Fabrication Archives - Donald's Innovations & Repairs

7-Foot Steel Stork Water Feature

Donald Dawson — Sun, 08 Jun 2025 15:26:25 +0000

This unique steel stork water feature was a dream come true for my client. He had two small metal storks in his garden that he loved, and he wanted a 7-foot replica for his fish pond, with water cascading from its beak.

Materials

Plasticine
Chicken wire
Paper
Plaster of Paris
Steel

Processes

See all stages below

A beautiful result

The sculpture took many months. My client was not in a hurry and knew that art takes time. He came to me in late summer and did not plan to install the stork until the following spring. Below, you can see the images at each stage of the process. Hopefully, the photos will tell the story better than words can.

Plasticine beginnings

To get the general shape of the stork water feature for modelling the 7-foot version, I began with plasticine, followed by a mock-up Plaster of Paris version. I used Van Aken Plastalina Modeling Clay because it models easily, is nontoxic and is reusable!

Notice the legs specifically. The body and beak utilize a frame of rebar tie wire to support the modelling clay.

Paper mock-up and measuring

The 84-inch stork has its paper patterns cut, ready to transfer to sheet steel. I taped it all up to make sure everything would fit well.

Before I began fitting, forming, and welding, I had to wait for the pump and hose parts to arrive.

CHICKen wire and paper mock-up

I mocked up tail feathers to see if the effect was right and later decided to make natural-looking feathers in steel rather than stylized feathers.

Plaster of paris to give it strength

This plaster stork mock-up evolved. The neck went through more iterations before I started the steel form. The water had to get up to the beak area of the stork and I had to figure out how to do that and allow enough space in the neck for that to happen. The 1" water pipe would be attached to the back of one leg.

Trial LEGS

The legs were next. The pictures show that the bird was too tall. I shortened them later!

trial beak

Welded steel neck and body

the pump's plastic tube fitting

Getting the right pump required research. Luckily, I found the pump locally.

The pump had to lift water at least 8 feet for a 7-foot stork and maneuver around a neck with twists and turns. It had to be controlled by a remote on-off wireless button. I used a 1" pipe size for water flow with a ball valve to control the flow.

I tried the beak on for size. The neck, which has an S curve, was the biggest challenge. Because the neck holds a plastic hose for the water feature, I had to create a round form instead of a tapered shape. Proportionally, I had to keep within a specific size.

The stork head and beak were finally mated to the S-shaped neck, which was welded to the body. Stuffing the 1.125" PVC hose up to the beak from behind a leg through the body was a huge challenge. I had to heat the hose until it was flexible enough, and I finally ended up with a 0.5-inch PVC hose pipe.

I welded the body and then fitted the neck and head.

cutting wings and parts

The stork water feature got a few feathers. I added a central tail feather to close the back of the bird and then welded the feet. The length, even though quite tall, was right for the depth of the pond.

In the picture, you can see the welding on the inside, which won't be seen outwardly.

client approval of the head and body Position and the Paint colours

Finally, the stork was ready, and the client approved the head and body position for his fish pond.

The stork got an undercoat and a final coat of paint. The body was to be brown with white wings, and I buffed down the brown colour to make it a less satin and more matte finish.

stone slab and feet anchoring

The stork got a stone paver to keep it upright. Though I didn't have the right diamond-tipped coring bits, I got away with carbide concrete drills and a percussion drill.

waterproof controller box and pump

I modified this plastic box, which would hold the cords and gadgets for the Koi pond, by creating diaphragms to weatherproof the box and wrap around the pumps and heater/ circulation cables entering and exiting the box.

installation day

By the installation day, the pond was clean, and a garden expert resolved the pond filter issues.

The post 7-Foot Steel Stork Water Feature appeared first on Donald's Innovations & Repairs.

