Darry l N e l son ' s
The Sea Eagle
By: Darryl Nelson, NWBA
Darryl will be judging the animal
heads portion of the competitions
run out of the education tent at the
ABANA Salt Lake conference next
year. See page 22 of this issue.
Using ¼-inch by 1-inch flat bar, draw down a one-sided
taper, taking care to constrain any growth in the thickness
of the stock as you work. Figs. 1 & 2
The taper should measure 1¼inch long when measured along
the straight side of the bar.
Each of the competitions will
have three divisions, novice, intermediate and open. The novice
project for the animal head competition will be an animal head out of
flat stock, such as 1-inch by ¼-inch bar.
To define the beak, turn the bar
over and place the top of the taper
over a round edge of the anvil
and using half-faced blows make
a shoulder (set transition) with a
depth of ⅜-inch and a length of
⅝-inch. Maintain the parent stock thickness. Figs. 3 & 4
In the Summer of 2011 issue of the Hammer's Blow, Darryl showed us the "Two-dimensional Bear's Head." In this
issue Darryl will demonstrate "The Sea Eagle." Both projects
would be appropriate for the would-be novice competitor.
On a sharp nearside edge of the anvil or anvil block hold
the stock with the proposed face down. Hold the stock so
that the shoulder you are about to create is angled back
towards the head from the top of the beak. Fig. 5
Tilt the stock to constrain the shoulder to the upper half
of the beak. Fig. 6
Draw a one-sided taper on the end of 1" by ¼" flat bar
Over a round edge of the anvil, shoulder the top of the
taper
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The taper should measure about 1¼" long measured
along the flat side
Shoulder in for a depth of ⅜˝ and a length of ⅝˝
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Hammer's Blow
For article related videos—visit the www.youtube.com/user/hammersblow web site
T h e S e a Eag l e
Match your hammer to the angle of tilt and deliver more
half-faced blows to the stock, taking the stock down to
⅛-inch thick at the top of the beak, feathering out to zero
midway through the beak. Fig. 6
You will note that this move sets the orientation of the
head, left or right facing, depending upon which side of the
bar you worked on.
The cheek is defined in a similar manner, with the stock
held over a sharp offside edge of the anvil or anvil block.
Hold the back of the beak against a sharp, nearside edge
of the anvil
Chamfer the top of the beak and head
The result of creating the two shoulders
This time tilt the bar the other way so that the shoulder
extends from the bottom of the head forward towards the
head and away from the body of the eagle. Fig. 8
You should see two parallel shoulders coming from opposite sides of the bar and each extending halfway across
the bar. Fig. 9
With your hand hammer, chamfer the top and bottom
edges of the beak, head and throat from the shoulders you
just created. Fig. 10
Tilt the bar away from the bottom of the beak and
match the bar angle with your hammer
Move to a sharp offside edge and create another shoulder for the cheek, again hold at a slight angle
Chamfer the lower beak and throat
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Fall 2015
For curriculum related videos—visit the www.ABANA.org web site
5
Darry l N e l son ' s
Use a ¾-inch ID curved chisel to create an S-curve linking the two shoulders together. It is an advantage to have
the chamfer of the chisel be on the convex surface as that
helps to push out material away from the cut and headed in
the right direction. Figs. 11 & 12
At this stage you need to round out the shouldered areas
of the beak and start to give the head a 3D look. Fig. 13
Using a small, hand-held side set, chamfer the top half
of the upper cut and the bottom half of the lower cut to
further help in defining the beak and head. Fig. 14
Use a 3/4" ID hot chisel with the chamfer on the outside edge
Here is the result of using the curved chisel
Use a large diamond shaped eye punch to create the eye.
The eye punch is diamond shaped about ⅜-inch tall and
½-inch wide. The corners of the diamond are rounded
slightly to give the eye a more natural look.
Stamp the eye so that the top of the eye is just above the
bridge of the beak and about ⅛-inch behind the curved
chisel cut. Fig. 15
The same curved chisel can now be used to cut the stock
and form the eyebrow. The brow can be slightly altered later
in the process to give the eagle a little more attitude. Fig. 16
Create an S-curve around the two shoulder you created
earlier
Use a small side set to push away the outside edges of
the S-curve
The curved chisel is used again to start the eyebrow
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Hammer's Blow
For article related videos—visit the www.youtube.com/user/hammersblow web site
T h e S e a Eag l e
To help give this bird the appearance of movement, make
a chisel cut along the center of the bar from the eyebrow
back towards the body. Make a slight cut from the front of
the brow coming towards the beak area. Figs. 17 & 18
The small hand-held side set is again used to set down
the material above and below the eyebrow, making a sharp
ridge. Continue to work around the eye, pushing material
away from the eye, to make the eye stand out more. Fig. 20
Use a straight chisel to create a racing stripe at the back
of the head to denote speed
The result of the chisel work thus far
Run the eyebrow out to the beak with the side set
You can use the side set to further define the lower edge
of the eyebrow, running into the beak and give the face a
little more attitude.
When you have finished around the head, work on both
sides of the straight cut along the center of the bar. Fig. 21
Continue the eyebrow on to the top of the beak
Use your small side set to push material away from all
the chisel and eye lines
Widen the racing stripe to denote greater speed!
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Fall 2015
For curriculum related videos—visit the www.ABANA.org web site
7
Darry l N e l son ' s
The cut for the mouth is formed by using a combination
of both a straight and curved chisel.
Starting just shy of the tip of the beak start the mouth
with a straight chisel. Finish the mouth with a curved chisel
as you near to cheek shoulder. Figs. 23 & 24
Push the lower edge of the mouth down with the handheld side set to give the upper half of the beak a superior
look. Fig. 25
The pupil and nostril are formed by using a center punch.
Angle the top of the punch towards the tip of the beak
and make the nostril slightly larger than the pupil. Fig. 26
The tip of the beak needs to be turned down to finish the
head. Be careful not to turn too little stock down and work
either on the bick or heavily rounded edge of the anvil face.
Figs. 27 & 28
Cut the back of the mouth with your curved chisel
Finish cutting the mouth with a straight chisel
Use a side set to bevel the underside edge of the mouth
A center punch is used to create the pupil and eye
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Hammer's Blow
For article related videos—visit the www.youtube.com/user/hammersblow web site
T h e S e a Eag l e
Darryl uses these figures as ends to straps and hinges that
support beams and doors in cabins of the Northwestern
USA for what he calls Cascadian design.
Darryl will also be teaching at the ABANA Salt Lake City
conference, July 2016, and will be a clinician for one of the
evening competitions held in the education area.
Darryl Nelson owns and operates his own business as a
professional smith as well as running a school for smiths at his
place of business in Washington State.
You can contact Darryl at:
E-mail: [email protected]
Turn the lower third of the beak over the bick
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Fall 2015
For curriculum related videos—visit the www.ABANA.org web site
9