Paul Cox Industries

Thursday night. If you're in NYC, stop by

2011-11-30T22:15:00.000-05:00

Paul Cox Industries
493 Leonard St.
Brooklyn, NY 11222
p/f 347-689-9556
www.Paulcoxindustries.com
Paulcoxindustries.blogspot.com

8 new pieces ready for heat treating!

2011-11-14T17:41:00.000-05:00

Picked up this Famco #51 punch press. Rockin machine...

2011-11-14T09:40:00.000-05:00

Stop using "gifted" as a verb. You sound like an idiot!

2011-11-13T19:15:00.002-05:00

NYC Marathon passing my apartment in Brooklyn. Inspiring...

2011-11-06T12:00:00.001-05:00

Gallery opening Dec. 1st. These are a few of the knives I'm doing for the show.

2011-11-05T00:14:00.000-04:00

Fairing finished

2011-11-01T18:32:00.000-04:00

Ducati fairing progress 2

2011-10-27T20:12:00.000-04:00

Ducati fairing progress

2011-10-27T12:33:00.003-04:00

This is the skeleton so far for a Ducati fairing I'm doing. I'll have the sheet metal hammered out by tomorrow. Then I can finish and final mount the fairing/ headlight mount/ computer mount. The whole bike is getting blacked out...

Santoku-Cleaver Hybrid...

2011-10-11T20:19:00.000-04:00

New from the Lab...
440-C stainless steel blade.
Wine linen micarta handle
Nickel silver bolster.
Mosaic pins.

New Riser out of the Shop...

2011-09-22T18:04:00.001-04:00

Seat for the bike I'm showing at the Brooklyn Invitational this weekend

2011-09-14T11:19:00.000-04:00

Today...

2011-09-11T11:39:00.001-04:00

It’s Sunday morning on September 11th, 2011. I’m sitting in my apartment in Brooklyn with a cup of coffee, thinking about what we all experienced 10 years ago today. Getting angry, getting anxious...sad, all the emotions of that day come washing back over me. I think about how amazed I still am at the way the people of this city, and this incredible country, came together as one to help each other stand up, rebuild our lives and move ahead.
As these memories return, I look out my window in the direction where the World Trade Center once stood. Each year, on the anniversary of 9-11, they set up huge spot lights that send two bright beams straight up into the sky representing the location of the towers. I never thought about it until now, but those lights remind us exactly where the towers stood, viewed from any part of the city, so we never forget. Never forget the attacks, but also, never forget the physical presence of those buildings that were representational of the strength of this great country, and part of the identity of this incredible city.
As most of us involved with motorcycles and machines that go fast tend to push the limits of ourselves and the world around us, I always feel like goodbye’s, no matter how casual, are important. Important because you never know when that may be the last thing you say to someone. Ironically, we would never consider someone with a desk job at the World Trade Center to have a “high risk lifestyle”, but ten years ago, that all changed. Ten years ago, a few thousand people walked out their doors that morning on their way to work with a peck on the cheek or a wave from a window, and didn’t think anything of it. When my wife walked out the door this morning, to go to a job in Manhattan, I kissed her and told her goodbye... then asked her to come back. I felt like I had left something undone or incomplete. I kissed her again and held her for an extra few seconds, before saying goodbye.
I don’t get paranoid and weepy when days like this roll around, it’s just another day like any other. Work needs to be done, life needs to be lived...to the fullest. High alert...low alert, anniversary or not. I’ve always felt this way and try never to dwell on the past, or let anything slow me down. Days like today do stand, though, as reminders of the friends and family we love and have loved, and to appreciate them.
Kiss your wife, hug your kids, shake your friend’s hand and pet your dog. They’ll appreciate it.
As I write this, my daughter is asking me to read her a story. I still have tons of work to do today, but taking time for a story is much more important right now...

Braided Downtube Frame

2011-09-07T11:07:00.000-04:00

Occasionally, someone will call the shop inquiring about “twisted downtube” frames, or a customer I’m building a bike for may ask if I’ll make one for the project. As much as I continue to enjoy forging and twisting steel, and have ventured even deeper into the dark arts of Blacksmithing, I no longer make twisted downtube frames. After many years of making twisted downtube motorcycle frames, before and after the passing of Larry, I feel that that design is very specific to Larry, and a certain moment-in-time, so I want to do something different.
I had a customer come to me to build him a bike, and he wanted many of the traditional details he had come to know over the years. He liked the twisted elements, but was open to any new ideas too. This was an opportunity to explore other ways of treating the frame to give it a new look. What I decided was to make a single down tube section by braiding steel tubing and working the braided section into his frame that was under construction in the jig.

I had the engine and tranny cradle already prepped on the frame table with the back bone and neck in place. I had an image in my mind of what I thought the braid should look like, but didn’t decide how to do it till I lit the torch. After cutting my 3 sections of tubing, I lined them up vertically in the vise and started heating. I chose tubing, instead of solid rod, for the superior structural rigidity, but had to be extremely careful not to kink or collapse the tubing. As with any forging process, decorative or practical, timing is everything. I had to decide, in the first few minutes, how I was going to start my bends, then continue with that pattern all the way to the top without stopping. Basically like braiding hair, but upside down.

