Hello everyone,
Most of your questions this week were related to safety in Chasing
and Repousse. Here are some important tips to help you enjoy chasing
and prevent injuries.
-
Always use eye protection, while you chase.
-
Do not hold the tools tight, this will damage your hands.
-
Use only well balanced, properly made tools. Make each tool off
the smallest possible size steel stock. -
Do not substitute the tool you need with just whatever else you
have. Use the right tool for the right job. -
Position the pitch bowl at a chest level. Having it too high, or
too low will cause back and neck pain. -
Use an adequate ventilation when melting the pitch. Dip your
fingers in water before manipulating the hot pitch. If the surface
appears to be glossy, the pitch is too hot to handle. 7. Take a 15
min. brake for each hour of chasing.
Surprisingly the other popular topic this week was raising hollow
vessels and sculptures.
I do teach raising. Please, contact me off the list if you are
interested. Teaching this technique requires lots of demonstrations
and explanation, I wouldn’t even dare do this via Internet, but
here is a valuable advice. If you are already taking classes in
raising, be sure your teacher understands and introduces you to the
safety precautions first. Raising, if not properly done will damage
your hands permanently in only a few months. DO NOT study with
anyone who has less than 9-10 years of experience. The most
important rule in raising is: let the hammer do the work, not your
body. Thanks to all of you who have contacted me. Have a Happy
Halloween. Valentin Yotkov