Six Framed Stained-Glass Windows

Donald Dawson — Fri, 14 Mar 2025 19:26:38 +0000

The beauty of these stained-glass windows speaks for itself. When they came to the studio, they were six separate pieces of glass without frames. They now hang from three windows in our client’s home.

Materials

Angle iron
Eyebolt fasteners
Grey-black paint
Machine screws
S-Hooks

Processes

Grinding
Silver-soldering
Polishing
Cleaning
Painting

A beautiful result

These beauties were originally a pub's windows. My client stored them in a barn with a dream to frame them and hang two vertically, one on top of the other, for each of the three big windows in his home.

From a pub to a home

This is how they arrived in the studio, without frames, and needing a good cleaning.

measuring, Cutting & Numbering

I cut and bent angle iron to size to fabricate the six frames that would hold the stained-glass. Then, I stamped a number into each frame with my numbered metal stamps to create the order in which the windows would hang.

Before welding the angle iron to make the frame, I had to grind away the mill scale. After grinding, I drilled and tapped the holes.

Fabrication of angle iron frame

EYEbolt fasteners lined-up to be less visible

I cut the eyebolt fasteners and silver-soldered them in place. You’ll notice the pictures that show how they were first mounted, with the S-shape visible. When I checked in with my client, he asked that I affix them so that the S-shape would face vertically - like the spine of a book on a shelf - and be less visible. You can see the effect in the pictures of the hung stained-glass in the home windows.

Then, I painted each frame a black-grey.

Frames ready for drilling, tapping & paint prep

Frames ready for screw eyes & glass holder screws

Frame hanging sequence

Eyebolts installed but not cut & silver-soldered

cleaning each stained-glass window - with disinfecting wipes!

Finally, before installing the glass into the frames, I had to clean each stained-glass window, which had become dirty from being stacked in a barn for storage. The original pictures show their different levels of dirt and grime when they first arrived.

I had a massive container of disinfecting wipes from home. It was the only size we could find for personal use during the cold season - too big for home storage. I don’t know what inspired me to try them for cleaning stained-glass, but I did, and they worked like a charm.

Installation of glass in frame with hanging eyes installed

Frame facing room interior

Fitting glass into frame

installed Frames - a stunning outcome

Weeks later, when my client installed the framed stained-glass windows, he sent me pictures. I greatly appreciate clients sending me photos of the finished product in their homes.

I’m sure you’ll agree that it was a breathtaking outcome! I couldn’t have been more delighted.

Stained glass frames installed by client

The post Six Framed Stained-Glass Windows appeared first on Donald's Innovations & Repairs.

An Unexpected CBC Radio Interview

Donald Dawson — Mon, 02 Dec 2024 18:16:40 +0000

CBC Radio’s Margaret Gallagher, the host and producer of North by Northwest, BC’s highest-rated weekend show, reached out for an interview in early November 2024. Margaret meets creative people from all around the province speaking about their passions and inspirations.

Listen to the 11-minute segment by clicking here.

Invitation to an interview

"We're doing a series on folks working with metals, and I would love to come and visit your studio next week to do a taped audio piece," she wrote.

A half-hour turned into a whole hour of conversation about metal, metal fabrication, restoration, repair, and art.

These were some of Margaret's questions:

How did you get into working with metal?

I was always curious about how things worked. In our basement, I made steam engines out of tomato soup cans.

As a young person, I had a learning challenge and saw a child psychologist. When the psychologist discovered that I took apart clocks, he saw this as a problem. My parents and I did not. What he saw as a problem was my curiosity in action.

What keeps you working with metal?

One of the things I love about working with metal is the joy and surprise of forming metal into various and sometimes unexpected shapes.

And I love teaching and passing on my passion to people of all ages, from 5 to 95.

