Tool Talk
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Tool Talk! About bezel punches
How can you use bezel punches to make your work shine? Bezel punches were a revelatory tool when I first learned about them. It felt like a secret being unlocked. I had struggled to make small, round bezels for faceted stones look as smooth as the pros made them. Using the usual methods of bezel…
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Tool Talk! Using a Hammer Hand Piece for your Flex Shaft
How about that bottom line?That one gets the shaft.It’s the line that tells us that we spent too much, or that we paid too much for that show with the splashy top line numbers. It’s the line that shows our time spent reconciling our receipts.
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Tool Talk – My Favorite Bench Pin
My Favorite Bench PinIt’s been awhile since I’ve talked more specifically about jewelry skills and tools. And it’s been awhile since I’ve talked to you about tools and I’ve desperately missed talking about tools.Disclaimer – I don’t get paid for any of my jewelry tool reviews. I just really love a useful tool and want…
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Tool Talk! 3M Bristle discs – the magic polishing tools
Making a round shape and keeping it round in jewelry is sometimes harder than it looks. When I started out in jewelry-making, I loved making rounded, sinuous, and organic shapes (still do, tbh).The problem? Traditional methods of cleaning, finishing, and polishing involved files and sandpaper, all of which tended to make more work for me…
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Tool Talk! Wax Carving Tools
Lots of wax carving tools can be adapted, re-shaped, sharpened, and formed to make them into the exact tools that you need. Check out the latest Tool Talk video to see how I adapted some old dental tools to be sharper and more ergonomic.
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Tool Talk! Why I Love My Deadblow Mallet
Deadblow Mallet – Why do I love it so?The deadblow mallet has tiny ball bearings in it that give this mallet heft and weight, meaning you need fewer blows to achieve the same result. And herein lies the reason I love it so much – fewer blows means faster work, faster work means more time…
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Tool Talk – what is the best wax pen for jewelry designers?
Best is always a subjective term to describe jewelry tools. One person’s best tool can be a crap tool for another jeweler. If I leave you with no other information here, let it be that the “right tool” is the tool that’s right for you. Look, treat yourself to the $200 electric wax pen that…
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Tool Talk! What are the best jewelry drill bits?
You thought I wouldn’t geek out over drill bits? Oh, my sweet summer child. Of course, I am going to geek out and geek out hard for my favorite drill bits. I love a small tool that makes a big difference in your quality of life and this drill bit with the wider base makes…
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Tool Talk! Quick Release Hand Piece
If you bought a Foredom Flex Shaft, then it likely came with a regular chuck key-operated handpiece. Screw it open, screw it closed. Each tool change in your flex shaft requires this step. But what if you could just press a lever and pull out one bit and pop the other one in? The quick-change…
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Tool Talk! Which torch is best for soldering jewelry?
What kind of jeweler’s torch should you get?I know, I know. This is one of those jeweler subjects that gets super judgy super fast. Everyone has OPINIONS and there is this weird gatekeeping nature to the discussion that suggests that you aren’t a real jeweler unless you have the “right torch”. If you spend any…