Here is just one of several pictures from July 2001, when the bell
joint was finished and bent. The lead that filled the bell during
bending is being poured out after the whole bell is immersed in molten
lead. The vat of molten lead is underneath the horn. Just visible in
the picture is the stream of lead pouring from the narrow end of the
joint and splashing on the bell rim. The minute or two it takes to do
this is the hottest I have ever been in my life.
Skip ahead to some pictures from summer 1999 with the bell branch completed and polished, but not yet bent.
This is a photograph of me at Atelier Harlow in Tokyo during the week
of 24 March 1997 as I started construction on a natural horn. At this
point I had just finished forming the main bell section.
I'll have
some more (and better) photos about Atelier Harlow and natural horn
construction soon.
Meanwhile, Japanese readers can refer to the excellent
Natural Horn pages by
Kohei Deguchi. Those who can't browse or read in Japanese might still
want to check out the numerous pictures there.
The construction of a bell starts with scribing a template form onto
sheet brass, then carefully cutting out the form, then breaking any
sharp edges.
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The bell sheet is then successively formed by repeatedly hammerings on
a mandrel. Hammering hardens the metal, so after each hammering the
sheet brass is heated to dull red which softens and realigns the
crystalline structure of the metal. The actual working of the brass,
however, is always done at room temperature.
Various forms, clamps, and hammering techniques are used at different
stages in the process of forming the main bell section and the
separate bell "triangle". Just visible in this photo is a large ridge
or crinkle that forms as the hammer bends the sheet around the
two-dimensional curve of the mandrel. This ridge is hammered out by
moving it toward the edge of the sheet with careful hammer blows.
This is what gradually reforms the structure of the brass sheet. The
process is repeated many, many, many times, with frequent reheating of
the metal to eliminate the hardening that hammering causes.
Modern bells can be "spun" as a single piece, but it is quite
difficult to form a complete bell from a single flat sheet. The
extreme flare of a horn bell thins the metal too much.
The main bell section and triangle, now ready to be cleaned in an acid
bath, trimmed, and then welded into a complete bell.
This one picture was taken a year later (but after less than two weeks
more work). The bell has been assembled, the seams rolled flat, and the bell flare
partially shaped prior to rolling on the mandrel.
Continue on to a few pictures from summer 1999 with the bell branch completed and polished, but not yet bent.
