Metallurgy


Understanding metallurgy, the properties of metals, is vital for jewelry makers. Learn how to test metals, identify alloys, and work these materials.

Carat Gold Solders for Jewellery Making

Carat Gold Solders for Jewellery Making

In many countries, regulations govern the caratage of gold solders used to make jewellery and, with few exceptions, gold solder...
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Different Coloured Gold Alloys

Different Coloured Gold Alloys

From ancient times, gold has been used mostly in decorative items, and the colour of gold plays an important role...
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Platinum Alloys – Features & Benefits

In this presentation I attempted to provide you with information on platinum alloys to help you make an informed decision...
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Understanding the Working Titanium

Because titanium behaves somewhat differently than the standard metals in the goldsmith's workshop some special attention to its working is...
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Platinum Alloy Applications for Jewelry

Platinum Alloy Applications for Jewelry

Today, platinum is enjoying its renaissance. In the U.S., platinum consumption has risen by more than 700% since 1990. More...
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The Metal Underneath

The Metal Underneath

In this article, I will discuss the basics of metal preparation for the enameling process. Some experienced enamelists may disagree...
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Heat Treating Metals

Heat Treating Metals

Heat treatment changes the microstructure of a metal or alloy. It is a process that may be applied after casting,...
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Argentium Sterling Road Testing

Argentium Sterling Road Testing

Invented in 1996 by Peter Johns, a professor of silversmithing at Englands Middlesex University, Argentium[R] Sterling Silver, like traditional sterling...
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Additive Manufacturing in the Jewelry Scene

Additive Manufacturing in the Jewelry Scene

Did you ever imagine you'd see the day when a finely woven mesh bracelet with thousands of tiny links could...
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The Best Jewelry Books: A Comprehensive Reading List For Craftspeople

A selected bibliography list for the jeweler - Metal working, Casting, Plating, Enamelling ,Gem Cutting, Setting, Engraving and Etching, Other...
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Optimising Gold Alloys for Manufacturing

Optimising Gold Alloys for Manufacturing

Standard yellow gold alloys which are based on gold-silver copper can be used for many production processes. They could be...
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Hard 22 Carat Gold Alloy

Hard 22 Carat Gold Alloy

The jewellery market is looking for harder high-carat gold alloys that are more resistant to wear and scratching. Current research...
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Gold Jewellery Tarnishing

Tarnishing is superficial corrosion of the carat gold surface and is evident by a usually dark discolouration - the tarnish...
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Metal Spinning Part 2: Techniques

Metal Spinning Part 2: Techniques

This article is the second of a three-part series on Metal Spinning by James Seavey discussing the techniques in developing...
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A New Platinum Sterling Silver

A New Platinum Sterling Silver

It took about two months of experimentation to get the formulas for Platinum Sterling Silver just right - Robinson created...
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Bi-Metal Casting to Titanium

Bi-Metal Casting to Titanium

Titanium and the other refractory metals other the metalsmith a new range of exotic colors - colors that are beautiful...
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White Metals and Alloys Testing

White Metals and Alloys Testing

In practice an experienced eye will usually be able to determine by color and luster whether a piece is made...
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Metal Conversion Chart

Metal Conversion Chart

The metal conversion chart below will help you determine the amount of metal needed to create a piece of jewelry...
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De-oxidized Sterling Silver Alloys

De-oxidized Sterling Silver Alloys

Sterling silver alloys typically contain about 7.5 percent copper, an addition that not only provides strength to the otherwise pure...
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Creating Colorful Jewelry Designs

Creating Colorful Jewelry Designs

When most people think of colored jewelry, their minds conjure visions of rubies, sapphires, and emeralds. After all, jewelry makers...
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Gold and Silver – The Noble Metals

Gold and silver have long been esteemed as the king and queen of metals, for good reason. No other members...
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Testing Precious Metals and Alloys

Testing Precious Metals and Alloys

The purpose of precious metal testing is to determine, first, whether a given sample is precious or base, and, second,...
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Causes & Prevention of Defects in Wrought Alloys

Causes & Prevention of Defects in Wrought Alloys

Much of the recent literature on defects that occur in jewellery manufacture is focused on those occurring in lost wax...
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Choosing the Right White Gold

The popularity of white gold has us all looking to the most perplexing gold we use. Perplexing a variety of...
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Testing the X1 White Gold

Testing the X1 White Gold

When it comes to white gold, my customers want the brightest, whitest white they can get -- and some are...
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Platinum – Sterling Alloy

Platinum – Sterling Alloy

Throughout the history of jewelry making, metalsmiths have strived to perfect not only their artistry, but their materials as well....
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Alloying Gold for Granulation

