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"shattered" pieces of gold or silver? (maybe question for Peter)
I'm trying to come up with a technique for making small bits of gold
or silver with the appearance of weathered stone blocks, broken stone, etc., but on a jewelry-sized scale. Which "bits" would then be granulated onto a backing piece. We are talking small enough "bits" that casting them from wax patterns (leaving aside how the waxes themselves might be made...) seems impractical. I ran across a thread where Peter discusses some experiments he did in grad school with quenching from an elevated temperature to crack or fracture the metals in interesting ways. So, Peter, did you ever get anything like what I am looking for? Any tips? Also, does anyone know if it is possible to shatter gold or silver by ultra-low temperature cooling, followed by impact? Like, for instance, chilling a piece in liquid N2 and then dropping or projecting it against a hard surface, or striking it with a hammer? So far, I haven't been able to find anything definitive about whether precious metals undergo such a phase transition between malleable and brittle states at low temps. TIA for any help. Regards, Bob |
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#3
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Perhaps make some shapes out of precious metal clay (PMC), then break
'em prior to burn-out? Just a thought. Cheers! Neil Bob Edwards wrote: I'm trying to come up with a technique for making small bits of gold or silver with the appearance of weathered stone blocks, broken stone, etc., but on a jewelry-sized scale. Which "bits" would then be granulated onto a backing piece. We are talking small enough "bits" that casting them from wax patterns (leaving aside how the waxes themselves might be made...) seems impractical. |
#4
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A couple of thoughts, try casting onto a layer of broken glass, auto
'safety' glass from a body shop, and try busting up a bottle or window pane. Even casting into a pile or can of glass sahrds and then picking out some fun pieces or manipulating further with semi-flush cutters as Peter suggested. Maybe pouring some sterling onto a piece of drusy quartz could work for you. I'm also wondering if a reticulation alloy instead of sterling may be a good choice for your project, with the above techniques or some suggested by others. Reactive Metals sells it, or you could alloy your own. sounds like fun - try to let us know what you end up with OK? Carl 1 Lucky Texan Bob Edwards wrote: I'm trying to come up with a technique for making small bits of gold or silver with the appearance of weathered stone blocks, broken stone, etc., but on a jewelry-sized scale. Which "bits" would then be granulated onto a backing piece. We are talking small enough "bits" that casting them from wax patterns (leaving aside how the waxes themselves might be made...) seems impractical. I ran across a thread where Peter discusses some experiments he did in grad school with quenching from an elevated temperature to crack or fracture the metals in interesting ways. So, Peter, did you ever get anything like what I am looking for? Any tips? Also, does anyone know if it is possible to shatter gold or silver by ultra-low temperature cooling, followed by impact? Like, for instance, chilling a piece in liquid N2 and then dropping or projecting it against a hard surface, or striking it with a hammer? So far, I haven't been able to find anything definitive about whether precious metals undergo such a phase transition between malleable and brittle states at low temps. TIA for any help. Regards, Bob -- to reply, change ( .not) to ( .net) |
#5
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Bob Edwards wrote:
I'm trying to come up with a technique for making small bits of gold or silver with the appearance of weathered stone blocks, broken stone, etc., but on a jewelry-sized scale. Which "bits" would then be granulated onto a backing piece. You could try texturing a (thickish) sheet with various tools; then cut it into chips. If you find the right tool for your flex shaft you can apply texture to the edges of each chip quickly. I don't really think any heat treatment is going to make that weathered look. -- mbstevens http://www.mbstevens.com |
#6
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Bob Edwards wrote:
I'm trying to come up with a technique for making small bits of gold or silver with the appearance of weathered stone blocks, broken stone, etc., but on a jewelry-sized scale. Melt small amounts of gold on a charcoal block. When the gold is molten and has formed into a ball, hit it with a hammer with a large flat surface. A medium sized chasing hammer is perfect for this. Do not hit the gold ball too hard, because then the resulting piece will be too thin. You'll figure it out. Afgter several tries you may end up with a few pieces you'll like. One very important thing to remember. Do all of this INSIDE a circular metal barier, and on top of a metal sheet, so that the hot gold does not go flyinbg everywhere, and or hits you in the chest. Good luck. Abrasha http://www.abrasha.com |
#7
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"Abrasha" wrote in message
... Bob Edwards wrote: I'm trying to come up with a technique for making small bits of gold or silver with the appearance of weathered stone blocks, broken stone, etc., but on a jewelry-sized scale. Melt small amounts of gold on a charcoal block. When the gold is molten and has formed into a ball, hit it with a hammer with a large flat surface. A medium sized chasing hammer is perfect for this. Do not hit the gold ball too hard, because then the resulting piece will be too thin. You'll figure it out. Afgter several tries you may end up with a few pieces you'll like. One very important thing to remember. Do all of this INSIDE a circular metal barier, and on top of a metal sheet, so that the hot gold does not go flyinbg everywhere, and or hits you in the chest. Good luck. HeH. I had 14.5 gm of 18K melted on top of a brand new charcoal soldering block that I had groved for a wire mold. Did you know that molten Gold rolls toward the flame? Did you know that molten Gold continues to roll after you remove the flame? I ended up with 14.5 gm of Gold shot ranging from 1/2 mm to 2 mm in diameter slightly flattened on the bottom. Now I am thinking of using that shot with some "Gold Glue" ( Malachite + Gum Arabic + Boric Acid + Sodium Borate + Alcohol ) to granulate a ladies bracelet with a nice Opal as the stone. I used an old cast-Iron dutch oven to catch any spills but I had intended to roll that particular melt into wire. I did get my wire made by wiring a second charcoal block on top with the original as a "mold" and tilting the melt into the channel. Learn something new every day I guess. -- Don Thompson ~~~~~~~~ Abrasha http://www.abrasha.com |
#8
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"Don T" wrote in message
. .. HeH. I had 14.5 gm of 18K melted on top of a brand new charcoal soldering block that I had groved for a wire mold. Did you know that molten Gold rolls toward the flame? Did you know that molten Gold continues to roll after you remove the flame? I ended up with 14.5 gm of Gold shot ranging from 1/2 mm to 2 mm in diameter slightly flattened on the bottom. Now I am thinking of using that shot with some "Gold Glue" ( Malachite + Gum Arabic + Boric Acid + Sodium Borate + Alcohol ) to granulate a ladies bracelet with a nice Opal as the stone. I used an old cast-Iron dutch oven to catch any spills but I had intended to roll that particular melt into wire. I did get my wire made by wiring a second charcoal block on top with the original as a "mold" and tilting the melt into the channel. Learn something new every day I guess. -- Don Thompson Don: Been there, done that! :-) BTW, you don't need such an elaborate formula for granulating -- just mix up some hide glue and green flux with a bit of water. I'm away from my shop now, and doing this from memory (so don't hold me to it), but I think the ratios are 50 drops water, 10 drops green flux, 5 drops hide glue. I use Titebond, works fine. The ratio isn't really that critical, you can adjust it to your preference. It helps to copper-plate the granules first, by stirring them in some well-used pickle with an iron tool, but again, it's not strictly necessary, just makes the process a tad easier, espcially with 18kt. The glue provides the reducing atmosphere and sticks the granules down, the copper plating helps with the micro-alloying at point of contact, and the flux helps keep everything from oxidizing. The plating disappears when you fuse the piece. Also, you should depletion-gild the base piece by repeated heating and picking until no oxide forms on heating. Regards, Bob |
#9
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Some good suggestions that I hadn't considered -- thanks guys!
I'll let you know how this turns out. Regards, Bob |
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