Birthday Presents

BY: David I. Day

 

UPDATE: 4/23/01

On Saturday April 21 I saw the recipient of this bracelet. I asked how she liked the bracelet. She had never received it. I am now in the process of recreating this piece and finding a service that will deliver the next one (six months plus late). This is an ongoing problem. In the past year I have problems with three packages either being lost or being delayed for up to a month. Help has been requested and silence is the response. I enjoy making things for special people. The enjoyment is completely lost when others tamper with the process. The good news is that every piece that I make is photographed. Usually I photograph each piece with 35mm film and digitally. In the case of this piece each part was hand made and no two parts are exactly the same making this piece totally unique. I made three oaf these bracelets and none were the same. There are also unique things that I have done in the manufacturing that also makes each piece unique from each other.

 

The Birthday Bracelet:

In the past when one of friends was having a birthday I would usually buy them something. Jewelry, for the girls, makes a really nice present. This page shows one of my latest works. It is easy to build, very light weight while being strong and looks good. Fabrication begins by making the rings that line the loop of the bracelet. I should begin by saying that there are only fifteen solder connections on this piece. I also only used two sizes of sterling wire. The stone was a pre-cut Rose Zirconium. I bought the basket head with the stone. Cost for the stone was $18.00 and the basket head is $8.00. The wire varies but is about $1.50 per foot.

To make the rings I took a smooth transfer punch the size that I needed and rolled the small wire around the punch the same number of turns as the number of rings that I needed plus a few more. Next the punch was removed leaving the rolled wire looking like a coil spring. Using a common frame saw I cut through the coiled wire. As each loop was cut a single turn of sterling wire dropped off.

Each loop can then be closed. at this point it is important to close the slot where the two ends meet tightly, but do not deform the ring shape. Generally I lay all of the rings on my solder pad with the slot facing me. Now a solder chip can be placed on each slot and proper liquid flux can be added. If done correctly the flux will cover the solder chips as well as wicking into the ring slots.

With a gentle heat from a butane torch the rings were heated until they began to glow and the solder wicked into the slots. Quickly the rings were dropped into a prepared container of pickle. Pickle removes the flux residue from the sterling.

Next I prepared the bracelet loop. I wanted to make a bracelet that is 6.5" end to end. I knew that I needed at least 12 inches of wire. The width that was needed was about a half inch. For good measure I added an inch for each end making 14 inched of wire needed for the band.

To prepare the wire it needed to be straightened. To do this the wire was tapped with a rubber nosed hammer on a flat metal plate. The wire was rolled on a flat surface to check for high spots. A little finger bending an rechecking and I had a straight piece of wire.

Next all of the finished rings should be measured. Their measurements should be fairly close to each other. I found a punch that was close in to size to the rings. I bent the straight piece of wire in a place where when finished a overlap will occur at the point where the stone will be placed. The two ends were then cut with flush cutting cutters at the exact mid point. The two ends were placed together and I medium soldered the two ends together. Usually some sanding and polishing is needed to conceal the solder joint.

Now we have a 6.5 long loop that looks similar to a big paper clip. The next step is to attach the six rings. What I did is get a pair of dividers with metal points and choose a spacing for the rings. I set the space between the end of bracelet loop and the first ring. I transferred this demotion to the spacing between each ring. I then dry fit the setting for the stone and determined if this was a good layout. You may have to try several times to get it the way you like.

Each ring will be attached with two colder connections. I began by placing the slot toward one long side of the bracelet. Pick the side opposite from where the joints were soldered. If the side with the joint is picked it could pop open and it will be difficult to reconnect. With all the spacing set and the complete bracelet with all rings setting on the solder pad it is time to solder it together. I place a very small chip of medium solder on the place where the ring touches the bracelet rail. This is done on one side only. Remember to flux each connection. I heated the whole rail as well ass the rings. Do not, Do not allow the torch to dwell in any location for too long or you can melt the silver. When soldered put the piece in the pickle for cleaning.

