Friday Sampling

After lunch on Friday i got into the big section and onto the Massey. 

These are the really big samples i worked on. Got to say these six were some of my faveriotes of the ones i have done. All of them have been cut with the grinder. I tried using traditional smithing techinques to cut with a butcher but it got too hot over the period of cutting. So i said fuck it to the banter of be a proper blacksmith and took the easy option of using a grinder which is alot faster and easier. Sometimes got to use these modern techinques.

This is the first one i did. A piece of 35mm round section cut off at 100mm. I cut it twice with the grinder before putting it under the Massey. Why this was a bit of a turning point for me was this is when i really ramped up the heat. Before this i was bringing the steel out around yellow but with this one it was sparking white and the look is completley different. I am thinking that bringing it out right at its plasticity stage is the best time to get it under the Massey as it reacts in such a unique way. Why i like this particular piece in terms of style is the cuts are straight on the ripples making the lines alot stronger.

This was a piece of 40mm round cut off at 120mm with 3 grinders cut on the same side. When it went under the hammer it changed straight away, it began to crumple on the cut side building up one of the most unique ripples. I like how the lines pulling away from it make up like a stacking of the crumplings, it visually seperates the four pieces. I want to work more with this idea of controlling the crumpling with the use of cuts.

This is a piece of 40mm round cut of at 120mm with 3 diagonal grinder cuts in it. I really love this one because of how it reacted under the hammer. You can really see the seperation, the lines break it up into different sections. The top section is forced into the bottom making that really great ridge unchanged. When there is parts changed and those that you can see havent been touched by the hammer. I really want to try some more with the diagonal cuts to see if i can replicate this effect some more.

This was one of the more exicting pieces. I went mad on this with the grinder, it had diagonal cuts. Horizontal cuts. I had no idea where it was go, it could have sprung out all over or like it did pushing down forcing the lines out. I think it is a nice sample but there is just too much going on for me, i like the lines but there is too many. You cant really take in the subtle lines when there is so many going on. To me this is too far and I think that is a good thing, that i have seen what is too far just need to latch onto what is not enough.