by Walter Yetman
Flowers can bloom any time of the year using some basic machinery and a little creativity. The materials needed for this project can be purchased at any hobby store. An evening or two spent in the workshop will produce a beautiful bouquet of brass flowers!
Beginning with a template, I scribed the petals on a sheet of .025″ thick brass sheet. A pair of aviation sheet metal strips was used to cut out four pairs of flower petals. Until all of the sheet metal pieces were deburred, I wore gloves to protect my hands. (Nothing can ruin the enthusiasm for a project faster than a nasty cut. Safety First!) Use a file to deburr the sharp edges of each petal. After deburring, I went over each petal a second time to be sure no sharp edges remained. (Use a file, belt sander, or deburring tool, but please be careful to remove sharp edges.)
The four pairs of petals were clamped together on a hardwood block. A center punch was used to mark the clearance hole for the 4-40 NC socket head screw that would hold the flower together. Use a No. 32 drill to drill through the petals. After drilling, the work was unclamped and each hole deburred.
The stem began life as a 5/32″ solid brass rod 12″ long. Using the lathe, hold the rod with a collet and face it off. The end of the rod is then center drilled and drilled with a No. 43 drill bit. Tapping the end of the stem for a 4-40 NC thread completes the stem.
The stamen of the flower consisted of three pieces: the base, the stamen rods, and the stamen tips. After the pieces were fabricated, they were soldered together, creating the stamen.
“A Brass Bouquet for Mother’s Day” appears in the upcoming April/May issue of Machinist’s Workshop. If you are a subscriber, stay tuned! The issue will be in the mail soon!
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