Wedding Ring Stretcher / Reducer

[Skieferins]

10840

Hello,

I am thinking about trying to make one of these watch fobs...I am wondering if I were to make a basic ring, then resin a Bloodstone and an Onyx either side of the ring, then use a Wedding ring stretcher/reducer to bow the metal around/over the stones, would the Bloodstone/Onyx be able to take gentle presure , just enough to encase them with the ring/surround or would the stones break ?

I get that the stones are 7 on Mohs and the steel is 4-5 Mohs but if pressure is applied, does this mean the stones can withstand the pressure of the Wedding ring stretcher/reducer...or am I better to burnish the stones in place ?

Thank you

[china]

Personally if you were very gentle and progressed in small increments it should be Ok, although in saying that it would also be fraught with danger as one increment too far and it would be all over.
Burnishing would be safer method.

[enigma]

Im not sure really why you would want to do it that way?
The MOHS scale refers to resistance to scratching rather than pressure though.
If it were me I would simply make a bezel and burnish over each side.
If you wanted the surround thicker you could make the bezel and then solder a thicker surround, making sure you leave enough height free to push over each side.

[Skieferins]

I was pretty much going to go down the burnish route, I just thought the wedding ring reducer might help if I wanted to keep a thicker band...The one I had the other day had such a heavy h/m that I was going to use a 2mm band ,hence the thought of trying a wedding reducing machine... So burnisher route it is then. Thank you

[enigma]

You could always try it if you don't mind the risk, could be interesting :)

[Dennis]

Well If going down that route, I would pull the lever slowly, because it doesn't need much to set the stone and also have an intervening piece of cardboard, so that no metal hits it directly.

You could also reduce the risk by using fine silver. Dennis.

[Skieferins]

I am still only using Silver at the moment...and to be honest, I'd want to practise it quite a bit before I attempt it in Gold anyway...Just one other thing, the "Fob Stones" that go in the middle, are they called "Fob Stones" ? Its just I looked for them on the www but as the fob is a thing of the past, I couldn't find a supplier...perhaps the other name "Plug Stones" I came across is the right name ? Only, when I looked for "Plug Stones" the results came back as earhole/body stretchers !!

Thanks

[Dennis]

I think you would find them under flat top cabochons such as these at the bottom of the page: https://www.manchesterminerals.co.uk/acatalog/Flat_Cabochons.html.

You would need two, supprted by bearers (for instance soldered in wires, or a piece of tube) and quite honestly I would set them by hand. Dennis.

[Skieferins]

Thats exactly what I was looking for. Thank you for the link