[Jewelry making - Article 00255] - Re: [Orchid] Flush setting in platinum?

[David Bright]

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    Flush setting was one of the first techniques that I was taught when
    I was being trained as a setter. IF you have the proper instructor
    and the proper tools and techniques it is really a VERY simple task.
    Of course I have made some of my own special tools that now make the
    techniques that I learned much easier. I also use these tools for
    baguettes and other fancy stones too. 

    It doesn't matter if you are setting a round, marquise or a princess
    cut...the techniques are mostly still the same. The stone is just a
    different shape and on any stone with points or corners you MUST
    make sure to relieve the metal at the points to make sure that the
    points don't break off. 

    For practice, solder some type of U shaped holder to a penny, insert
    the U shaped "holder" into the flat side of your ring clamp and drill
    and set your stone in the penny. It will not teach you the proper
    depth techniques but the copper will act similar to platinum in
    relationship to feel and is cheap to work on.(newer pennies have zinc
    in them so try and use a much older penny if you can) A good
    burnishing tool and techniques are important too. You can practice
    just burnishing them into the copper and you can use an electric
    "hammer" tool also. This will give you the practice you need to learn
    both techniques. If you use the hammer you must clean up all the
    marks and make a neat job of it. Most likely you will also use a
    burnishing tool or a graver to clean up the metal on the stone.
    Copper is pretty unforgiving as to making marks in it...but it very
    closely emulates what you will be working with when you are setting
    something in platinum. If you want the white gold "feel" use a nickel
    instead of a penny. 

David
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