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<=> <=> <=> <=> E-BENCH <=> <=> <=> <=>
The E-Mail Newsletter for Bench Jewelers
May 2003
Volume 4 Issue 5 circulation
over 2,400
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<=> <=> ABOUT THIS NEWSLETTER <=> <=>
E-BENCH is a FREE monthly newsletter for Retail
Jewelry Store Owners, Shop Managers, Bench
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<=> <=> <=> TABLE OF CONTENTS <=> <=> <=>
REVERE’S TIPS FOR JEWELERS
Tips for Jewelers,
Who Do Repairs from Alan Revere
FEATURE ARTICLE
Learn how to make your shop more profitable, a
new technique, or brush up on basic skills.
STEWART'S BENCH TIPS
Bench Tips from
Stewart’s International School for Jewelers
AT THE PLATINUM BENCH
Tips for working on Platinum from
Platinum Guild International
FAVORITE TIPS
Tips and Tricks to make your work on the bench
a little easier and more productive from
Bradney W. Simon CMBJ and E-BENCH Readers.
GERRY’S GEMZ
Stone setting tips from Gemz Diamond Setting
WORKSHOP SAFETY FOR JEWELERS
Tips from Charles Lewton-Brian
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<=> <=> <=> E-BENCH SPONSOR <=> <=> <=>
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http://www.JewelryDealersNetwork.com
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<=> <=> REVERE’S TIPS FOR JEWELERS <=> <=>
Tips for Jewelers Who Do Repairs
from Alan Revere
Revere Academy of Jewelry Arts
FINDING THE CENTER OF A CIRCLE
By Alan Revere
They make fancy and expensive gizmos for finding the center of circles, but chances are you already have all you need for that task sitting on your bench. Grab your dividers and place one point on the circle. Then adjust the opening to what you guess is about the distance to the center. Now scribe a very light arc onto the metal, with one point fixed on the circle. Move the fixed point about 1/3 around the circle and repeat. Then swing the last arc from a point about 2/3 around the circle from the first point, so that you now have three arcs coming close to the center. They overlap closely, miss each other closely or meet in the middle. No matter what the outcome, it is now very easy to find the center of these arcs, which is the center of the circle.
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<=> <=> QUOTE WORTH RE-QUOTING <=> <=>
The man who has no imagination has no wings.
Muhammed Ali
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<=> <=> <=> E-BENCH SPONSOR <=> <=> <=>
The Ganoksin Project
www.ganoksin.com
The Gem And Jewelry Pre-Eminent Online
Resources. Open to the
public
Free of Charge.
A substantial library of articles,
publications, reports, and technical data on
gem and jewelry related topics; as well as a
sizable collection of art and jewelry
galleries, for both the casual visitor and the
professional, also host the popular Orchid
online forums for jewelers.
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<=> <=> <=> FEATURE ARTICLE <=> <=> <=>
A CROWNING
ACHIEVEMENT
by Bradney W. Simon CMBJ
Often jewelers are called upon to hand fabricate a crown to fit a stone. This is necessary when either the stone is a non-standard shape, or the crown needs to fit a particular design. Although one will seldom hand fabricate a simple round basket crown, constructing one gives the jeweler the basic knowledge and understanding of crown construction needed when creating a more advanced crown.
To make a round wire basket crown, you will first need to determine the size wire you will use. The size used can be determined by the size of the stone and the finished look that you want. A thicker wire will form a sturdier mounting although it may look heavy and clumsy. A thinner wire will look more delicate, however it may not hold the stone securely.
Measure the diameter of the stone. This measurement needs to be to the tenth of a millimeter. Then subtract the diameter of the wire from the diameter of the stone. Multiply this number times 3.14 and round to the nearest tenth of a millimeter. This will give you the length of wire needed to form the under-bezel. For example: for a stone 8mm in diameter using 0.8mm wire, subtracting 0.8 from 8 gives you 7.2mm. Multiplying this times 3.14 gives you 22.608. Round this down to 22.6mm for the length of the wire for the under-bezel.
