Neat Little Project

eligius1427 - Monday, December 29, 2008 - 10:05am

Hi All, Things have been a bit hectic the past couple of months, but was able to get a few things done in the process. Here is a neat little project i just finished for a local grade school. The outgoing class(5th graders I believe) had organized fund raisers and such and wanted to do have a sculpture of their mascot made for their entrance hallway. The basic concept came from a drawing by a local cartoonist that the school uses for mascot representation. Everything was laser cut, then textured using a plasma torch with a gouging tip, then clear coated. Can't wait for the kids to see it when they come back to school.

Jake

Jake Balcom
Mettle Design
Lincoln, NE

beattie bobcat 1

beattie bobcat 2

beattie bobcat 3

beattie bobcat 4

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mascot

lin - Monday, December 29, 2008 - 11:11am

Jake, what a fun project! I love the depth you put into it. Lin

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Thanks Lin, just a little

eligius1427 - Friday, January 2, 2009 - 1:01pm

Thanks Lin, just a little texture and depth can add so much to a "flat" piece in my opinion.

Jake Balcom
Mettle Design
Lincoln, NE

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Layers

Frank Castiglione - Monday, December 29, 2008 - 11:41am

Hi Jake,
Excellent,dude. I love the layering, you did a nice job. I've been contemplating a sculpture utilizing this method. You have inspired me to follow through.
Peace,eh?
Frank

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Thanks Frank, cant wait to

eligius1427 - Friday, January 2, 2009 - 1:02pm

Thanks Frank, cant wait to see what you have in store for us.

Jake Balcom
Mettle Design
Lincoln, NE

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Bobcat sculpture

Emfairmeadows - Monday, December 29, 2008 - 1:17pm

Really nice work Jake! I bet the students will be very happy when they see it.
Elizabeth M. Meadows
Mother, Metal Sculptor in that order.

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Very Cool!!!

SteelyJan - Monday, December 29, 2008 - 3:48pm

Very nice Jake....I'm sure the kids will love it....What fun!!!! SteelyJan

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Thanks Janet, this was a

eligius1427 - Friday, January 2, 2009 - 1:04pm

Thanks Janet, this was a pretty fun little project

Jake Balcom
Mettle Design
Lincoln, NE

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Thanks Elizabeth, I have to

eligius1427 - Friday, January 2, 2009 - 1:03pm

Thanks Elizabeth, I have to wait till the 5th to find out. I wish I could just hang out in the hallway to watch their expressions.

Jake Balcom
Mettle Design
Lincoln, NE

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That's a cute mascot and the

marilyn - Monday, December 29, 2008 - 6:01pm

That's a cute mascot and the interpretation in metal is very well done

marilyn

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Thanks Marilyn Jake

eligius1427 - Friday, January 2, 2009 - 1:05pm

Thanks Marilyn

Jake Balcom
Mettle Design
Lincoln, NE

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Awesome

Chuck Girard - Monday, December 29, 2008 - 6:53pm

Hi Jake,
Hey that looks like me on Monday Morning!!
Great Job, I like the layerd effect.

Obviously the Critter is cute, but how you created this cute little guy really sets it off.

My favorite aspect is how you used the gouging effect for his fur.

Again, Great job I'm sure the Children will be delighted!

Chuck

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Thanks Chuck. I discovered

eligius1427 - Friday, January 2, 2009 - 1:08pm

Thanks Chuck. I discovered the uses of the plasma gouging torch for texturing while working on another project a few years ago and have ended up using it many times. There are a wide range of textures at your fingertips with a little patience and practice.

Jake Balcom
Mettle Design
Lincoln, NE

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Hey Jake, Awesome work! I'm

Jamie Santellano - Monday, December 29, 2008 - 8:01pm

Hey Jake,

Awesome work! I'm sure the kids will love it!!! Congrats!

Cheers! Happy New Year!

Jamie Santellano

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Thanks Jamie, im supposed to

eligius1427 - Friday, January 2, 2009 - 1:11pm

Thanks Jamie, im supposed to get some feedback Monday afternoon, so we'll see what the kids have to say about it then. The student council was actually my client so it was fun discussing details on the the design and such. Kids are super creative and much smarter than i expected, lol. Hopefully this matches the image they had in their minds.

Jake Balcom
Mettle Design
Lincoln, NE

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Hi Jake, Pretty nice. We all

NELSON - Monday, December 29, 2008 - 8:22pm

Hi Jake,
Pretty nice. We all seem to agree on the issue of layering. Without that technique I would never have been that good. I`m guessing you plasma cut the stainless... nelson.

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Thanks Nelson, I agree with

eligius1427 - Friday, January 2, 2009 - 1:13pm

Thanks Nelson, I agree with you on the layering. The budget for this project was very small, so it was a very effective and economical way to get some depth across. All of the pieces were laser cut out of 14ga hot rolled mild steel.

Jake Balcom
Mettle Design
Lincoln, NE

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Yeah, that is so cool!

visitor - Monday, December 29, 2008 - 11:12pm

Yeah, that is so cool!

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Great job Jake! Well

Fred Zweig - Tuesday, December 30, 2008 - 7:31am

Great job Jake! Well excecuted and the rivets are well placed. Great Idea!

Best,
Fred

Fred Zweig
Metalsmith

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Thanks Fred, the rivets are

eligius1427 - Friday, January 2, 2009 - 1:16pm

Thanks Fred, the rivets are actually cap screws and were probably the most difficult part of the project. I wanted to hide the bolts that attach the piece to the wall, so I welded nuts on the back of the base layer and then bolted that to the wall. The subsequent layers are attached with screws and spacers to give the appropriate depth. I tried to make them as inconspicuous as possible.

Jake Balcom
Mettle Design
Lincoln, NE

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What a fun

Paula - Tuesday, December 30, 2008 - 7:27am

What a fun project!!
Paula
Guthrie, MN

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Cool

warren - Tuesday, December 30, 2008 - 9:25am

Jake, that is really cool. Love the texture and the layering. Some times these "little" projects we learn so much from. I am sure the kids will love it.

www Metalrecipes -- heat and beat to the desired shape, repeat as necessary.
warren

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Thanks Warren, You're

eligius1427 - Friday, January 2, 2009 - 1:21pm

Thanks Warren, You're definitely right about learning. I learned more than a few things on this one, but it was worth it in the end. I'd love to try this technique where every layer is textured and see how it turns out. Maybe as more of an abstract piece. Well, add one more project to the yet to do list, lol.

Jake Balcom
Mettle Design
Lincoln, NE

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Hi Paula, this was a fun

eligius1427 - Friday, January 2, 2009 - 1:17pm

Hi Paula, this was a fun project. almost all of my input was from grade school kids and it was great hear their ideas and get the input of young creative minds.

Jake Balcom
Mettle Design
Lincoln, NE

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ArtMetal

Navigation

Neat Little Project

mascot

Thanks Lin, just a little

Layers

Thanks Frank, cant wait to

Bobcat sculpture

Very Cool!!!

Thanks Janet, this was a

Thanks Elizabeth, I have to

That's a cute mascot and the

Thanks Marilyn Jake

Awesome

Thanks Chuck. I discovered

Hey Jake, Awesome work! I'm

Thanks Jamie, im supposed to

Hi Jake, Pretty nice. We all

Thanks Nelson, I agree with

Yeah, that is so cool!

Great job Jake! Well

Thanks Fred, the rivets are

What a fun

Cool

Thanks Warren, You're

Hi Paula, this was a fun

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