At this point you are have all six rings attached by one side. Any adjustments than need to be done can be done here. My loop was a bit big so I narrowed it a bit with a rubber tipped hammer and a soft but firm surface. Check that all rings are flush with the back of the bracelet. Some may need aligned with the other side.

Soldering the other side of the rings to the other side of the bracelet is next. I used a product called stay bright solder. This is the silver equivalent to radio solder except there is no lead. My mistake was that I used too much solder on these connections. Use as little solder as is needed. Place a chip in each connection to be made. Also use flux here. I use a flux that comes with the stay bright. When you heat these connections be careful. This is a very low temperature solder and melts quickly. Also let the solder cool down before dropping the piece into the pickle so the joints will come apart.

Now you will have a flat loop with all the pieces mounted except for the stone's bezel. Do not mount the bezel yet. The bracelet will need to be bent to shape and while bending the bezel could also get bent. You should now inspect the bracelet. Look for pits or scratches in the metal. Look at the solder connections. Is this piece ready for the next steps or is repair needed?

Use a rotary grinder with a felt wheel and polishing compound to polish the surface of the metal. It should gleam and have no scratches. All connections should be bright and smooth. If not filling sanding and polishing may be needed. When the piece is finished you can move to the next step.

The next step is to bend the bracelet. I use a metal bracelet mandrel for the step. A bracelet mandrel is a oval shaped cone that you can form a bracelet around. Some times I use a rubber tipped mallet to help with the shaping. Be careful, be very careful at this point. If the metal is too hard it could crack. I re-inspect the piece for scratches and cracks. If marks are present you should repeat the finishing process used before bending.

If the bracelet is bent and looks correct then you can add the bezel. I find the center of the bracelet and draw pencil marks around both wires. The bezel is also marked for center with pencil. The bezel is then place face down on the solder pad and the bracelet is set on top so as to align the bezel and bracelet. A small chip of stay bright is placed on each side where bracelet meets bezel and fluxes. A little more heat form the torch and the solder will flow into the each of the two last joints.

Now you should have a finished bracelet. The only assembly step is setting the stone in its holder. As before inspect the finished piece and remove any scratches or tool marks. The reason for all the polishing is that the assembled piece is harder to polish than when it is apart. When you are finished and the bracelet is polished and clean you may begin to set your stone.

For this present I choose Rose Zirconium. My dealer had a rather nice selection and I choose a large stone to fit the style of bracelet I was making. My bezel has prongs to hold the stone so I have to use prong bending pliers. I put the stone in the cup for it and check for how it sits in the cup. Once satisfied I gently begin bending each prong until all are touching the top of the stone. I found that I had some burs an removed them with out scratching the stone.

My last step was to use a silver cleaner to brighten up the silver and put a waxy film on the silver to prevent tarnish. Remember it never hurts to keep rubbing the surface with a soft polishing cloth.

The following photos were taken to document this project. I took them with a Nikon Coolpix 990 digital camera. The have been reduced to 640 x 480 for use on this web page.

 An interesting note to this project. I mailed this bracelet to the person that it was for. I used the USPS and insured it and asked for a signed receipt. I never got the receipt. I later learned that it never got to the person. I started a tracer and found that some one in the Roseville Michigan (48066) post office erased from the computer both the insurance record and the tracker information. I never left this office. The person that stole it is some one that was in that office with the access to the postal records computer with the ability to remove record information. I called the postal inspector and supplied her with all information. She never returned any messages. I believe that this is standard operating procedures. The thief is important enough that the postal inspector was removed from this case. I had to make a second bracelet and pass it up through friends rather than trust a corrupt system. The cost was low. The labor was about a week. But is is really crazy that the system is set up to allow this kind of thieving. By the with no record of the insurance the USPS did not even pay me for the loss. The took my money for insurance and erased the record despite the fact hat I have the hard copies of the tracker and insurance.  Stupid government crooks.