Cut a piece of wire to this length, and also cut a second piece of wire 10% shorter. This second wire is for the bottom bezel. In the example above for an 8 mm stone, the second wire would be cut to 20.3mm. Make certain the ends of the wires are flat. Then bend them in a circle and make certain the ends meet tightly together. If needed hold the ring in a pair of flat nose pliers, and saw through the joint to trim a little off each side of the seam to create a tight fitting seam. Dip in boric acid and alcohol and solder the ends together, using hard solder of the appropriate karat and color. Flux the joint well and use a minimum amount of solder. Using a solder pick will aid you in placing the solder.
Do not pickle the rings at this time. Gold is porous and will adsorb the pickling acid, which may impede solder flow on subsequent steps. If the rings are tarnished from soldering and pickling is necessary, clean the rings in the ultra-sonic cleaner after pickling. Generally soaking the rings in warm soapy water is all that is necessary to remove the flux and boric acid.
Next clean any excess solder from these seams with a fine needle file and straighten the rings on a round bezel mandrel. Check the size of the under-bezel by laying the stone on top of it. Looking straight down on the stone you should not be able see the under-bezel. The bottom bezel should be slightly (10%) smaller in diameter than the under-bezel.
Next prepare both bezels for the prongs. Mark with a scribe or fine tipped marker where the prongs will be placed, making certain they are evenly spaced. To help in laying out the prongs, lay a template for drawing round stones over the bezels. Then using the centerlines on the template for a guide, mark the bezels where the prongs will be placed. Another method is to lay the rings on graph paper and use the lines to lay out the prong placement.
Then from the outside of the bezel saw 1/3 to 1/2 of the way through the bezel on each of the marks. Next, use a cylinder bur the same size as the prong wire to cut the shape of the prong into the bezel. The sawed line will help hold the bur in the correct place on the bezels and your work will be more accurate. Hold the bur at a 75 degree angle when cutting. This will allow for the proper angle of the prongs.
Next we need to make the prongs. You need to use your own judgment to determine the height of the prongs. The minimum height of the prong is the distance from the culet of the stone to the table of the stone, if you make your prongs any shorter than that distance the culet of the stone will protrude from the bottom of the crown, which is unacceptable. How much taller the prongs are is dependant on personal preference and the over all look and feel of the design of the finished piece of jewelry the crown is being made for.
Once you have determined the length of the prong cut two pieces of wire three times the length of the prong. For example if you want your prong to be 6 mm tall you need to cut two pieces at least 18 mm long. Next take those two pieces of wire and bend them into a U-shape with the sides of the U approximately at a 75 degree angle. The U needs to fit across the under-bezel and into the notches for prongs opposite each other, not the ones next to each other. The U-shaped wire prong should fit into the notches of the under-bezel matching the angle of the cuts that you made.
Take one of the U-shaped prong assemblies and slide the under bezel into it to prepare for soldering. The U-shape prong should be snug enough to hold the under-bezel in place without any additional support. The under bezel should rest at approximately 60 percent of the prong height below the top of the prong. Once you have made the crown you want 60 percent of the prong height above the under-bezel. Position the under-bezel in place on the U-shaped assembly and dip boric acid and alcohol and add a little flux to the two joints between the under-bezel and prongs. Solder the prong to the under bezel using medium flow solder that matches the karat and color of the crown you are making. The best way to solder the prong is to place a small piece of solder against one side of the prong where it contacts the under-bezel and heat until the solder starts to melt. Then move the torch to the other side of the prong and flow the solder through the joint between the prong and under-bezel. This way you will be sure you have a good strong joint.
Once you have soldered both prongs, dip in water to cool if it is yellow gold or if it's white gold allow it to air cool before quenching. Then saw through the bottom of the U and spread it apart a little bit so that you can insert the other U-shaped piece into the under-bezel. The two U-shapes should cross each other in the back. Once you have positioned the second U-shaped prong assembly solder it in place as you did the first prong assembly.
