So many jump ring questions

[BSnow]

Hey! So I just started making jewelry within the last year and I've really hit a wall when it comes to jump rings. I have so many questions I can't seem to get answers to through google haha.

What I am trying to accomplish:

I prefer to work with 925 Sterling Silver. I've mostly made post earrings and have had no issues there, but now I want to make drops and dangles, necklaces and bracelets. Of course all of these require jump rings. My pieces so far require small holes and therefore need a smaller gauge jump ring. I bought some 24 gauge (0.5mm) 5mm diameter 925 sterling silver jump rings from my supplier (I could probably go one gauge up if needed, but they don't have any available). They were the perfect size for the appearance that I want, but of course they are very soft and easily bendable. Because I am very new to the world of metal working I soon realized something had to be done to strengthen the jump rings, but the internet has so far provided me with a lot of mixed answers therefore leading me to more questions and feeling stuck At first I learned about work hardening, so I bought a rubber mallet and started to tap away at my jump rings. It did indeed make them stronger, but not enough that one accidental yank on an earring, or one snag of a necklace on something, wouldn't rip the piece apart.

So here are my many questions, I hope you guys can help me out as I really want to expand my shop but I can't until I solve this mystery.

1. Is it ok to use sterling silver jump rings? Or is it better to use silver plated for more strength? When is it better to use sterling silver ones?

2. Is there certain gauges that should not be used for necklaces?

3. I didn't use a steal block when work hardening, would that make a difference and possible make the jump rings more sturdy?

4. I read mixed reviews about soldering jump rings. Is this possible with a small jump ring once attached to a piece? What sort of tools would a person on a budget need?

I feel like there were more questions haha, but that's what I got at the moment. I like to be thorough in what I do and really do my research, but this one has been hard to get some straight answers on. I really hope you guys can help me out!

[nicks creative stuff]

Hi Brittany, interesting to read somebody’s history and story, good luck with your endeavours. I’m sure you will do well. Just a few thoughts on your issues. Have you considered using a split ring it’s a bit like a keyring but come in tiny sterling silver versions. Wire wrapping can look very professional once practised and perfected, worth trying with copper wire first, just to get the hang of how it looks. there are ways round soldering near heat sensitive materials. I use a lot of solder paste for tiny jump rings and such like … quick easy and efficient to use … same again well worth practising a lot with copper wire first … then you can move onto purchasing a short length of thin sterling silver wire that wouldn’t cost too much to make and solder your own jump rings and connections … have fun … Nick

[Dennis]

It is necessary to solder each jump ring closed Brttany. Then they will hold without coming undone. In some cases you can save time by using short lengths of ready made chain.
You would benefit from buying a beginners book on jewellery making such as this one, which is long out of print, but very cheap used.https://www.amazon.co.uk/Jewellery-T.../dp/1840921978
Use copper and start practicing, or join a class. Dennis

[Petal]

I would add don't mix plated with sterling silver. Stick with sterling silver, as its strong enough. The trick with jump rings is use half hard wire if you want to make your own (which I do). Soft rings for earrings and half hard for necklaces and bracelets is the rule of thumb I use. The reason for soft rings is you want the ring to open and not your earlobe! Have a practice with copper rings and you'll soon get the gist of it.

[BSnow]

I would add don't mix plated with sterling silver. Stick with sterling silver, as its strong enough. The trick with jump rings is use half hard wire if you want to make your own (which I do). Soft rings for earrings and half hard for necklaces and bracelets is the rule of thumb I use. The reason for soft rings is you want the ring to open and not your earlobe! Have a practice with copper rings and you'll soon get the gist of it.

What is hard wire and soft wire? Isn't all sterling silver soft? Sorry for the silly question, still new to a lot of this. Also the point about earrings makes sense, but wouldn't the person get upset at me that their earring broke because it wasn't strong enough to stay closed?

[BSnow]

Thank you @Dennis & @nickscreativestuff for your answers as well. I looked a lot into soldering and it looks like I do not have that option available due to the space I am working in

[Caro]

What is hard wire and soft wire? Isn't all sterling silver soft? Sorry for the silly question, still new to a lot of this. Also the point about earrings makes sense, but wouldn't the person get upset at me that their earring broke because it wasn't strong enough to stay closed?

When silver is said to be "soft" it is very easy to manipulate and form into shapes. It's also just as easy for it to change shape so a jump ring from "soft" silver will open easily and not hold its shape well. As you work silver though it "hardens". At half hard the wire is springy enough to hold its shape but is still fairly easy to work. Carry on working the wire and it becomes "hard". At this point it becomes very hard to manipulate into shape and tends to move back to where it was. At this point it is usual to anneal the silver so the atomic structure relaxes and it becomes soft and workable again. For jump rings half hard works well as they tend to hold their shape pretty well.

As for soldering jump rings you really don't need much more than a small hand held torch - very like the ones they sell for kitchen use. Is that out of the question?

[BSnow]

When silver is said to be "soft" it is very easy to manipulate and form into shapes. It's also just as easy for it to change shape so a jump ring from "soft" silver will open easily and not hold its shape well. As you work silver though it "hardens". At half hard the wire is springy enough to hold its shape but is still fairly easy to work. Carry on working the wire and it becomes "hard". At this point it becomes very hard to manipulate into shape and tends to move back to where it was. At this point it is usual to anneal the silver so the atomic structure relaxes and it becomes soft and workable again. For jump rings half hard works well as they tend to hold their shape pretty well.

As for soldering jump rings you really don't need much more than a small hand held torch - very like the ones they sell for kitchen use. Is that out of the question?

Unfortunately even a small one I wouldn't be able to use. I live in a small, one bedroom, attic apartment. Between my husband and I's stuff we have pretty much used up every square inch of the place haha. My work space is filled with all my polymer clay and resin stuff. Sadly there isn't any room left to safely use even a small torch

So the hard wire, is that just wire that's been work hardened? From what you said, I think the ones I bought were soft silver.

[Caro]

Unfortunately even a small one I wouldn't be able to use. I live in a small, one bedroom, attic apartment. Between my husband and I's stuff we have pretty much used up every square inch of the place haha. My work space is filled with all my polymer clay and resin stuff. Sadly there isn't any room left to safely use even a small torch

So the hard wire, is that just wire that's been work hardened? From what you said, I think the ones I bought were soft silver.

Yes - it's just been hardened before sale.

As for the soldering - I've heard of people using the kitchen hob as a safe soldering space before now!

[CJ57]

Hi BSnow
Some good beginners jewellery books would be so useful for you to own . They have techniques, a glossary of terms & materials and explain everything really clearly. Some courses are a good way to learn basic bench skills that set you up to go on to tackle most things and then to sell to customers.
As you are in Canada I’d suggest Amazon US for books or is there a Canadian version? I even buy my jewellery books from the US as they are still cheaper than here in the U.K.
Many people start off at the kitchen table or the spare bedroom so a soldering set up for small jobs like jump rings is not impossible.
0.5mm wire seems very thin for jump rings unless soldered and dependant on the weight your piece is. I always use hard for earrings and never solder for safety. Better to split the ring than rip your ear as Jules has already said. I do the same for clasps on necklaces