Sculpting an African Mask from Copper - Chess Set Challenge 2020

Описание: #blacksmith #blacksmithing #sculpture

In this video, I make another chess piece, this time exploring western African tribal art, in the form of a miniature copper mask. Forging copper is a different experience than forging steel, for a few reasons. Firstly, copper is a much better conductor of heat than iron and I have found it is almost always necessary to use tongs to hold your piece, rather the simply holding the bar itself. Secondly, you must be very vigilant in heating copper in the forge, as it will only shoe an orange heat at forging temp. Rising above that heat, the copper just melts, destroying the piece. Thirdly, as copper is so soft, I find, that you can continue working the piece after it cools off and continue working it until it begins to work harden. This does allow you to get things done more quickly as you don't need to reheat the metal every minute. The softness of the material also moves differently under the hammer or when using chisels and punches........so you will need to adjust your force levels appropriately.


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