Once all four prongs are soldered into place, soak in soapy water to remove the boric acid and flux. Then cut the bottom of the U-shaped pieces off the prongs and trim them to the proper length. Remember 60 percent of the prong height should be above the under-bezel and 40 percent of the prongs below the under bezel. Once the prongs are trimmed to length, insert the bottom-bezel into the bottom of the prongs. The bottom-bezel should be held in place by the prongs and all four prongs need to be in tight contact with it. Check to make sure everything is in alignment, and make any adjustments needed. Coat with boric acid and alcohol, and solder the base of the prongs to the bottom bezel using medium flow solder of the correct karat and color.
Once all the prongs are soldered to the bottom bezel soak the setting in soapy water to remove the boric acid and flux. Check in all directions to make certain all the prongs are at the same angle and that the bottom-bezel and under-bezel all are perfectly parallel in every direction.
Next, file off the bottom of the prongs to clean up the bottom of the crown and if necessary use a fine No. 6 cut needle file to remove any excess solder. It is very difficult to file the solder joints and keep them looking nice and clean and sharp so it is best to use a minimum amount of solder so that you do not have to do any cleanup at this stage.
Polish the crown using a bristle brush in your flex-shaft, and you will be ready to use the crown, adding it to your piece of jewelry. Because we used hard and medium flow solder you can easily attached it to the jewelry using easy flow solder. When the stone is set in this crown the distance between the bottom-bezel and the under-bezel should be the same distance as between the under-bezel and the girdle the stone. For proper proportions the under-bezel should be exactly in the center between the girdle of the stone and the bottom-bezel. That's why we left 60 percent of the prong height above the under-bezel as this gives you 20 percent of the prong height to use in setting the stone. If this is too much you can always trim the prongs while setting, however, if the under-bezel is too high and the prongs are too short you will have difficulty securing the stone in the prongs.
Although this seems like a very simple and easy project to complete, it is quite an accomplishment to make this crown. To keep all four prongs properly spaced and at the same angle, the bottom and under bezels all perfectly parallel, and to set the stone so that all proportions are correcct, takes a skillful goldsmith. If you can accomplish all of this in creating this crown you truly have attained A Crowning Achievement.
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<=> <=> QUOTE WORTH RE-QUOTING <=> <=>
Sow your seed in the morning, and at evening let not your hands be idle, for you do not know which will succeed, whether this or that, or whether both will do equally well.
Ecclesiastes 11: 6
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<=> <=> <=> E-BENCH SPONSOR <=> <=> <=>
Bench Jewelers Conference & Expo
Coming April 23 - 25 2004 to Chicago IL
Workshops <> Seminars <> Demonstrations
Networking Opportunities <> Exhibitor Show
Everything during this Educational Conference
and Suppliers Expo - including the banquet
speakers - will be directed toward the bench
jeweler.
Bench Jewelers Conference & Expo presented by
Bench Media publisher of E-BENCH, BENCH
Magazine, and BENCH ROM
For exhibitor information e-mail Tabetha Jordan at: Tabetha@BWSimon.com
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<=> <=> STEWART'S BENCH TIPS <=> <=>
Bench Tips from Stewart’s International School for Jewelers
http://www.stewartsintlschool.com/
RECOVERING GOLD FROM THE ULTRASONIC
By Jim Stewart
Pour the solution through a paper coffee filter that is inside a strainer. The solution then runs into a large can or bowl. Next, use a paper towel to wipe the sludge out of the tank. Place the coffee filter and paper towel inside a plastic trash bag and when full send it to a refinery. The old solution can be reused. Put it back into the ultrasonic tank, and then add a little non-ammoniated concentrate.
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<=> <=> QUOTE WORTH RE-QUOTING <=> <=>
You may be disappointed if you fail, but you are doomed if you don’t try.
