[Jewelry making - Article 00921] - Re: [Orchid] Milling your own or buying stock

[John Donivan]

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>     Incidentally, when buying crucibles, what sort should I go for? I
>     read somewhere recently of some crucibles only being good enough
>     for ten melts!! 

    Helen and all. What we use for this purpose isn't actually called a
    crucible, it's called a melting dish. It's like a small bowl with lip
    on the edge, and they are cheap. There are many methods of making
    ingots and pouring metal, that's just one. I will put out there one
    of the most useful "tricks" in the world, though. Don't burn
    yourself, first of all - it's a little tricky, but not so much. If I
    want to melt and roll 2 or 3 or even 5 dwt. of metal (not platinum),
    I'll melt it on a charcoal block, and while it's molten get
    self-locking tweezers (dunk them in water first), straddle the ball,
    and gently close them. The metal will follow the tweezers and form
    into a long ingot. Then I fire polish the outside of it. Again, it's
    a little tricky but not so much with a little practice - takes about
    a minute instead of pulling out the heavy artillery. For that
    quantity of a bit of sheet I have a large brass (could be steel)
    block and I just sit it carefully on top of the molten ball - don't
    just plop it down or it will be paper, rest it on top and stop at a
    certain height. Again, it requires torch control and close
    manipulation, don't burn yourself. But it's easy when you get the
    hang of it.

http://www.donivanandmaggiora.com
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