Anyone ever made a bead & put it into a 14K gold mounting
I have a friend who wants me to put a glass bead in an empty hole in a 14K gold ring. I've researched gold & it's melting point & think it'll work. I think I'll have to "fit" the bead into the hole while it's hot to make it fit right. Has anyone ever tried this? What were your results?
Can you show us the "setting" - meaning the ring with the empty hole?
Since I've done both glass and metal smithing, I'm thinking you may be headed for disaster if you try and place a hot glob of glass into a 14k setting! So think through all possibilities before you give it a try, and maybe there's a better way...
Have you thought about precisely measuring the "hole", then trying to make a small bead or cab that will fit down snuggly into the hole?
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Agree with Dee. You would probaly just a blob of fumed glass. Gold melts relatively low temp somewhere in the 1500 range as compared to copper which is around 1800. You would be better off to set after torching. Unless you are talking about using the ring as an inclusion, if you worked really slowly it may work...have never tried it though.
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I have successfully used a silver bezel as a shaping tool for making a glass cabochon, but it is somewhat tricky. Gold has a higher melting point than silver, so it may be possible to use the setting as a guide for making the inset piece. A picture of the setting would help to ascertain if that is possible.
One thing I did was keep the setting wet as I was working, and I also kept the glass at the lowest temperature where it would move. The steam vapor coming off the setting will help to keep the glass from sticking, but you still have to be very quick!
Definitely plan to do this off-mandrel for more maneuverability.
Jo
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Anyone ever made a bead & put it into a 14K gold mounting
So think through all possibilities before you give it a try, and maybe there's a better way...
