Coated steel rods 10-24 diameter, 1 feet & 3 feet lengths
Copper Strapping 1/2 inch size
Copper Wire
Hexagonal Nuts also 10-24 size
No-slip discs for feet furniture grade, nutted on the rods
(The sculpture I call “bee” for now…next will be adding aluminum mesh then concrete…)
*am looking at an iroda lighter & aluminum soldering rods though-*wondering if I should solder the joins, but husband says no welding for me…(I possibly tend to agree…)
Notes:* I put the rod through one hole in the copper strapping…Then I put the other, or the others, into adjoining holes of the copper strapping…Then I used the hex nuts on either side of the copper strapping to hold the strapping in place on the rod…I did this on each rod…That is how you can join two or more rods together without welding…In fact, it might be a stronger join, since copper strapping holds up to 60 lbs, & the nuts hold that in place well, you are not heating any metal which could make the metal weaker…&…Oh…Sigh…I’m a girl…I’m probably trying to justify this because at most I can see myself soldering with aluminum solder & a tiny Iroda lighter…I’m a little intimidated by welding, especially since while interviewing the Ironman (his company name) about welding, he said that you have to get used to burning yourself alot…(Now he may be a sloppy welder & some may say that they don’t burn themselves, but still, he is a pro & I have to respect a fair warning…)
So this was my genius solution…(I’m also having fantasies about crazy gluing the joints on this to be surer, or maybe JB weld 2 part epoxying, just for the sake of it all…) I did copper wire the joints to be sure, but…well, sigh…We’ll see how it holds up to weight…
*next step, tying on aluminum mesh screen, *later putting on the concrete…
Bee…by me…Sari Grove…(Maybe I will call it “Just Bee“…)
Notes on Trumpeter swan behaviour:
L07 & C17L07 & C17 were paired up this winter…Then they split up…The females don’t like mounting with the wing tags on…J52 was asking L07 about the “divorce”…L07 responded by ripping into J52 wing to show how it feels to be mounted with a wing tag pulling hard on your wing due to friction & weight…That is why the injury occurred…It was not a “fight” per se…Though it appeared that way from the outside… | ||
GroveCanadaMar 2, 2012 10:55 AM | Comments:Patagial tags (wing) cause break-ups between Trumpeters when the female won’t allow mounting due to the discomfort caused by the physical pulling on the tag when the male tries to mount…The male then seeks another mate…Snapping turtles grab at the legs of waterbirds underwater, pulling on them…It is an irritant, but not dangerous unless it is a very tiny cygnet…or egg… |
There is not adequate food supply for these Trumpeters…Unless they are fed a high quality wild bird seed or duck & swan pellet daily in sufficient quantity, the natural resources on Ontario are absolutely not sufficient…Our Lake Ontario beaches need to be squared off in sections JUST for the Trumpeter swans & other waterbirds…The Trumpeters are left swimming for hours on end with no possibility of rest on a beach side due to threat from human predators & dogs & vehicles…The groynes put in by Parks & recreation prevent them as well from walking up onto the beach…Sandy entries need to be put back so they can rest on land…The animal grade dirt cheap GM corn feed is not sufficient nutritionally at all…The reeds & roots people speak of as food are a joke, filthy & scarce…Antifreeze from boats at marinas dumping has made our water putrid…It is not enough to give praise, we must work at this folks…The do not feed the birds sign are against God & Mother Nature, the gov’t should be in jail for those signs…

Added Aluminum screen mesh to one wing...Starting to look more like a Fly than a Bee...Gotta go with the flow...