Purple Snails

[Rasper]

Down here on the southern Pacific coast of Mexico, we have a small snail that excretes a purple dye, which has been used for fine cloth for many centuries. I have a good friend who is really into purple snails. He goes into the ocean and finds snails, removes them from the rocks, milks them, and puts them back on the rock so they keep on growing.

I needed some tanks (oxygen and acetylene) and, come to find out, he had some. His dead father had them. Big ones. He said he would lend them to me, long term, and asked me to cast some purple snails in bronze.



He loves his snails, and I love having tanks almost as tall as I am. I only use gas to weld my bronze sculptures—and I'm 70 years old. I'll probably die before I have to refill them.

Richard

[mite5255]

Hi Richard, I always envisage you as a younger man, its amazing the perception we can have at times

[dallen]

I think you will find that they won't last that long

[Rasper]

I think you will find that they won't last that long

You're right. It's amazing how fast the stuff runs out. I also have a longevity problem. My father's brothers and sisters (13 of them) mostly lived into their 90's, with several living to be over 100.

Richard

[dallen]

I think you will find that they won't last that long

You're right. It's amazing how fast the stuff runs out. I also have a longevity problem. My father's brothers and sisters (13 of them) mostly lived into their 90's, with several living to be over 100.

Richard

Richard, I hope you live a long and fruitful life. Me I'm old enough to know better then to tell others how old I actually am.

NIce job on the Snails

David

[Rasper]

I poured more snails today. These are larger.

[Rasper]

And yet more snails are in the works. It seems that people love them; everyone around here wants their very own snail—go figure.

Here is the wax ready to be invested.



Those two strange looking thin vents from the bottom have a purpose. They allow the escape of air, but more importantly, they will be welding rods. I make one or two welding rods whenever I can.

And here is the flask. I use a double layer of plasterers lath as reinforcement inside. I remove the sheet metal flask before burn out.



But where is the poured investment? Well, I was planning to photograph it but I forgot. It's in the kiln now. Too late.

More later.

Richard

[Jammer]

Are these going to be the new "Pet Rocks"? I'll have to look around here for some snail shells to try out.

[Rasper]

Are these going to be the new "Pet Rocks"?

Too much work. Picking up rocks is easier.

I poured it today. It's our rainy season now so I had a clear day and figured I had better use it even though I suspected that I hadn't burned out the investment quite enough. I was right about that. There was a little steam but I got some good snails.

Here is the investment right after the pour. And a couple of ingot molds.



And the furnace with the Lionel Hot Shot oil burner. (Do I win the ugliest furnace award?)



And the snails:



And the bad side where the steam was.



I also dropped the investment on my foot when I was turning it over. OW! My wife is applying ice packs while I post on forums.

Richard

[dallen]

nice snails, hope nothings broke in the foot

DA