Manky Monkey Motors

As Kapri and I'm sure a few others know, distraction therapy is used for pain management and is also good for depression. The idea is that if your brain is fully occupied on a task it has less time for things like pain. You do however have to take physical limitation into account or you can easily make matters worse.
Building stuff and learning new things has always been my therapy but had to find a new smaller short term project that I could do in short stints.
With valentines day approaching I figured learning to make steel flowers might be a good one.
Not quite finished, lots of leaves to make.

Beautiful as always Dave. I wish I had a fraction of your skills.
So are you going to reveal how you created them?

Flippen elk Dave, what Manky says

Fabulous!

brilliant.

Thanks guys. They could be better but for a first try I'm quite happy. Not trying to do any particular flower but they are sort of rose shaped.

Basically each flower is made of three or four graduated sections. The edges have to be shaped while hot due to the reverse compound curves.

I know it been a while but just realised I didn't put up any pics of the finished flowers. So just in case anyone might be interested.

great work, as always.  ;)

They're fantastic buddy

You could put those in that museum I went to?

Love how they intertwine to stand up.  :)

Thanks folks.
Pretty sure I'm good enough for any sort of museum/exhibition.  :D But I do enjoy working with hot metal.

OK so it doesn't work as pain management when you burn yourself.

Well it certainly must've distracted you from your other aches & pains!

Wow, nasty. Acriflex burn cream - brilliant for burns (obviously  :)). Best straight away but even afterwards it works well. Perhaps all Mankies who weld or work with hot temperatures (and no, I don't mean a fever  ::)) ought to have some handy.

It certainly did for a while but I don't recommend it.

Thanks JJ. Will try to get some for future mishaps. There are bound to be more.
After this and looking at all the scars on my arms from previous burns, mainly from welding but also hot exhausts etc. I have ordered some leather to make a pair of vambrace.

Ouch,jeez I feel your pain sir

Looks like a good housewarming present for me. I'll send you the address.

Don't think the missus would be too happy Archie.
To prevent further damage to my arms, a pair of vambrace I knocked up out of 3mm thick leather.

But on the flip side mine would be very, so the universe is evened out

 :o Seriously Dave -anyone else would just pull their sleeves down! You've got more talents than any one man has a right to ya know.

You beat me to it Andy. Dave, stop showing the rest of us up! :D
Only joking. It is great to see what you can do. Those guards are beautiful. Living a lot of my life in Walsall, home to many leather suppliers and manufacturers and in particular saddlery, (hence the Walsall football club's nickname is the Saddlers), I've always loved leatherwork and used to make a few things myself many years ago. Nothing like these though. 8)

 Thanks guys.

;D Sleeves catch fire too easily   :D
 Overalls don't stand up to metal at forging temperature (1200 C) and clothing with man made fibres like polyester or poly cotton blends, can make things worse by melting into the skin.