How Make a Copper Wine Rack

Always wear protective gear while welding.

While wood is the best material for a large wine rack to hold your entire collection, a small, decorative rack in which to hang a few bottles can be made out of copper wire. A spiraling copper wine rack makes an attractive table centerpiece or accent for your kitchen counter, and has an advantage over most other racks---the bottles can be hung neck downward, to keep the corks moist. And as far as welding projects go, this is one of the simplest.

Things You'll Need

• Acetylene torch
• Welding mask and gloves
• Thick copper wire
• Wire cutter
• Round-nosed pliers

Instructions

1. Cut a 15- to 20-inch piece of wire and preheat it to approximately 140 degrees Fahrenheit, using the torch. Bend the wire into a perfect circle, using the pliers, and weld the tips together.

2. Cut another piece half again as long, heat it, and bend into half an ellipse. Carefully curl one tip into a small decorative spiral. Weld the other tip to the side of the circle, so that the long piece is nearly vertical when the circle is horizontal. The curve of the half-ellipse should hang over the circular stand. Cut a short piece, spiral the tip, and weld it on the opposite end of the circle, with the curl connected to the ellipse for support.

3. Cut three pieces the same length as the upright column and shape them into spiraling corkscrews. The narrow end should be slightly wider than a wine-bottle neck and the larger end wide enough to receive the body of a bottle. Take a 10-inch piece, and weld the end into a loop. Weld this parallel to the three twists, with the three of them side-by-side in a triangle and the short piece in the middle.

4. Wait for the copper to cool and then slip the loop of the spiraling holder to the curl at the top of the stand. Place three bottles in the corkscrew spirals to store them until ready for drinking.

References

• Aufhauser: Copper Welding Procedures

Resources

• Let's Do Wine & Beer: Table Tendril Copper