My Latest Project

[alex_holden]

 

Here's a picture of the first completed part for my latest project. It's 50mm (2") across, painstakingly hand-cut from tough 1mm stainless steel. I blunted and snapped more small drill bits and jeweller's saw blades than I'd care to admit.

 

Anyone care to take a guess at what it's going to be?

[RAc]

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Edited March 4, 2016 by RAc

[brandon]

Might it involve a performance when done?

[Geoff Wooff]

A doorbell suround ?

[alex_holden]

Geoff's got it. The button will be in the middle of the flower. The idea came from Geoff Crabb's shop doorbell, mentioned by conzertino on a recent thread.

[DaveM]

Is that an anglo or English button layout?

[Don Taylor]

Is that an anglo or English button layout?

Depends if it goes ding-dong or ding-ding.

[alex_holden]

Welsh.

[Geoff Wooff]

Geoff's got it. The button will be in the middle of the flower. The idea came from Geoff Crabb's shop doorbell, mentioned by conzertino on a recent thread.

So have you a concertina sound for your 'someone's at the door' button ?

[gcoover]

Would also be good for playing Jobim's "One-Note Samba"!

[Wolf Molkentin]

beautiful piece of work Alex, worth every bit and blade needed...

[Frank Dudgeon]

 

Is that an anglo or English button layout?

Depends if it goes ding-dong or ding-ding.

 

Thanks for the laugh Don. Very good.

[MatthewVanitas]

Would brass be a lot easier to cut while still being weather-resistant? Or is stainless hands-down a better option for doorbell plates?

[alex_holden]

 

Geoff's got it. The button will be in the middle of the flower. The idea came from Geoff Crabb's shop doorbell, mentioned by conzertino on a recent thread.

So have you a concertina sound for your 'someone's at the door' button ?

 

One possibility I've been considering is to get a recordable electronic chime like this one, pull the circuit board and speaker out of it, and mount them in a concertina-styled wooden box. Then you could record your own 'somebody at the door' tune on your instrument of choice.

[alex_holden]

beautiful piece of work Alex, worth every bit and blade needed...

Thanks!

[alex_holden]

Looks like you put an infinite amount of work and heart into it! Thumbs up!

Thanks Ruediger!

[alex_holden]

Would brass be a lot easier to cut while still being weather-resistant? Or is stainless hands-down a better option for doorbell plates?

It would certainly be easier to cut. I had initially been thinking of using nickel silver (which is actually a type of brass) but went with stainless steel after Geoff Crabb told me that's what he'd used on his original one. In my (limited) experience of exterior brass door furniture in rainy parts of the UK, they look very shiny when brand new but after a few months the protective lacquer starts to chip away in places and eventually the brass underneath tarnishes, first in small spots where the lacquer has gone, and after a few years they become covered all over with a dull greenish patina.

 

BTW the button and the two 'end bolts' are also going to be polished stainless steel.

Edited October 19, 2014 by alex_holden

[alex_holden]

I found this comment on a different thread but I think it was meant to be posted here:

 

Nice work.

All by hand? That's a lot of work.

The pattern seems to be a particular kind of flower but

I can't put my finger on it.

Thanks! The shape of the flower was stolen from inspired by the air button on a Jeffries Anglo (and similar patterns on several other makes of concertina).