You drew it..now ya gotta make it.

One of the exciting parts of the work that I do is coming up with how to make the things I draw.  There are many ways to get to a similar result, but part of the fun is picking a path and seeing what the problems and successes turn out to be.  A piece could be carved, sculpted, welded or a combination of some or all of those.
For this Steampack, I drew a "nozzle" for the bottom of the pack that would be somewhat decorative.  When I drew it, I had a couple ideas for how I'd make it, but that all changed with my experiments with Azek.  I went back to my CarveWright patterns and remembered one that might just work.  Sure enough, I found it and knew instantly it would be just right.
I didn't see any reason just to carve that single piece, so I took the opportunity to carve up some other decorative items that will be used on the pack.  Several of these will be molded and then multiple Magic Sculpt copies will be made.

This set of elements was carved out of 1/2" Azek and came out very well. I continue to be amazed at how well it carves and how easily my machine handles it.  I will tell you, though, that additional cutting has a learning curve.  If you cut too fast (Like I did with my Scroll Saw) the cuts are hot enough to reseal as they cool behind the blade.  You have to set the speed low enough to cut, but not get too hot.  Once I figured it out, it was smooth cutting.

So my plan is simple...I will heat this shape up, and bend it over a round object to form it into the nozzle shape I want.
 As I looked at it, though, I realized that the leaves were so close together that they would overlap during the forming-so I went in and cut some additional space, so there would be room for them to form.

It took about 5 minutes of heating and then over the form it went.  Once I dunked it in some cool water, it was instantly rigid.

Now we're pretty close.  I decided that the tips needed to flare out a bit, so I hauled out my handy heat gun and warmed up the tips...a little forming with some gloves on and then cooling.  I've put a base coat of paint on it to begin getting it ready to attach inside the pack.