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Wingnut Metal Works makes fine art from spare parts

Repurposing old, rusted metal into art that is both functional and decorative has been a hobby for Ray Swift since his high school days. Recently, Swift launched a business, Wingnut Metal Works, from his shop at his home on Raft Island.

He learned to weld while working for a sculpture professor at Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma. His first piece of handcrafted, metal art was a bell that he made for his parents from an old tank. Since then, he served in the U.S. Air Force, worked in aerospace, left the military, worked in sales, and continued to find ways to be creative. 

Some of his work may be familiar and recognizable to locals. He fashioned the 3-D metal sign for 7 Seas Brewing and also the Tap Room letters that were anchored to the storefront when it was in the Judson Street location. 

Ray Swift fashioned a 3-D metal sign for 7 Seas Brewing and Tap Room when it was in the Judson Street location. Photo courtesy of Ray Swift

Suspension coils and wagon wheels

Carefully curated and intentionally placed eclectic and antique pieces adorn his property. The pieces include old gas station signs, sentimental items from his family’s California farm, and many of his own creations. Several tractor seats are attached to car suspension coils in his yard. The gate that leads to his home is a custom piece that incorporates old, worn out wagon wheel parts. 

“I can’t live in a place where everybody has the same brown house that looks exactly the same,” he said. “I like creativity.”

Inspired by his garage sale finds, as well as scrapyard hauls, Swift said he sees potential in nearly everything. He can take a discarded old rusty hook and use it in a new way that is both useful and unique. And he is patient when coming up with an idea. He buys what he likes and may hang onto it for quite a long time before he decides how to use it.

“I’m a garage sale nut,” he said. “You never know what you will find.”

Ray Swift, owner of Wingnut Metal Works, welds creative designs from his shop at his Raft Island home. Photo by Marsha Hart

Finding inspiration

He said there’s something about mixing wood with metal that sparks ideas. A collection of large tree slabs at his property awaits inspiration.

Swift created a custom table for a friend who likes greyhound dogs. The table legs were welded, and Swift used a plasma cutter to make a relief with greyhound designs on each end. He used hydrochloric acid to stain another piece of metal that fits between the steel sheets, giving dimension to the greyhound design.

“I loved doing that table,” he said. “It’s sitting in someone’s dining room. We’re here for such a short time, and you like to leave a mark.”

In addition to custom metal work, such as gates, and supports for the bells that he crafts, Swift also uses his welding skills to build hot rod cars. The one sitting in his shop sports a legster header, which was the original design for hotrods on the Bonneville Salt Flats in the 1930s. 

The gate at Ray Swift’s home is guarded by a metal creature he designed from old metal parts. He recently turned his hobby of creating unique metal art into a business called Wingnut Metal Works. Photo by Marsha Hart

But, it’s the personal touch, the custom work of creating things to last for the ages that he enjoys, he said. 

“If I can make stuff for people, I’ll make it the rest of my life,” Swift said.

Visit wingnutmetalworks.com, or call 253-579-5589 for more information.

Ray Swift of Wingnut Metal Works welds in his shop at his Raft Island home. Photo by Marsha Hart