Make Your Own Stone Setting Tool

Learn how to turn a nail into a great stone setting tool - with stone setting tips too!

About the Class

Make Your Own Stone Setting Tool is an Intermediate Silversmithing class  with a difference! Although some jewellery making hints and tips are,  of course included in the class, the main focus of the videos is  teaching you how to turn a simple steel nail into a wonderfully useful  stone setting tool - both a bezel pusher and a burnisher!

There are plenty of different types of stone setting tools available on the market, however learning how to make your own is a very useful  skill as not all standard tools are suitable for setting stones that are close together, or close to other elements of the design as in the case  of the ring shown in this video class. A traditional bezel pusher cannot fit between the petals of the flowers and the bezel walls to set  the stone, but it doesn't take long to turn a simple steel nail into a  tool that does the job nicely. I will also discuss how to turn screwdrivers into useful tool.

Although this video class doesn't cover all the details of how to make the amethyst and flower ring shown above I will recap the basics of ring making and go into more detail of how to solder three elements neatly on top of a ring - and I will of course set the amethyst using  the tool I have made!

If you haven't already watched them then you will find the Simple Hammered Ring class and the Stone Set Ring class very useful, and they can be found together with this class in the Rings course bundle. This class is also part of the Intermediate Silversmithing course bundle.

If you need any extra help as you work your way through the classes do join us over on The Jeweller's Bench Café group over on Facebook - the perfect place to ask for advice and to show off what you've been making.

You will need:

Materials:
Materials needed for the tool: steel nail and wooden handle
Materials needed for the ring: 2mm round sterling silver wire, small amount of silver sheet, small cabochon stone, bezel strip to fit your stone

Equipment: (all the jewellery making kit listed here can be used for many different projects)
*Jeweller’s saw
*Bench peg
*Whetstone
*Multipurpose or 3-in-one oil
*Wet and dry paper in a range of grades
*Polishing compound
*Leather strip
*Clamp or bench vise
*Heavy hammer

An explanation of all the tools and materials that you need is included in the videos, and a downloadable equipment and materials list is available with the class.

1 hour 6 minutes long, 12 lessons


Course Curriculum

"I modified lots of knives and tools whilst a bookbinding student, but hadn't got round to doing any for my silversmithing. This has prompted me to get my whetstone from the loft, and have a nose in the shed (and also I'll be checking old tool shops and our local tip!) to see what I can modify. I hadn't expected there to be a ring tutorial with this, so that was a bonus."
Dawn G.
"I'd never thought of making my own burnisher to get into those tight spaces - but I've made two now using your class! Great idea!"
Petra F.
"Great to learn how to make a pusher/burnisher for those tricky little  jobs which are otherwise hard to do. I liked seeing how to set multiple  elements on a ring shank as well."
Diana H.

Joanne Tinley

Tutor and Founder of The Jeweller's Bench

The Jeweller's Bench is run by Joanne Tinley. She has been making her own jewellery for as long as she can remember and left her first career as a school teacher to set up business as a  jewellery designer and tutor nearly 20 years ago. She is
self-taught and like many people started with wire and beads. Learning how to solder, however, opened up a whole new world of jewellery making,  one that she is keen to share!

Legal Disclaimer: Every effort has been made to show safe working practices and to discuss health and safety aspects of jewellery making, but in the end I cannot take responsibility for how the tutorial information is used and how safely you work. Take the effort to set up your work area safely right from the start!
All Rights Reserved. No part of this course may be reproduced or shared without express, written consent from the author.

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