Two separate yet related questions

[Skieferins]

Hello,

I've been making twist rings this week and I'm wondering if there are such pliers as half rounds or small flat pliers that have no griping teeth ?

Also, how far can you expand a seemless ring using a ring stretcher ? I've been cuttlefish casting and I was asked if I could make a second casting but 4 sizes bigger.

Thank you :-)

[Goldsmith]

Half round pliers don't usually have gripping teeth, see;http://www.cooksongold.com/Jewellery...prcode-999-700

If you anneal the ring regularly it will stretch as far as you want, but remember it will get thinner the further you stretch it.

James

[mizgeorge]

I don't think I have a single pair of pliers on my bench that are not smooth faced - in fact most are regularly smoothed and tidied up to make sure they don't mark things. As James says, half rounds in pretty much all sizes are generally smooth, as are most flat and snipe/chain nosed.

I wouldn't have any issues with a fabricated ring going up that many sizes, but I've had mixed results enlarging cast rings by more than 2 full sizes. I'm never entirely convinced my cast pieces are quite as strong, and they always seem more vulnerable to cracking.

[Dennis]

There you have it: Jewellers pliers are generally smooth, but even then it requires some skill to minimise the marking, when using metal on metal.

One aid, although a bit clumsy, is to push short pieces of clear plastic tubing onto one or both beaks. This is available in various sizes from local ironmongers.

For larger rings and ring shanks it is preferable to use a ring bending device, such as that below. A strip of leather is used to protect the outer surface from marking, on the basis that the inner surface is easier to clean up.

As for stretching a ring by four sizes, that's going a bit far, as George has said. Better to make a new mould if you are casting. Dennis.