hmmmm...is the last foto the wax???

Stephen Fitz-Gerald
David,
I'm curious why you cast this piece instead of fabricating the band and drilling it.Just seems that fabricating in this particular instance with this shape would have been less hassle.Clue me in...

I wonder as well. marilyn

Yes, I should have expected that question! I just wanted an excuse to test my new centrifuge, and I had this design in mind, so I made it work. I'm focusing on perfecting casting right now, I feel good about my ability to fabricate. Also, I'm not sure I have any silver sheet that thick.

Fabricated this recently from Sterling scraps:

This is my first ever and to-date-only diamond piece and my only gold piece (14k white). I made this for my wife-to-be about 6 years ago, and am only now getting around to doing more gold/diamond work. Now I have three engagement rings in mid-process via paying clients so I'm stepping up to learn how to do this better and do some gold soldering too for prong head fabricating. This one is all cast.

Amid all this delicate stone setting, I needed a creative outlet and spent an evening with my old friend Sterling Silver. This one came out just like the sketch, which is rare!

Nice, I like the subtile texture.

marilyn

Thanks, Marilyn! Here's a new one. Nothing too fancy, but a suitable gift for Mother's Day - and she loved it!

Here's a new one.

Is this solid or hollow?

marilyn

That's hollow.

And here's one I made after breakfast today. Playing around with my new bench pin and jeweler's saw. Never used that setup before.

I tarnished it intentionally, but will probably play around with the finish some more yet:

Phew - I'm glad to have this one done! Setting three tiny princess cut stones is a "little" beyond my level of expertise, but they are in there nice and securely and no broken points - that I know of :)

This is one of two 14k white gold engagement rings I've been working on - everyone is in love right now, I guess.

I've also been upgrading my photography technique! Made myself a nice daylight soft-box for $9, can't beat that price.

Finishied this ring last night, shipping it out today! Tonight I relax, for the first time in 3 weeks. I made this one from scratch, wax modeling, casting, the whole bit. That's a 0.4 ct natural diamond, and two natural rubies, 0.45 ct total for them.

I like the way your work is going. Nice to see someone doing both constructed and cast pieces. Something done in the “Old Days” was take a hollow piece like this and crisscross fine gold wires in the center. (Next thing someone went and put small stones on the wires!) Keep up the great designs and let us see them from time to time.
Pat

Thanks for the input.

Here is the other ring I have been working on. Finally done! 14k white gold, half-carat diamond.

I sculpted/cast this shank and purchased the prong head. That's my new Smith Little Torch at work, and I love it!

Nice job on the stone setting. Those rings both look very good and I'm sure the clients were thrilled with them. As they should be.

I told ya you were gonna love that Little Torch. After you get familiar with the tips and what each one can be made to do, you can do some really amazing stuff with one of those things. I need to get another one of them one of these days pretty soon. My old one went by the wayside somewhere in one of my moves over the past ten years and I haven't been able to find it anywhere. I miss it a lot.

I still have my little baby Airco radiator/aircraft torch but I need to find a source of new seals for it. It leaks just enough to make me nervous. :-)

Keep the work coming, and your photography is really coming along great! How about some photos of your soft light box? I know a lot of people could use one of those and the cheapest commercial ones I've seen were thirty bucks and Harbor Freight no longer sells them.

Rich

Thanks a lot! and thanks for the Little Torch recommendation, you were absolutely right.

Great idea on the soft-box tutorial... I'll put something together. I have a good friend who is a pro, he showed me some stuff. You don't need to be a pro to get great results, you just need a few good tips. I'll make it happen, happy to give back, for all the good I have received here ;)

Glad you took Rich`s advice on the torch.

It`s really nice seeing the pics of your work and watching the work progress.
I really like the direction your work is headed,especially those rings with stones.
Keep the pics coming.Worth 1000 words you know.;^)

In theory there is no difference between theory and practice.
In practice there is.

Sterling silver with floral design imprint, slightly domed, about 2.75 inches in diameter.

This was a commissioned piece. The floral pattern is a design used on a friend's wedding invitations. This this was made to match - a gift for his bride to be. It was presented to me as such: Can you make this design out of metal? It was thinking through this challenge that led me to the purchase of a rolling mill - which has since opened many doors in terms of pattern, texture and design possibilities.

Part of this project included making my own doming block/dish on the wood lathe, just for this piece.

For those of us fortunate enough to have access to a lathe I have found this approach to doming both fun and easy;

1-attach block of hardwood to the headstock of the lathe and hollow as needed to create the size and crown of the desired dome.
2-replace that block with one that will act as a "pusher block" and rough crown it so it`s close to matching the hollow in the first block.This pusher block will be held by the tailstock so allow for that.
I turn a morse taper to fit the tailstock(it also fits my headstock) but have also just drilled the back for a hardwood dowel and then held that dowel in a jacobs chuck put in the tailstock if the dome is small enough to get by this way.
3-Put the first block back in the headstock and stick some sandpaper in the hollow you created and smooth it out so it fits well with no folds or wrinkles.
4-fix your pusher block in the tailstock and with the lathe running at slow speed advance the pusher block into the sandpaper and sand the pusher block to an exact fit with the hollow.
I just leave the tailstock lock loose and push and pull by hand rather than crank the tailstock handwheel.This gives me a better feel for what`s happening.
5-remove the sandpaper from the hollow and test the fit.
6-with the lathe unplugged I just line up my metal with the hollow and with the tailstock locked down crank the handwheel and advance the pusher block into the metal and make the dome.
I have several different radius block and hollow sets and if the disc is smaller than the hollow you can get by with carefully centering a disc and sticking it on with either double stick tape on the pusher block or a couple of small dabs of hot glue around the rim of the disc to hold it centered in the hollow block.
Hope this is both easily understood and helps someone.

In theory there is no difference between theory and practice.
In practice there is.

Now that's a great approach! Thanks for sharing. Mating them up using sandpaper... priceless perfection!

You inspire me and give me ideas.
Thank you.

crquack

I like the work you are posting. Are you a gemologist as well?

Not a gemologist, officially, although I have studied up quite a bit. More of a rockhound, perhaps.

Definitely would have been easier to fabricate from sheet.

Here is some recent stuff - all from the last few weeks - still learning and practicing:

Lookin' good, David! I like the floral motif pieces - did you roll those in with your mill?

Rich

Do not stop learning and practicing(EVER). You are doing great stuff and it always adds to the next piece. (As in your rolled textures in silver, then foldformed for necklace, etc.)

Pat

Yessirs! I rolled all that stuff on my new lil mill. I'm enjoying it quite a bit... now trying to think beyond the mill. Incorporating rolled textures/patterns AND some other techniques. We'll see what we get.