I am making a Lombardi Trophy, how do I make the football for the top?

Question

I'm making it out of steel. I already made the base but I don't know how to make sheet metal into a football. Any ideas?

I wish it were that easy

Answer 1

Well, it is that easy. You will need a sandbag with a tough canvas cover and/or a wooden log that is curved out on the end, which you can quickly do with a torch. The "shields" or ovals that make up the 4 sections can be cut from a paper pattern which you make by measuring a real foot ball and scaling up or down and then rounding the curved sides. Each quadrant needs to be gently hammered to approximate shape and as the 4 get to about the same shape, testing them for shape of football. Grind the edges to trim and to shape the turn into the seam and weld them two and two. You can hammer the welded halves if they need further shaping, then weld the two halves to a football shape and grind the weld to match the seam with a die grinder. If you want more detail, you could put the seams down the middle of each piece with repousse techniques then grind the welds smooth.

Answer 2

Make 4 football shaped sheets, bend them, then weld them together. Take a look at a real football and you'll see what I'm talking about.