Alloying Gold for Granulation

An alloy is by definition a mixture of two or more metals to create different strengths and colors. For granulation,...
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Alloys – Look on the White Side

In the jewelry industry, it's rare to have an alloy without drawbacks, particularly when the alloy is not yellow. When...
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Touchstone Method for Testing Karat Gold Purity

There are a few scientific methods for precisely determining karat gold purity, some destructive (fire assay) and others nondestructive (X-ray...
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The Creation of White Gold

The Creation of White Gold

White gold presents unique challenges. Who among us has not struggled with white gold at one time or another? Some...
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Electric Kiln Fired Mokume Gane Part 1

Electric Kiln Fired Mokume Gane Part 1

This is the first part of a series on Electric Kiln Fired Mokume Gane. Here we will focus on a...
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Electric Kiln Fired Mokume Gane Part 2

Electric Kiln Fired Mokume Gane Part 2

In this article in the series we will go to billet forging and making a simple wedding band in a...
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Colored Karat Golds for Investment Casting

Colored Karat Golds for Investment Casting

In modern melting and casting technology, the need for products able to front competition in the field of quality and...
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Contemporary Applications of Area Inlay

Contemporary Applications of Area Inlay

The use of area inlay, called damascening or woven inlay, is common in the ancient metalwork of Iran, India, Japan,...
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Richard Reinhardt: Discontinuous Continuity

Richard Reinhardt: Discontinuous Continuity

Richard Reinhardt's best-known pieces today are silver bracelets, constructed in concave or convex forms that curve smoothly and logically in...
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Nickel White Gold Welding

Nickel White Gold Welding

In this article I will be referring to terms that I have defined in previous articles. If you wish to...
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Anodizing Principles Update

Anodizing Principles Update

Although the basic anodizing principles involved in the reactive metals have been discussed in the past, a deeper insight into...
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Master Metalsmith Robert von Neumann

Master Metalsmith Robert von Neumann

This article was completed just weeks before Robert von Neumann's accidental fall and subsequent death on April 23, 1984. Books...
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The Art of Gold

The Art of Gold

'The Art of Gold,' curated by Michael Monroe, is the first major survey of contemporary American goldsmithing. The traveling exhibition...
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Master Metalsmith John Prip

Master Metalsmith John Prip

One observation on the career of John Prip (more often called Jack) is the way in which the man and...
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Electric Kiln Fired Mokume Gane Part 3

Electric Kiln Fired Mokume Gane Part 3

This last installment of this series on Mokume Gane  will focus on the different Mokume Gane pattern techniques and the...
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The Secret Life of Solder

The Secret Life of Solder

Understanding why solders melt and how they flow is fundamental to mastering soldering techniques. The alloys we use every day...
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The Trouble with Pyrite

The first reference that I have that links copperas with the collection of fossils is found in the 'Life and...
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The New MJSA/WGC White Gold Color Index

Have you ever noticed how white gold varies in color? Many folks think white gold is the same color as...
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Platinum Consideration Factors

Jurgen J Maerz of the Platinum Guild International USA outlines factors to consider when adding platinum to your line of...
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Testing Platinum Enhanced Gold

Testing Platinum Enhanced Gold

Following the release of its Sterling with Platinum alloy, ABI Precious Metals in Carson, California, has developed yellow gold alloys...
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Masterpiece in Metal by Adolphe Himmel

Masterpiece in Metal by Adolphe Himmel

Among the most distinguished known surviving pieces of New Orleans-made silver is this tureen made by Adolphe Himmel. With its...
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Alternative Metalsmith Pat Flynn

Alternative Metalsmith Pat Flynn

There is something of the alchemist's magic in Pat Flynn. Like those artful wizards of long ago, he changes common...
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Jonathan Bonner: Whimsy and Vision

Jonathan Bonner: Whimsy and Vision

Jonathan Bonner is a pleasant young man with a quick smile and an easygoing manner. If you saw him in...
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The Contemporary American Custom Goldsmithing

The Contemporary American Custom Goldsmithing

About five years ago, Robert Fairbank, John Reynolds and I created a "living entity" called Goldsmiths 3 in Concord, Massachusetts....
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Martha Glowacki & Fields of Reference

Martha Glowacki & Fields of Reference

Martha Glowacki's works are sculptural abstractions on the theme of landscape. They demonstrate her interest in the imposition of order...
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Alexandra Hart – Crowning Achievement

Alexandra Hart – Crowning Achievement

Putting a spin on tradition, Alexandra Hart of Alexandra Hart in San Diego crafted Broollopskronan, or Bridal Crown, a regal...
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Technical Briefs: All About Metals

Technical Briefs: All About Metals

This entry marks the beginning of a new, regular column in Metalsmith. It will deal with technical concerns of interest...
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