolled and flattened where I needed to after, using the horn of the anvil. Instead, I scrolled what I thought was the right amount, then used a ball pein as a set tool to make the flat spots. I ended up flattening the scroll in the totally wrong place because of this. You almost don't notice it, but it is sure there... Also, one of the rivets doesn't sit flat against the scroll.. It has some real rough spots on it, but it was fun :P

The next one will be better! hehe.. :)

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Your hanger looks good and it will make a fine present. I have been turning out a lot of heavy weight plant hangers this past year. We use .25 in x 1.5 in back plates and .5 in sq arms. One model is rivited and then other is tennoned. If you want to you can weld over the back plate rivets-tennons. One safety suggestion, make sure the end user knows enough to properly mount the hanger to something that will hold the intended weight. A big plant basket (12-14 in) fully loaded and watered will have some heft.
Peter

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Did you ever use a rivet set?


I have not yet. My friend has some, and we discussed using it on this project, but it was late, and out buried in his van somewhere. We talked about making one, etc. Seems like a handy thing to have. The rivets I did over the horn of an anvil, as I could slip the end of the horn in between the scrolling.
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We descale, hand sand, clean with thinner and then put on two coats of primer. The finsih coat is also a two coat process. This technique seems to hold up well outside through Maine winters. I admit that the oil finish looks handsome and we use it on inside products but it simply does not hold up outdoors in this part of the world.
Peter

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That is a nice piece of work. Items of that nature make most females smile. You should have a happy sister. The tenon and rivets make it even better. I know it's easy and convenient to turn on a welder, and arc welding does have its place. But, for me, traditional joinery makes the project seem more hand crafted.

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Your hanger looks good and it will make a fine present. I have been turning out a lot of heavy weight plant hangers this past year. We use .25 in x 1.5 in back plates and .5 in sq arms. One model is rivited and then other is tennoned. If you want to you can weld over the back plate rivets-tennons. One safety suggestion, make sure the end user knows enough to properly mount the hanger to something that will hold the intended weight. A big plant basket (12-14 in) fully loaded and watered will have some heft.
Peter


Good point about the weight. These days it seems, a screw is a drywall screw- one size fits all.
Perhaps provide the customer with the correct fasteners?
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Dan,
drywall screws get used for everything, and it becomes a problem when weight is applied, the screws have absolutely zero shear rating, this can lead to nice pieces being found on the ground. I have a bunch of the old 4 sided lag screws in many different sizes, I'm trying to figure out how to make a decorative feature on them, while still being able to use them on mounts and such. So far all tests have not gone well.

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Use punches and chisels to put a design on them, or try using an old fashioned hand held masonry star drill to put a cross on the top

Just heat the heads and put them through a bolster plate to support the head whilst putting on the design, or you could make them like the old nailheads with various hammer strike patterns, or rosettes.

Or make yourself a touchmark and use that on them.

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