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Post by rockjunquie on Jan 5, 2014 20:15:53 GMT -5
I repaired and gave the chain I made a patina. Made some earrings, too. Then I made a bunch of simple rings for my granddaughter. Nothing really special, but I was proud of this one. This is before I polished it. It is 12 or 14g square twisted (scrap from years ago). I managed to get it all lined up so the twist was uninterrupted. And, I did a bunch of simple hearts today. Gave me a chance to do some hammering and use different hardness of solder. This one came out really pretty, I think. It's also for my grand daughter. I didn't make the bail. I have a ton of these that I need to use. Before the last week, I avoided silver solder because I had such a hard time with flux. However, with all the small projects I have been doing I'm feeling pretty good about it. All my tools haven't arrived in the mail yet, but I may try and do a bezel tomorrow, if I can saw the metal without a pin. I think I can manage, or at least, do a bezel for a flush mount and cut the sheet later. Where there is a will there is a way.
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Post by 1dave on Jan 6, 2014 9:42:49 GMT -5
Fantastic! AND "Without Tools." Once you start, there is no stopping you!
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Post by radio on Jan 6, 2014 10:11:39 GMT -5
Great job, and ditto on what Dave said! A tumbler with steel jewelry shot and a dab of dawn works great for polishing pieces like those
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Post by rockjunquie on Jan 6, 2014 10:24:07 GMT -5
Thank you for saying that 1dave. Some time ago, I started to learn this and was so discouraged that I quit. This time around, I am starting slow and trying to take one step at a time.
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Post by 1dave on Jan 6, 2014 10:30:39 GMT -5
Starting slow? Chains are hard and tedious! You already have the "hard stuff" down!
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Post by rockjunquie on Jan 6, 2014 10:48:27 GMT -5
Aww... thanks y'all. My efforts have seemed so meager. Maybe, I should pat myself on my back a little more often. radio, I always tumble everything, when I can. It's easy and works great. The heart was tumbled a couple hours, that's the only finishing that I did to it- other than texturing.
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Post by drocknut on Jan 6, 2014 11:54:01 GMT -5
Geez, it seems you do everything wonderfully. For sure pat yourself on the back!
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Post by pghram on Jan 6, 2014 19:57:58 GMT -5
Very nice pieces, I especially like the ring.
Rich
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Post by connrock on Jan 7, 2014 8:45:29 GMT -5
I think you're doing GREAT with everything! Getting the twists in a ring to line up and have the ring be the right size is no easy task and you did it!BRAVO!
Some times not having the right tools makes us think about how we can do things and learn.Making tools is also self rewarding,saves money and helps us to learn as well. When you make a tool you HAVE to know what it's used for and how it's used,,,,another subject for another time!
I forgot to ask,,,,what is "pick soldering"? connrock Ps:who me,,,,rambling allllllll the time! LOL
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Post by rockjunquie on Jan 7, 2014 9:06:22 GMT -5
Thank you everyone. These were a great warm up. Really they were. connrock Pick soldering is where you heat your solder bit a little so that it will stick to your warm soldering pick. Then you place your bit on the seam when it is close to soldering temp. I really like to do it that way when I can.
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