Listen to the 11-minute segment by clicking here.

machines and tools

We talked about the machines and tools that you can see in the shop, including:

A 1939 lathe from the Jericho seaplane base, which assisted in the repair of seaplanes protecting our coast
Oxygen and acetylene tanks and torches
A propane forge for heating big metal objects slowly and an induction forge that heats metal white hot in less than a minute
A 150-year-old Peter Wright anvil from the Nelson area possibly used in a mine.

restoring and repairing: getting rid of our throwaway society

We discussed how items that people bring to the shop for repair and restoration are rich in history and have sentimental meaning.

These childhood memories are significant and are a reminder of a treasured grandmother, grandfather, aunt, uncle and other family members. Clients who come with these items want to pass them down to the younger generation.

These family treasures are not only physical "things." They are full of memories, histories, and emotions - as if they have a life and a heart.

We don't have to throw everything away. If things are not repairable, we can recycle them.

whimsical art to engage visitors At the Eastside culture Crawl

Many items entertain and engage visitors of all ages during the Eastside Culture Crawl.

We show visitors objects in motion, like the two marionettes: a miniature blacksmith holding a golf club and a hockey stick on his back and whose hat flies off when he gets frustrated. A miniature metal anvil, forge tank and cat accompany him.

Then there's another marionette, Bucephalus, a steel horse weighing 10 lbs.

There is also a resonant metal violin weighing 7 lbs made without formal design drawings but created as close to a 4 x 4 adult violin.

And one year, we had a bicycle-powered pipe organ.

Culture Crawl Enthusiasts on Bicycle Powered Organ Pipe

creative and unexpected commissions

The stork is a water feature co-designed with a client who has two smaller metal storks in his garden and dreamed of having a large one for his fish pond.

For more information and for tours of the shop,

call Donald Dawson at 604-910-6427.

The post An Unexpected CBC Radio Interview appeared first on Donald's Innovations & Repairs.

Model Aluminum NASCAR Hauler

Donald Dawson — Mon, 08 Jul 2024 23:00:07 +0000

This model came from a semi-trailer kit. I converted the semi-trailer into a NASCAR hauler, adding a refrigeration unit and an interchangeable manual and electrical working ramp.

Materials

Aluminum sheet
Channels
Round tube
Brass chain
Miniature nuts and bolts
Electronic parts
Miniature reduction gear drive
Cyanoacrylate glue

Processes

Fabrication
Bending
Cutting
Drilling
Filing
Soldering electronic parts
Welding

A visit to the local lamborghini dealership

This project required in-person field research. There was a Lamborghini dealership nearby, and I'd been trying to see a NASCAR hauler up close but could never see them at the hours I passed by.

But one Saturday morning, on an early walk with my wife, we spotted a driver and hauler delivering a new car to the Lamborghini dealership.

The driver was friendly and keen about the project. He showed me around the hauler and let me take pictures. It turned out that he had to move an antique car from the top level to the bottom, so there was plenty of time to watch how the mechanisms worked, to study the structure and to ask questions.

This close-up study helped me accurately replicate the ramp.

Reefer unit and electronic ramp

To fabricate the reefer (refrigeration) unit, I drew it from a pattern and then cut it out from sheet aluminum. Then, I hammer-molded the round edges, welded the seams and screwed the reefer unit to the trailer. I also added pavement bumpers to the rear door, (which was also the ramp) and reflectors.

To create the electronic components and the drive for the ramp, I used an AA-size battery pack, a switch, a miniature gear reducer unit and extra gears.

By the end of the project, the ramp on this model could be raised and lowered by hand or by a battery-powered mechanical drive - just like the actual haulers.

After many weeks, the model's owner came to take it away. I had sent him pictures, and he'd come by weekly to see the progress. Completing this project was bittersweet, as it was not my model, and I enjoyed my client's weekly visit.

Thanks as always to @hobbiesmagicbox and Lee's Electronics.

Stages of the fabrication

The post Model Aluminum NASCAR Hauler appeared first on Donald's Innovations & Repairs.

