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Challenge number one: -
How to re-discover the original lines of the carvings.

    ...I looked in my Fathers old papers, and found original drawings for a lot of his other works, - but inevitably, NOT this one.

OK, ...do it the hard way. 
Starting with the highest definition digital picture that I could take, I set up the 'puter, enlarged the pictures, and began to trace around the shapes.  Not as easy as you might imagine... when what you then see in close-up is all the peeling paint...

(Where are the original lines???? did the poor Lion ever have a nose? were it's teeth always crooked?  Where is the edge of it's ear?)

...After many hours poring over the detail, I eventually came up with some decent outlines to work from...  fine lines to cut to when carving. (the below are simply stylised pictures for the web... the real ones are much clearer)

...Then comes the inevitable, final designing of the main carcase.
(and fitting the detail to it, like the layout for the new lettering in the centre.)

Of course, there are many things which have to be considered; construction details like: -

How is it going to be Glazed? -It has to be Laminated Glass for safety reasons, but it will have to be inserted from the front, and made to look pretty.

How is it going to be supported? - where are the posts going to fit?

How is the back going to open? - to get enough access to the message pad, and to have an area for the posts to be positioned to mount the whole thing? 

My personal preference is to go for a message pad that slides in from the side; like a 'drawer', which will reduce the number of components, the number of moving parts, increase the integrity of the structure, and also make it easier for the person changing the messages to operate; in that they will only have to remove the slide, and not deal with doors or flaps and a removable message pad. - When it's raining or windy this would be a distinct advantage.  For clarification on this point though, I must refer back to the committee and await their response.

The overall design so far is now in these final stages...  I have scale drawings to work to, the Layouts for the lettering are done, all ready to print... and I have even ordered the Oak, -though I expect it will not be quite as fine as the Japanese Oak that Dad was able to obtain... so far I am about 40hrs into this project...

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Last modified: 06/20/07