After the braided section was complete, I corrected any straightness issues, and planned how to merge it with the mainframe. At the neck, one leg rolled back into the gusset while the other two wrapped the neck like a choker. At the bottom, all three legs swirled around the frame tubes engaging solidly.

Once the assembly was complete, I TIG welded the entire braided section with Silicon Bronze to fully engage every intersection. Initially I had TIG welded all the joints with steel rod, but in the end, I really wanted that honey-dipped, brazed look that seeps into all the seams. On steel, I prefer using the Silicon Bronze to achieve this, instead of brazing, for a cleaner more controllable result.

After days and days of sanding and shaping every joint, I had the frame brass plated, then I oxidized it to a dark patina. This process gives great contrast to the finish when it’s re-polished.

I love obsessive details and experimentation, but this is something I don’t plan on doing every day. It’s a challenge, though, to work steel like taffy and still create a stable platform upon which to build a motorbike...

Calm before the storm...

2011-08-27T19:44:00.000-04:00

Barber chairs are done...

2011-07-12T21:59:00.001-04:00

Barber Chair I'm doing. More to come...

2011-06-26T00:34:00.000-04:00

If you're in the area...

2011-05-18T09:39:00.000-04:00

GALARINA

2011-04-03T20:30:00.001-04:00

Finished set

2011-03-09T10:18:00.001-05:00

A few tweaks worked crazy good

2011-02-26T17:28:00.001-05:00

Blade after Ferric Chloride

2011-02-26T12:09:00.001-05:00

Acid etching Damascus

2011-02-24T08:35:00.003-05:00

I've been experimenting on some Damascus I'm using for knife projects with different acids to bring up the patterns. You see, when I'm grinding blades, any patterning from the folded steels disappears and I'm left with a smooth surface. Many years ago, when craftsmen first folded and forged different steels purely to improve it's functional properties, this would have been fine. But today, with the availability of superior alloys, the use of Damascus is primarily for aesthetic reasons. With this in mind, I needed to find the best way to bring out the patterns created by the forging of dissimilar metals. I've been trying a few mixtures with varied results. I tried Sulphuric acid (battery acid), Muriatic acid (swimming pool), and for these pieces, I used Ferric Chloride (copper etch mordant).
The near side steel pictured is a blend of 1085, 15-n-20 (nickel) and L6. The far side piece is just 1095 and 15-n-20. After a 40 minute bath in Ferric Chloride I got good texture and color. The other acids gave varying results of depth and color, but the Ferric seemed to give the most definition. With future use and cleanings the color will continue to change, so I find it more important to achieve a good surface texture that will become more rich and beautiful over time. The color contrast can be maintained on a show piece that gets no use, but that's not what I do. And neither do you. The natural oxidation, resulting from years of use, is where the true beauty of these pieces will come from. But for now, this is looking pretty kick ass. More to follow...

This oil tank made me so happy...

2011-02-12T12:30:00.001-05:00

Gift from Mario of MB Leathers

2011-02-04T14:56:00.000-05:00

A fellow leather worker, Mario Burkardt from Switzerland, was visiting my shop over the Holidays. I was admiring this handmade Damascus miniature of a leather working knife he was wearing, and without a second thought, he generously gave it to me as a gift. I appreciated it very much and have been wearing it ever since.
Thanks again Mario....

Made in USA, oldest one I have- only one that works.

2011-02-02T13:36:00.000-05:00

Local flavor

2011-01-08T18:08:00.001-05:00

New project sketch

2010-12-04T12:42:00.005-05:00

Dual Stromberg 97 style, EFI throttlebodies on a 103" Knucklehead. We'll see...

Lots to do

2010-12-04T12:27:00.000-05:00

White Stinger

2010-10-08T19:41:00.002-04:00

I did this little white Stingray saddle with gold piping for an amazing Triumph that our friend Jeffro built for Vince. It's like a little wedding cake made of fish skin. I don't have good pics of the bike yet, but I'll get some up here later. Coolest Triumph ever... Congrats J. & V.

Twisted foot pegs

2010-10-08T07:49:00.003-04:00

I twisted these up from an old set of Long Island Railroad spikes a friend gave me many years ago. Came out pretty cool....

Cut Test

2010-09-28T07:48:00.001-04:00

One of my new 7" Chef knives of 440-C stainless steel

Deep Purple Perch

2010-09-15T21:48:00.005-04:00

Friends help friends. My buddy Keino has just finished a really classy chop for another good friend of ours, Wes. The vibe of the bike is over-the-top, 70's, freak show, crazy. And Wes is the perfect man to be sitting in that saddle. Keino made a nice, King and Queen seat pan for it and Wes knew he wanted diamond stitched black leather. I decided to do the diamonds in increasing size to fit the shape, and when I got to the front, I blew out a pin-stripe style devil with a forked tongue in stitching. I think it works and Wes loves him some devils...
This bike along with my Sword of Damocles and many more will be at the Brooklyn Invitational Bike show this weekend. Come check it out...