New Legs for a Patio Table

Donald Dawson — Tue, 07 May 2024 15:28:17 +0000

My client's 90-year-old father loves eating outside on this patio table. The family wanted a new set of legs fabricated so that they could use the table for many years. The tabletop is unique. Even though it's not natural marble, it has a beautiful design, and the table has sentimental value.

Materials

Schedule 40 black iron pipe
Epoxy
Black matte paint

Processes

Fabrication
Painting

DAMAGE

This patio table came in for a completely new leg build. It was a project for my induction forge, hydraulic Hossfeld bender, ULTRA jig, and hydraulic press to tackle.

The legs and centre support were severely rusted. I had to heat and grind to help in their extrication. The biggest hurdle was to remove the bolts from the faux marble top.

The manufacturer had to pack the original legs flat for shipping on a sea voyage from China, to be assembled by the end user. Those legs were thin. This new fabrication and design created secure and robust joints meant for strength and durability.

The T-nuts were embedded within the marble. One of the T-nuts came out because the metric threads of the fastener would not budge and kept spinning. I secured it with epoxy, which seated it permanently.

Damage: rust and broken leg compared to finished product

rebuilding

I used my induction forge and hydraulic press to create the support tube that would eventually house an umbrella stand and secure the legs together.

Lessons along the way

I learned something new. In allowing the weld seam of Schedule 40 black iron pipe to be on a fold line, it split when folded. What helped aggravate the split was that I was cold-forming the flat area in my 55-ton hydraulic press instead of using heat to hammer down the flat area that I would eventually form into scrolls. To fix the issue, I welded the sheared seams. I'm glad it split because by catching the split and fixing it, I knew that it wouldn't show up years later rusting prematurely!

And then, another learning moment! It is never easy to drill a simple hole. For accuracy, I wanted to use the drill press, but no parts of the drill press would allow the size of the curved leg to be centred under the drill bit. Therefore, I hand-drilled the holes.

The legs slowly got their shape and curls thanks to my Hossfeld bender, ULTRA jig and induction forge.

Last stages

The patio table legs were ready for painting. These legs were to be shiny and clean for welding purposes. I do not weld through the finish, ever so that the black iron pipe would have a full penetration weld.

I cleaned off the mill scale and the lacquer finish and applied a matte black coating. It was great to get everything level and not rocking on one leg. The legs were aligned with their screw holes, ready for installation.

Finally, the patio table was ready for my client. You can see the side-by-side comparison of the old and new table support. Big difference! The original metal legs were much thinner, and the joints were weaker and didn't last long. These new table legs and centre support pieces will last longer because they are thicker metal.

finished product

special shout out

The induction forge is a fantastic tool. It helped me bend these legs. I used a pancake coil, which made short work of a long process of tweaking. Thank you, @coalironworks, for the induction forge, @cluaranforge for the coils, Yesteryear Forge for the ULTRA jig, and @derekmelton for his research and help.

The post New Legs for a Patio Table appeared first on Donald's Innovations & Repairs.

Creating an Armature for a Sculpture

Donald Dawson — Fri, 16 Feb 2024 20:16:30 +0000

Materials

Steel

Processes

Heating
Bending
Welding

THe Old Base

A local Vancouver sculptor, Louise Weir, needed a different base for her sculpture. You can see the original base here.

To this end, I fabricated a tall, robust, and varied-angle support post.

AN ANGLED hole in the sculpture

The head of the sculpture had a hole within it, and that hole was at an angle. Therefore, I had to bend the post so that it supported the sculpture.

CAREFUL HEATING

I cut the base plate with a slow-speed, steel-cutting hand circular saw. I used an acetylene and oxygen torch to control and pinpoint the heat on the steel as I formed the post.

Final Results

With its new base, this sculpture was ready for its new owner.

The post Creating an Armature for a Sculpture appeared first on Donald's Innovations & Repairs.

