Hallmarking Unfinished Items

[CJ57]

I prefer struck marks to be honest. There is something more substantial in punches being used

[Petal]

Thanks, I think if I was just sending in all finished pieces I'd go with the laser but as some of them are unfinished I'll probably get them all struck and just hope for the best!

Don't forget to mark on the item where you would like them to be struck. You can also specify that you would like a light strike, if the work is delicate. I've requested this many times with my chainmaille items and they are usually very helpful, especially if you phone them first.

Good luck with your first batch.

[enigma]

I prefer struck marks to be honest. There is something more substantial in punches being used

Me too, very much so.

[angmc]

Thanks for all your help everyone

[Lux Aeterna]

We could, back in the day, send complicated pieces in component parts as long as it was obvious how it went together. There is no need to do that now as they mark finished items without damage now.

No disrespect, but that's not been my experience of late (at least not with struck marks). More than one of my (domed) pieces has come back with very noticeable bruising, which has had to be sanded / ground down.

I sent some incomplete pieces in to the London office last year and they were done, but returned with a note saying that only complete pieces should be submitted in future. When I queried this by 'phone, I was told that they'd had 'the ISO people' onto them about the matter and had had to tighten their procedures, but that I could submit a 'kit of parts' with the parts that didn't need hallmarking to be bagged separately and labelled "Component Items For Testing Only".

So that's what I did for my latest run, which included some pendants where the hallmark had to lie directly beneath the bezel. For each pendant, I submitted the backing with a jump ring for the bail soldered on, struck with my mark plus green Sharpie ink dots to show where I wanted the rest of the mark to go. I put the bezel, bail and decorative elements in a 'Component Parts' bag, then put that bag in a larger bag along with the backing, so that it was obvious they were all part of the same piece. I added a note to this effect in the 'Special Instructions' field on the hallnote, also noting that the bezels were Fine Silver and checking the 'Mixed Metals' box. The pieces were accepted without question or comment.

FWIW I use a small (1" dia.), nylon mallet to strike my sponsor's mark, using a 'moderate tap'. I make a few 'practice marks' on scrap copper or silver, to gauge / remind myself of the strength required before I strike the piece itself. I've not used the laser marking service, because the laser marks I've seen look like they'll rub / polish off too easily within a few years. I believe you can request multiple passes (say 2 or 3) with the laser to get a deeper mark, but that this costs extra.