Micropave

[ps_bond]

I think I'm going quietly mad. Using the new micromotor to cut seats for 1mm stones so that they are girdle-to-girdle; I think I've got the layout OK, but the bead raising is beginning to frustrate me. All of the setting is precut before I put the stones in, so all the excess material is removed and the bright cutting done, then the part-formed beads are pushed over the stone to hold them. So far, I've done 3 in a row - where the bead is split across 2 stones by wedging a flat graver in; now I'm working on a triangle - but how to split a bead in 3 is puzzling me. None of the round gravers I have are small enough (even sharpening a burr to make a round graver is too big), so I wonder if I should use an onglette to split the metal...

I've got 100 of these stones, and I'm not doing anything other than practice until they're used up!

[Dennis]

I've got 100 of these stones, and I'm not doing anything other than practice until they're used up!

There's no answer to that Peter, except 'don't sneeze'.

[Kwant]

Glitter and glue Peter, save you a whole heap of trouble and time :0)

[ps_bond]

It's desperately fiddly work, which is probably what my driver is to do this. Whether I want to then use it in pieces I make, I'm less sure. But it could be a handy skill for the arsenal.

I'm getting much more picky about the polish on my graver for bright cutting, too - currently using 8/0 polishing paper with pencil scribbled over it; with that on a bench block it gives a moderately good finish (but I can see I might want to go finer). Looking for perfection under the microscope is a bit silly in some ways, as hardly anyone else will see it - but I know where the flaws are!

[Dennis]

Ah, the microscope is what I envy, if only to beat the camera lens. Dennis.

[ps_bond]

I don't think there's any way I could tackle this without the scope.

How're these for setting examples - http://www.jurasettersschool.com/photo-gallery.html ? Again, not sure I'm keen on the style of some of it, but the workmanship is wonderful. I need to set some time aside this weekend to carry on practising.

[Julian]

Peter

The dream!

I have been watching you progress in you other posts, I have to do a course. My problem trying to find sone copper, wher did you get yours?

Julian

[Melanie De Castro Pugh]

Julian, have you looked on eBay? I get sheet copper and brass from ABS Metals in Falmouth mostly and sometimes from a seller in Ringwood too. ABS will cut to size too.


Melanie

http://www.spinysharklythings.com

[ps_bond]

Ah, that would be Ringwood Precision Engineering I presume? I've used them quite a bit, although mostly for ferrous rather than non-ferrous. At the moment I'm using some copper water pipe that I've annealed, split and flattened (rough flatten with a hide mallet on the anvil, then finished with a light pass through the rolling mill.

The other place I've bought copper sheet from is Chronos.

As for finding a course - in Amsterdam? I would have thought there were a few options I *think* Daniel Houwer does some teaching, Jura is out at Utrecht...

[Dennis]

I found this firm does it too. http://www.cooksongold.com/category_...y=Copper+sheet. That's a fiver you owe me Cookies.