Black Diamond Knife Set

2010-09-12T20:44:00.023-04:00

This is a set of handmade Chef's knives I finished last week. Stainless steel blades, Ebony handles and a black diamond set in each one. Fully polished, razor sharp and ready to go.

I started the set with 440-C stainless steel. This is a great all-around cutlery steel with a high resistance to corrosion, and holds a razor sharp edge with proper heat-treating. These views show my initial designs cut from the steel. Here, I've done my basic shaping and grind for the blades. On the right, you can see the hollowing and taper I put in the handle area of my full-tang knives to lighten the handle and give a special taper to the spine of the blade.

The customer made one special request... that I feature a black diamond somewhere on each knife. I worked with NYC jewelery designer Itay Malkin to have 2.5 ct., square cut, black diamonds set in gold bezels upside down so the point protrudes like a spike. Once the diamonds were set in the bezels, I made notches in my blades so they could be soldered in.

I do a lot of filing and hand sanding to get just the right shape a finish. One of the blade styles I like to do is a Japanese Santoku. The one above has a 7 " blade and I ground the divots by hand before final polishing.

I made the handles from striped Ebony hardwood. Since the diamonds were set in a gold bezel, I added a layer of bright brass under the wood so it would leave a thin "gold" line leading into the bezel.

New Girdraulic Forks

2010-09-06T07:38:00.021-04:00

Here's a new set of my Girdraulic forks I just made. I use shocks from "Works Performance" that they make custom for me, I use sealed precision bearings and a geometry that I know works. Otherwise, I design them differently each time. This one has a bit larger O.D. tubing than usual, and a zig-zag brace pattern, kind of like ladder bars under the rears of Muscle cars. I'm working on a style now that I'll reproduce and make available as a product.

2010-09-05T11:22:00.003-04:00

It's been a long time since my last post. I set this blog up so I could have an easy way to update everyone with new projects. The fact is, I've been so busy with the projects, I haven't had a chance to do any updating. Well, there's a great little bike show happening in Brooklyn in a couple weeks, and it's a good reason to start posting updates again. Plus, new project posts coming soon.
The Brooklyn Invitational Custom Motorcycle show is a kick-ass event started last year by a creative group of motor-head friends right here in Brooklyn. A heavy influence of art, greasy culture, and gear-driven obsession have led to a unique and diverse collection of machines that will be on display at the show. Art, photography, music, motorbikes and friendship will shared all day and into the night. Go to brooklyninvitational.com for more info. This killer event connects with what's real about our scene. Real people and real bad-ass machines. No attitudes... no bullshit.

My Double-front Panhead set up

2010-02-20T18:08:00.012-05:00

These are some shots of what I did to set up the double-front Panheads for the Sword of Damocles engine. On the "rear" head, I relocated the exhaust port to the left so it would clear the front head. I welded up the old tract and re-ported the head to flow out the new exhaust manifold. For the intakes, I built the manifolds onto the heads with flanges for the carbs. I had to make the aluminum elbows from straight tube then machine flanges and weld it all up and blend it out. Inside and out. Runs great.

Minerva cleaver

2010-02-20T13:00:00.004-05:00

I just finished this meat cleaver for a friend that's opening a new cafe' in Manhattan. I ground the blade from A-2 tool steel and the handle is oak, treated with Butcher's wax. The oak for the handle came my friend Eric, who had saved pieces of the floor of the California house he grew up in. The blade was hardened to 58 Rockwell and double tempered, then I engraved the name of the cafe in the blade.

Tank construction for Sword of Damocles.

2010-02-20T09:13:00.008-05:00

After making the tunnel and bottom of the tank, I welded in the stand pipes and fittings for the oil section. Then, with the oil tank section welded to the fuel tank bottom, I welded in the neck for the oil tank to exit through the top of the fuel tank. I hammered and shaped the side and top panels, then built them up around the oil tank to create a fuel section. You can see the oil filler neck coming through behind the fuel filler neck. The scalloped cut aways in the sides are polished stainless.

Brooklyn, NYC floorboards

2009-12-12T16:39:00.001-05:00

Check these copper floorboards I made for my friend Keith. I don't usually do floorboards, but these came out pretty cool. I did the artwork, had the copper plates made, then antiqued and polished them. They're assembled with stainless steel screws.

Cool art show.

2009-12-01T08:22:00.002-05:00

K-no's birthday...

2009-11-30T20:26:00.003-05:00

We had a really good time celebrating Keino's 36th b-day.

I wish him all the best....

"Killer Collars"

2009-11-30T00:29:00.005-05:00

I just finished making these sterling silver pushrod collars: Bundy, Manson, Berkowitz and Gacy. Good times...