Now I think most folks would prefer to use hydraulic deep draw methods, but I still long sometimes for the sound of a raising room. And besides, the hydraulic press can only give you shapes and sizes for which you've got specific tooling. A few raising stakes and hammers give you much more unlimited potential products, once you're willing to spend the time. Peter
Peter, This is a common misunderstanding about deep drawing. The
deep draw tools give generic forms, eliminating much of the “grunt
work” of raising. They are not meant to be end products, but rather,
starting forms, saving time and energy, as well as less stress on the
metal. I still use my hammers and stakes after deep drawing, to
achieve a unique form. Think of the cylinders and domes that the
press produces as “3blanks” just as you might think of the flat disc
of metal as the starting blank for hand raising. You can check out
some deep drawn work at http://www.bonnydoonengineering.com on the
discussion group, and in the gallery, as well as at my web site, and
Phil Poirier’s http://www.poirierstudio.com
Cindy