Continuing on the metal mania !

         This one is for all my readers( or is it peeps now? :)  who put up with me randomly using metal working terminology like piercing , acid etched, raised and patina. I thought I ought to put up at least a basic description, so here goes;

Pierced copper on a brass base
© 2011 Nayna Shriyan

• Texturing: while a common enough term for any creative people that work with the visual arts, in metal working, texturing is not as easy as it often requires, special hammers and tools. (The most basic of texture, like stripling( tiny dots ) requires the use of a pointed tool and a hammer and the

  

  Hammered texture on Brass
  © 2011 Nayna Shriyan

  ability to hammer away like a woodpecker! Some are more complex requiring special punches ( tools with textures engraved on them) some require putting your sheet metal through a rolling mill (a machine with textured metal rolls ) .
• Pierced:  This refers to any design that has been cut out of a sheet of metal without disturbing the edges of the sheet. It involves drilling a hole at the required spot, then threading the fine saw of a piercing saw( a special saw that has thin blades that can be attached and detached at both ends as required) through the hole and sawing out the portion of metal that needs to be cut out.

• Acid Etched: Acids such as nitric acid in the right concentration can be quite corrosive, using this fact to advantage designs can be etched onto sheet metal. Basically it involves protecting areas of your design that you intend to keep intact with a acid resisting paint ( sometimes referred to as resist) this can be wax, or plastic tape or a specialized paint meant for this purpose, then immersing the sheet into a tub of acid solution. The acid eats away at the sheet metal and leaves a clear defined design.

  

  Acid etched copper
  © 2010 Nayna Shriyan

• Annealing: Probably a technique that precedes  any metal working activity and takes the least amount of time. This involves heating the metal sheet to a dull red and then cooling it. Some people like to quench the metal in water immediately ( dip the metal into water). This softens the metal and not only does it make the metal easier to work with but also avoids accidental tearing of the sheet.

So now you know of at least some of the mumbo-jumbo I keep talking about, I will be posting about more terminology soon! So what do you would I make a good teacher, does the explanation make any sense, do leave you comments folks , would appreciate the feedback! :)