Repair of a Church’s Baptismal Ewer

Donald Dawson — Thu, 08 Feb 2024 21:17:49 +0000

This beautiful, coated copper Baptismal Ewer from the 1950s came from a church in West Vancouver. The president of the Altar Guild brought it to us, hoping we could repair it. It had a broken cross and a severely scratched front face. Though it had been repaired once before with soft-solder by a jeweller, the repair had not held.

Materials

Copper
Brass
Silver solder

Processes

Metal Fabrication
Lathe-work
Hand-work
Silver-soldering

Assessing the Damages

My objective was to design and build a base to secure the cross and eliminate the original repair's weak points. To that end, I planned to create a strengthening shoulder pad for the cross.

However, I couldn't remove the deep scratches without damaging the finish on the ewer, which had been coated. It was not worth the risk, and the scratches did not detract from the ewer's copper patina and overall look.

FABRICATION AND MODIFICATIONS

I did the fabrication on my 1939 (83-year-old!) lathe, including turning to make the contour of the base. I used a specialized slot-screw blade in the tool rest of my lathe until I had the right groove to accept the cross.

Then, I modified a tiny brass screw to attach the cross's base to the lid, drilled and threaded the base for the modified brass screw.

I silver-soldered the cross to the base and screwed the cross to the lid with a brass screw and washer.

The baptismal ewer now had a very stable cross on its lid. Once polished, it was ready to be handed back to the church.

To our surprise and great delight, we received an unsolicited review from the church. You can read it below.

“

As a volunteer at my church, I was responsible for getting a baptismal ewer repaired. A year ago, a jeweler fixed it, but the repair didn't last and the cross on the lid came off again. This ewer is very important to the church because it has been there since 1956. I searched and searched and I felt that there had to be someone in the whole of Vancouver who could do this repair and then I found Donald's Innovations and Repairs on Google.

He was very methodical in examining the baptismal ewer to see if he could do the repairs before he accepted the job. He then kept in touch via e-mail

with photos of the progress he was making and the whole job was finished in one week. We are very satisfied with the finished product - it looks great and will now continue to be of service to the church for many years.

Thank you Donald.

Elizabeth Marshall

The post Repair of a Church’s Baptismal Ewer appeared first on Donald's Innovations & Repairs.

Electrical Guitar Bespoke Tailpiece

Donald Dawson — Sun, 28 Jan 2024 22:29:14 +0000

I created a bespoke brass tailpiece and string divider for an elaborate and ornate electric guitar, which had to look as classy as the guitar. My client was happier with the design of this handmade tailpiece than the commercial ones he had seen, which was very gratifying to me.

Materials

Sheet brass

Processes

Fabrication
Cardboard & sheet metal mock-ups
Silver-soldering

CARDBOARD & SCRAP SHEET METAL MOCK-UPS MADE DESIGNING EASIER

My client and I went through many iterations to find the right look. First, I made cardboard patterns for mock-ups to make designing easier. Brass is not cheap and challenging to get from suppliers, so mock-ups are the best way to see the shape. I then switched from cardboard to scrap sheet metal to get the shape of the bend and the right look.

Why didn't I use 3D CAD drawings? Here's why: It's better to see the physical piece on the guitar rather than try to imagine it in a drawing. Also, I fabricated this tailpiece from scratch and not from a casting.

intricacies & Difficulties of the project

The brass tailpiece required gentle forming to create a slight arc. The tail had to curve down and be angled so the strings would rest properly on the bridge. At the steel mock-up trial stage, I narrowed the smallest end.

The silver soldering process went without a hitch, and finally, the electric guitar had a bespoke tailpiece with the string mount silver-soldered to it.

Then, I polished the top of the tailpiece, and a local company nickel-plated the whole tailpiece.

This project was particularly difficult because I had to create a hydraulic press die and fabricate the die from individual parts welded to create its unique form.

The post Electrical Guitar Bespoke Tailpiece appeared first on Donald's Innovations & Repairs.