Beverly Sills
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<=> <=> <=> E-BENCH SPONSOR <=> <=> <=>
“The Jeweler’s Tool of Choice”
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<=> <=> AT THE PLATINUM BENCH <=> <=>
Tips for working on Platinum from
Jurgen J. Maerz CMBJ,
Director of Technical Education
for Platinum Guild International
http://www.pgi-platinum-tech.com
TESTING FOR PLATINUM
By Jurgen J. Maerz CMBJ
Even though there are electronic testers and acid tests to determine the metal of a piece of jewelry, the quickest way to test if something is platinum is very simple. With a graver, remove a very small splinter of metal from an inconspicuous area, such as the underside of a ring. Place that splinter on a soldering surface and apply heat with your torch. If the splinter starts to brightly glow and won't immediately melt, it is platinum. If it balls up, it is some other white metal. This is not very scientific, but it works. It will not tell you the alloy combination. To check if something is Platinum /Cobalt, just file the item a bit and see if you can pick up the filing with a magnet. Pt/Co is ferro-magnetic.
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<=> <=> QUOTE WORTH RE-QUOTING <=> <=>
Success seems to be largely a matter of hanging on after others have let go.
William Feather
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<=> <=> <=> E-BENCH SPONSOR <=> <=> <=>
At the Bench: New Book from MJSA/AJM Press
Featuring more than 200 full-color photographs,
this essential bench resource offers step-by-
step guides to common—and not so common—repair
and fabrication techniques for gold and silver
jewelry. It also offers basic bench
preparation and practices (including tips for
organizing tools and prioritizing work flow), a
guide to taking in repairs, and step-by-step
projects ranging from resizing two-tone rings
to setting fancy shapes, from building a
bracelet hinge to basic chasing and repoussé.
Published by MJSA/AJM Press, a division of
Manufacturing Jewelers & Suppliers of America.
Visit http://www.ajm-magazine.com/atb/index.htm
for a preview.
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<=> <=> <=> FAVORITE TIPS <=> <=> <=>
To clean items of jewelry with loose stones use a small zip top plastic bag. Fill the bag half full with cleaning solution from your ultrasonic cleaner. Then place the jewelry in the bag and close it trapping as much air as possible in the top half of the bag. Place the bag in the ultrasonic cleaner. The air in the bag will allow it to float around in the tank. When clean, remove the jewelry and carefully pour out the solution. Any stones that may have fallen out will be in the bag, rather than at the bottom of the ultrasonic cleaner.
< < < < < <> > > > > >
Take an old setting bur and grind the point off. Grind down just past the edge that cuts the seat for the girdle of the stone. What you have left is a wheel bur with teeth on the edge only. In essence, a wheel bur with a safety edge. With this bur you can trim the inside edge of a bezel or channel setting to remove the wavy edge left from hammering it over the diamonds. Cut carefully so as to not remove too much metal. This will leave a smooth even edge that can be easily polished with a graver.
< < < < < <> > > > > >
To straighten kinks in flat chains such as herringbone, lay the chain out on a hard surface such as a Formica counter top. Then carefully roll across the kink with a wooden wallpaper seam roller.
A bad kink may be removed with the following method: Grasp the chain between your thumb and index finger, placing one hand on each side of the kink, then slowly rotate your hands in a circular motion in the direction opposite of the chain twist.
< < < < < <> > > > > >
Draw two pieces of wire through the hole of a draw plate at the same time to create ½ round wire.
< < < < < <> > > > > >
When working with platinum, cleanliness is not only next to Godliness, it is an essential work habit. Because of the high temperatures involved in soldering, other metals can easily contaminate platinum. Platinum can also become contaminated from other metals on your files, saw blades, emery paper, and buff wheels. To properly work on platinum you MUST have a clean work area and have separate tools reserved for platinum use only.
< < < < < <> > > > > >
To help hold wedding sets together in perfect alignment while soldering together, hold the rings together in your fingers. Next, place a small amount of super glue between the rings at their top. Then, clamp the rings as you normally would and solder the back of the shanks together. If any glue remains when finished soak in acetone to remove.
Note: Before performing this procedure make certain your soldering area is well ventilated. When heated super glue will emit toxic vapors.
< < < < < <> > > > > >
If you have a tip you would like to share with our readers send it in an e-mail to mailto:Brad@BWSimon.com
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<=> <=> QUOTE WORTH RE-QUOTING <=> <=>
An apology is the superglue of life. It can repair just about anything.
