Daiku Woodworks, based in Creston, British Columbia, reached out to me in late December to see if I would forge some door hardware for their custom, handmade oaken front door. Needless to say, the answer was an enthusiastic yes!
The pieces need were a door knocker, decorative strap hinges, window decoration and iron studs. Later, the client asked for a metal panel over the window interior that could be opened. All pieces were finished with linseed oil and beeswax mix.
For those interested in the details of the ironwork, here are closeups of each piece.
Door Knocker
Starting with a piece of 1/4″ x 2″ scrap steel bar, the flower was hot chiseled and shaped. The bottom flares were also hot chiseled and forged to shape.
The knocker is a 1/2″ square bar with a 3/8″ x 1″ collar forge welded onto the center. The ends gently taper and are twisted, then bent round to form the circle shape. A small gap was left between the two ends, and a small piece welded in behind the clasp to prevent the knocker from spinning.
Detail of the clasp, riveted into place.
Decorative Hinges
Because the door opens inward, I was asked to provide hinges that were decorative in nature. They are still quite sturdy, forged from the same scrap of 1/4″ x 2″ bar that was used for the door knocker. The same flower motif is applied at the end of each hinge, with a set of leaves at the base. I was grateful for my Little Giant hammer when drawing these bars out.
Window Decoration
This was the part I was most uncertain about with the joinery involved, but with a few trials and patience I was able to create this cage to the dimensions required. It was all forged from 1/2″ square bar.
The “legs” that attach to the door were punched and drifted to accept the twisted cross bars. There was a challenge there as the twists were out by a few degrees and required adjustment after the piece was assembled.
Window Panel
This was an additional request from the client after he had seen the exterior. It was kept simple in design intentionally. Two hinges and a simple latch hold the panel in place. The panel was made from a piece of 1/16″ sheet steel (new, unfortunately) but I gave it some texture and ended up with a really interesting oxidized finish by heating in the forge.
The U-shaped anchor holding the latch is attached to the plate by creating two tiny tenons on the ends of the “U” and riveting it into place.
