How do you size a hammered Ring?

[silvermagpie]

Morning all,
i've made a couple of wraparound/bypass style Hammered Rings using D wire - but i seem to either waste wire (due to the fact that hammering lengthens it) and have to cut off quite a bit of excess or i've not estimated the length long enough and after hammering it comes up short.

How in the world do you size it without those problems occurring?

I'm a newbie to all this, so very Green.

Any tips welcomed!

[caroleallen]

I don't think there's any scientific way to do it as it depends a lot on how hard you hammer the wire. I would make a range of lengths and take the measurements before and after. Another way to do it would be to hammer the length of wire first and then cut it to the size you want.

[Dennis]

Here's a suggestion from me:

Make it about one to one and a half sizes too small and then tap it all over on a tapered mandrel with a small ball ended hammer until it has expanded to the right size. This will expand it and texture it at the same time.
Practice with copper wire first, to avoid wasting silver. The round wires in a piece of earthing cable from an electrical shop would do for that. Dennis.

[silvermagpie]

I don't think there's any scientific way to do it as it depends a lot on how hard you hammer the wire. I would make a range of lengths and take the measurements before and after. Another way to do it would be to hammer the length of wire first and then cut it to the size you want.

I did actually think of doing it that way.
Thanks Carole!

[silvermagpie]

Here's a suggestion from me:

Make it about one to one and a half sizes too small and then tap it all over on a tapered mandrel with a small ball ended hammer until it has expanded to the right size. This will expand it and texture it at the same time.
Practice with copper wire first, to avoid wasting silver. The round wires in a piece of earthing cable from an electrical shop would do for that. Dennis.

That's where i was going wrong when it was coming up short, as i under-estimated by maybe two sizes smaller and the silver didn't expand enough.
Good idea about practicising on Copper.
Thanks Dennis!