For this project, I practiced using methods of plasma cutting and metal post processing to create some steel vintage grapes (black and white as we ran out of color spray painted coats). Here is how this process went down.
First, I created an Adobe Illustrator file that looked like a small bunch of grapes but also fit within the design constraints of a small diamond. I ended up with a vector file like the one below. 
From there, I went ahead and turned on the plasma cutter and picked a piece of steel that was big enough to cut out 3 bunches of grapes. After running the first dry run, I then cut out a single bunch of grapes to see if the design proved to be difficult. I saw that the first piece of grapes cut out very smoothly and I went ahead and cut the other two pieces out.
What resulted was 3 bunches of grapes cut out of steel sheet metal.
All 3 of the pieces seemed to be cut out without excessive slag. Regardless, I went ahead and used the angle grinder to attach the rough edges and a metal file to take off the larger chunks of slag. The final product after these steps were two steel shiny grapes with relatively smooth surfaces.
I then decided to sand blast my bunches of grapes to allow the spray paint to stick on to the surfaces. However, the sandblaster had been down. So, I had to leave my grapes untreated and hope for the best whenever the time came for them to be painted.
To paint the grapes, I chose white protective spray paint for the stem and black for the actual grapes themselves. I spray painted the steel in stages and taped up the sections of the steel in stages as I spray painted them.
What resulted were some black and white grapes seen below.
I was content with most of result, however I would have wished to sandblast my pieces as the paint didn’t sit too well surface of the steel. Regretfully, I had an uneven spread of black paint on my grapes as this bottle of paint was beginning to run out. I also wish to have used different colors to make these bunches of grapes actually look like grapes.
Regardless, this was a fun introductory experiment that familiarized me with the once, scary plasma cutter and metal post processing methods.
COST
- 4 hours of labor (@$20/hour)= $80
- Hot rolled sheet of steel = $6.67
- Spray Paint = $6.68
- Machine Shop Membership (@$30/month) = $30
Total Cost = $123.35
