Hammer and Tongs

Pea Pod


Quite a while ago I tried my hand at forging silver, and so entered " Pea-Pod"


It is made from a flat piece of silver plate approx 0.8mm thick and about 50mm long, to make it I used a template similar to the example below, feel free to copy it and use it.
Sizes are really to personal taste and can be altered accordingly.

The metal is bent ever so slightly along the dotted line, the open triangles pulled together and soldered closed.

I then mounted a doming tool into the vice, put the to be pea-pod down over it and started hammering and hammering and hammering ...... you get the picture.... P.S. anneal the metal regularly otherwise it cracks, been there done that, started again.

Once I had achieved the body shape I wanted, I bent the ends over and forged it some more to give an appealing curve as a pod would have.

Doming tools

I then made up some wire and drilled a hole at either end of the pod, this was onto which the "pea's" would be threaded.

The "pea's" in this case are haematite balls which were threaded but not fixed onto the wire so they can turn freely. the ends of the wire were then threaded through the pod and very very carefully soldered into place - don't over heat or cool to quickly; the haematite explodes very nicely and spectacularly with possible injury to self.

I have since leant how to do cold joins so if I try another one a cold joint it will be.

To continue however.... I kept the one end of the wire long, and this I bent or wrapped round a Drill bit (read mandrel....) to make a vine simulation onto which it hangs from a thick cord ...  

Pea Pod