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Jan. 18th, 2009 06:01 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
afmetalsmithWhile i was not as productive today as I'd hoped to be, I'm still pleased.
I think I have found a nickel-bearing white gold that I can (with some considerable effort) use for my Mobius rings. I made the twist in the test piece with no problems, and was even able to do some work in forming it into a ring shape before it needed annealing.
This is really promising. The alloy- X-1 from Stuller- has a good white color, and while it's rather a bitch to work with (it's REALLY stiff!), it's not so brittle as to crack during the working- as long as I anneal OFTEN, anyway.
A lot of people want really WHITE white gold, and this looks to me like a reasonable compromise. It's not as white as silver- obviously!- but it's more or less comparable to rhodium plating without the problems of the plating. Given its difficulty in working I'll have to charge somewhat more to use it- it takes more time and more steps, what with all the annealing- but I'd be glad to have that option.
(Of course, this doesn't address the allergic issues of any nickel-bearing alloy- but for people who are not concerned about that, it probably will mean I can offer another option for a durable white metal.)
Also did some work on various loop-in-loop chains. I think I will use a sapphire in a gold bezel for the bracelet's catch; it will be very pretty, and will help people value the work for what it's worth. I've gotten the hang of the weave, and the bracelet is turning out very pretty indeed. It looks like a series of X's and O's, so I may call it a "kisses and hugs" chain. :)
I think I have found a nickel-bearing white gold that I can (with some considerable effort) use for my Mobius rings. I made the twist in the test piece with no problems, and was even able to do some work in forming it into a ring shape before it needed annealing.
This is really promising. The alloy- X-1 from Stuller- has a good white color, and while it's rather a bitch to work with (it's REALLY stiff!), it's not so brittle as to crack during the working- as long as I anneal OFTEN, anyway.
A lot of people want really WHITE white gold, and this looks to me like a reasonable compromise. It's not as white as silver- obviously!- but it's more or less comparable to rhodium plating without the problems of the plating. Given its difficulty in working I'll have to charge somewhat more to use it- it takes more time and more steps, what with all the annealing- but I'd be glad to have that option.
(Of course, this doesn't address the allergic issues of any nickel-bearing alloy- but for people who are not concerned about that, it probably will mean I can offer another option for a durable white metal.)
Also did some work on various loop-in-loop chains. I think I will use a sapphire in a gold bezel for the bracelet's catch; it will be very pretty, and will help people value the work for what it's worth. I've gotten the hang of the weave, and the bracelet is turning out very pretty indeed. It looks like a series of X's and O's, so I may call it a "kisses and hugs" chain. :)
