[Jewelry making - Article 01217] - Re: [Orchid] Shellac Removal

[David L. Huffman]

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>         Some people have a problem wrapping their mind around handling
>     something that came from... bugs... <grin> 

Hi Brian;

    I love the stuff. It has an intriguing smell when heated. I use
    shellac, setter's cement, also jet set and other thermoplastics,
    each in different situations. The shellac can be warmed and formed
    around and article when it's cool enough to handle. So can the
    thermoplastics. But the thermoplastics have a bit of bounce to them,
    so when I'm doing some kinds of setting, I want the get the feel and
    even hear the changes in sound that hammering metal down on a stone
    makes, so that I can tell what's happening. The thermoplastics, on
    the other hand, will withstand much more vigorous hammering, so if I
    have some heavy metal bashing to do, thermoplastic is the answer.
    Thermoplastics are good for engraving type setting, like bright cut
    and pave, but you have to be careful that the plastic doesn't ooze up
    through the holes because it's difficult to get it out of the way of
    the stone. That's why I usually like the shellac. You can scrape or
    bur it off where you need. Back to thermoplastics though, you can
    shape them around all kinds of articles and still form a bit of it
    into an extension that can be clamped into your Bench Mate or a
    vise, etc. Stuller sells an orange setters cement that's a lot easier
    to get cleaned off the mounting than shellac, and it doesn't shatter
    as easily as shellac. But it also goes from molten to solid too
    quickly to easily form it around an article with your hands. Boy,
    it's great to have so many more choices that we did a decade ago. 

David L. Huffman

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