Went to Colonial Williamsburg. The smith there was doing rose petals.

Saw a guy hammering out a full rose from one piece of bar stock. Took him maybe 30 minutes start to finish. Told me he learned it from an old master in England back in the 80s. Anyone here ever tried forging thin petals without ripping them?

3 comments

3 Comments

hayden1442d ago

Honestly, 30 minutes for a full rose from one piece of bar stock? That's insane. I've been messing around with a coal forge for like two years and I still can't get a petal to not crack on me. Feels like I'm learning a secret language when I see a guy move metal like that, from raw steel to something that looks alive. I bet he's got calluses as thick as a horseshoe from doing it a thousand times.

jake6382d ago

Three years back I built a small propane forge in my garage just for thin stuff. @hayden144 I went through a box of rusty horseshoes practicing before I even touched bar stock. The trick for me was heating the metal to a bright orange, almost white, and then letting it cool a little before I started hammering. If it feels like it's starting to stiffen up on you, stop and stick it back in the fire. That extra heat gives you the time to shape the petal without it grabbing and tearing.

terryk101d ago

Wait, you mean there's an actual trick to it and I've just been winging it with rusty rebar and a prayer? Sounds like I need to go watch that guy for a month straight... if my hands don't fall off first.