Lynn Johnston
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<=> <=> <=> E-BENCH SPONSOR <=> <=> <=>
MENTAL PATIENT MAKES $50,000 a year TWISTING WIRE!!!
Yes, it's true and I can show you how to make wire jewelry and do the same thing. You can make money right from your kitchen table making wire jewelry and still keep your day job.
Please send a blank email to
mailto:wireworker@royal-responder.com
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<=> <=> <=> GERRY’S GEMZ <=> <=> <=>
Stone setting tips from Gemz Diamond Setting
http://www.gemzdiamondsetting.com/index.html
by Gerald N. Lewy
by Gerald N. Lewy
Before placing a ring on a ring mandrel, take a few extra moments and check with a loupe for the culet of any stones. If any culet protrudes into the finger hole, slide the ring onto a grooved mandrel.
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<=> <=> QUOTE WORTH RE-QUOTING <=> <=>
We need to learn to set our course by the stars, not by the lights of every passing ship.
Omar Bradley
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<=> <=> <=> E-BENCH SPONSOR <=> <=> <=>
BENCH ROM
The Multi-Media Magazine for Bench Jewelers
BENCH ROM is an affordable alternative to
learning new skills and developing your career.
Discover New Techniques
Learn New Tips to Improve Your Work
See New Products and Technologies Demonstrated
All right from your home or shop without having
to travel to a seminar or trade show.
“Bench Rom is great,” says jeweler Bill Scores
“It’s like being in the shop of a Master
Jeweler and watching over his shoulder.”
Log onto www.BWSimon.com/BenchRom for more information or to subscribe
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<=> <=> WORKSHOP SAFETY FOR JEWELERS <=> <=>
Workshop Safety Tips
From Charles Lewton-Brian
These basic principles in storing chemicals will help keep your shop safe and help protect your health.
Know what your chemicals are, what their hazards are, and their incompatibilities.
Read the MSDS sheets on all the chemicals you have in your shop for information on handling and storage.
Know your local regulations for storage of chemicals. Check with the fire department for guidelines. Sometimes flammables are heavily regulated.
Set aside storage space for chemicals. It should be well ventilated, cool and not subject to direct sunlight (like a window that faces the sun at a certain time of day or year). Do not store chemicals in a corridor or on an exit path from the room.
Do not allow mixing or transfer of chemicals in the storage area.
Never use food containers for storing chemicals. (I myself had to have my stomach pumped as a young child when I drank kerosene stored in the same kind of bottle that we stored water in the refrigerator in.)
Return chemical containers to their proper storage area after use. Clean as you go.
Plan for what happens in a disaster-if you are in earthquake country, for instance, it is a good idea to store incompatible chemicals in separate unbreakable containers so there is no way they could mix.
The ideal method is to have a locked cabinet for chemical storage.
Label everything clearly and correctly, using permanent markers or plastic labels.
Have the chemicals at a good height to pick up and reach for, not too low and not too high. Best is below eye level.
Be aware of mixing incompatible chemicals, such as acids and cyanides that can release lethal hydrogen cyanide gas, or ammonia and bleach, which if mixed can create toxic and deadly chlorine gas. Separate such materials.
Store acids separately from the other chemicals and flammables and preferably some distance away. Store nitric acid slightly apart from the other acids.
Store flammable solvents in a proper fireproof cabinet, stored according to the local regulations.
Have a spill kit ready.
For more information on Workshop safety from
Charles Lewton-Brian log onto: http://www.ganoksin.com/borisat/safety.htm
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<=> <=> Thank You for Reading <=> <=>
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< < < < < <> > > > > >
Information provided in this document is
provided ‘As Is’ without warranty of any kind,
either expressed or implied. This publication
is designed to provide accurate and
authoritative information concerning the
subject matter covered. It is provided with
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< < < < < <> > > > > >
For editorial suggestions, comments, ideas
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Copyrighted, 2003, BENCH MEDIA.
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< < < < < <> > > > > >