As we continue our orrery project, it is time to blow the glass planets. As the whole piece is only 6 feet in diameter, that means we have less than 3 feet to fit in 8 planets (they didn't want Pluto). To get the planets to fit, be relative scale (impossible to be "actual" scale), and not clunk into each other, the inner planets need to be fairly
Enjoy The Full Story...
I made my own gear yesterday!! I'm so proud of it I could just burst.
A little background - I'm building on orrery (model of the solar system) for the astronomy department of a college in San Mateo, CA. We've built similar things, but of course, every new project requires new skills and stuff that we've never done before. For this piece, called
Enjoy The Full Story...
Previous posts have focused on the rocket that is the center column for our orrery. The one pictured here doesn't have the bottom section with the fins, but our new one does. Now that the rocket has been carved and the holes bored into it to accept the drive tubes, it can be put aside for a bit and we move on to the next section - The
Enjoy The Full Story...
The fins are finished! They were cut from solid cherry boards with my radial arm saw and trimmed up with my bandsaw. The blade on that could use some replacing....
Enjoy The Full Story...
It's finally stopped storming, so I can continue to work on building my rocket ship today. Why does it matter if it's storming? Some of my equipment (lathe, drill press among other stuff) is out on a covered deck. The covers keep them protected when it rains, but I'm not too good with my hands when it's cold and wet. I have very low blood pressure, so if my
Enjoy The Full Story...
I got the rocket carved for the Orrery that we're making!!!! Yay!!! It was cold though, but not raining. You can see me all bundled up. I actually have three shirts on and two pairs of sweatpants, and gloves. I'm coated with sawdust, as is everything else. It gets in my hair, up my nose and under my contacts, but it's actually a lot of fun to get
Enjoy The Full Story...And so goes the whole dynamic of the developmental process. You can never say for sure when the thing will be done. You'd think people who are in the business of education and science would understand this concept, but they don't seem to... or at least the ones who hire us don't seem to.
When we first got approached by the group that wanted the orrery, they were looking
Enjoy The Full Story...
I'm a professional artist, working mainly in glass for the space industry. My partner and I create some of the most incredible glass sculptures having to do with rockets, planets, galaxies... It's an extremely fun career!
All Handmade in the USA
Handmade in the USA