Q: Visiting Pforzheim ?

Hello,

Does anyone have any suggestions for what to see when
visiting Pforzheim? I hear they have a method for casting
stainless steel there that I can not wait to see for myself.

-Chris

--

On Fri, 05 Sep 2003 17:45:17 -0700, in rec.crafts.jewelry Christopher Robert
Carlson wrote:

Hello,

Does anyone have any suggestions for what to see when
visiting Pforzheim? I hear they have a method for casting
stainless steel there that I can not wait to see for myself.

-Chris

I don't think there's all that much special about casting stainless. Anyone
well equipped to cast platinum, especially with the induction melt machines,
can cast stainless with the same setup. The class ring manufacturers have been
doing exactly that for decades. From what I've heard, though it melts near the
same temperatures as platinum, it's more fluid, and chills more slowly, so it's
actually a bit easier to cast than platinum, though you have to deal with
potential oxidation of the melting metal.

Peter

Peter W. Rowe schrieb:

On Fri, 05 Sep 2003 17:45:17 -0700, in rec.crafts.jewelry Christopher Robert
Carlson wrote:

Hello,

Does anyone have any suggestions for what to see when
visiting Pforzheim? I hear they have a method for casting
stainless steel there that I can not wait to see for myself.

-Chris

I don't think there's all that much special about casting stainless. Anyone
well equipped to cast platinum, especially with the induction melt machines,
can cast stainless with the same setup. The class ring manufacturers have been
doing exactly that for decades. From what I've heard, though it melts near the
same temperatures as platinum, it's more fluid, and chills more slowly, so it's
actually a bit easier to cast than platinum, though you have to deal with
potential oxidation of the melting metal.

Some small differences, to cast iron You need prevention against
oxidation and about 300 °C less melting temperature.
In most cases the melting equipment is bigger for steel, the melted
lot also.

By the way Pforheim has a Jewelry museum, this could be interesting.

--
Mit freundlichem Gruß,
Heinrich Butschal
www.butschal.de

Christopher Robert Carlson wrote:

Hello,

Does anyone have any suggestions for what to see when
visiting Pforzheim? I hear they have a method for casting
stainless steel there that I can not wait to see for myself.

-Chris

--

Hey Chris,

I used to live in Pforzheim. I lived there for four years, when I studied at
the Goldschmiedeschule (school for goldsmithing) there, and where I did my
apprenticeship with Guenther Krauss and where I worked for Klaus Ullrich. I
have some very fond memories of that (very ugly) town.

You MUST most definitely visit the Reuchlinhaus, the only jewelry museum in the
world. It's in the Jahnstasse. Look on this map in .PDF format.
http://www.pforzheim.de/pls/portal30...TPLANINNEN.PDF
The Reuchlinhaus is located in the bottom of the map in the center in the
middle of the park (green section). Their ring collection alone is well worth a
visit. Over 400 rings from antiquity to the present. When I was in Pforzheim,
Fritz Falk was the director of the museum. You could write them in advance and
say that you are an American (I assume) visitor, who is researching a certain
jewelry related project (make it up).

If you can, also visit my old school, the "Goldschmiedeschule".
(http://www.goldschmiedeschule.de/de_...tart/index.php) The address is
St. Georgensteige 65. See
the above mentioned map for that. It is a bit to the right from the
Reuchlinhaus (red dotted line with arrow).

When you do, make sure to visit the rotating permanent exhibit of student's work
in the lobby of the school. You will quickly realize that this work is far
superior to work done by almost any goldsmith in the US with 15 or more years of
"experience". I promise you, it will be a humbling experience for you.

Another school the finish in Pforzheim is the "Fachhochschule fuer Gestaltung"
(the art academy, http://www.fh-pforzheim.de/) where people study jewelry
design. It is one of the top schools in Germany for that.

If you can, also visit Firma Hafner. (http://www.c-hafner.de/) I have been
doing business with them for close to 30 years. I still get all my 18K gold
solders and all my seamless 18K gold tubing from them.

Maybe if you tell them that you are visiting from the US, and that you were told
about them by Abrasha, they will give you a tour. Mr. Meissner there is the
person I always deal with. If you want his email address, let me know, and I
will send it to you by private email. You could write to him in advance of your
visit to Pforzheim.

Also visit the following tool companies. Fisher in the Berlinerstrasse 18 and
Schmalz (http://www.j-schmalz.de/) "used to be" in the Museumstrasse (see the
above mentioned map. inside the dotted red line in the center of town top left
corner for Museumstrasse. The Berlinerstrasse is outside of this red dotted
line a little further to the left).

If you can, have a beer at "Shinderhannes" in the Obere Augasse. I used to live
above that place and had a couple of half liters for dinner, and nothing else,
often. That German beer really sticks to your bones, especially when you're
young. There was another bar I used to hang out at quite a bit back than, but I
forgot the name. It was in the old part of town, and they had Jazz concerts
there a lot. I'm sure I could still find it.

If you like visiting cemeteries, the Pforzheim cemetery is a great place to
visit and walk through. It is in the Nordstadt (northern part of town) across
from the rail road tracks. We used to go there for walks and get stoned.

On Wednesday nights we used to go to the railway station at midnight, sit on the
platform, drink beer and smoke hashish and watch the "Orient Express" pass
through town on it's way from Istanbul to Paris. No one ever got off or on in
Pforzheim. Not very surprising.

Pforzheim is one of the ugliest towns you will ever visit. It was bombed
heavily by the allied forces at the end of WW II, because the town's watch
industry was involved in making gyroscopes for the dreaded V I and V II flying
bombs. The shards of the town were hauled to the southern part of the city
where they created a hill, colloquially know in Pforzheim as "Monte Sherbelino"
(mountain of Shards) We often went there in search of diamonds, which are
assuredly buried in the ruble there, but never found anything of value.

An interesting fact about Pforzheim is, that is does not have one decent jewelry
store. Which is quite understandably so, because anyone in that town who can
afford the finest jewelry, owns a jewelry factory so they make their own. And
literally everyone in town has at least one or two members of his or her family
employed in one way or another by the jewelry industry. So everyone has " a
friend in the jewelry industry".

This post turned into quite a trip through memory lane for me. I had four great
years in Pforzheim.

Abrasha
http://www.abrasha.com

Abrasha wrote:
: Christopher Robert Carlson wrote:
:
: Hello,
:
: Does anyone have any suggestions for what to see when
: visiting Pforzheim? I hear they have a method for casting
: stainless steel there that I can not wait to see for myself.
:
: -Chris
:
: --

: Hey Chris,

: I used to live in Pforzheim. I lived there for four years, when I studied at
: the Goldschmiedeschule (school for goldsmithing) there, and where I did my
: apprenticeship with Guenther Krauss and where I worked for Klaus Ullrich. I
: have some very fond memories of that (very ugly) town.

: Snip, snip, read the previous post!

: Abrasha
: http://www.abrasha.com


Thank you for the excellent information, I can not wait to get to
Pforzheim!

-Chris.

--

Christopher Robert Carlson wrote:

Abrasha wrote:
: Christopher Robert Carlson wrote:
:
: Hello,
:
: Does anyone have any suggestions for what to see when
: visiting Pforzheim? I hear they have a method for casting
: stainless steel there that I can not wait to see for myself.
:
: -Chris
:
: --

: Hey Chris,

: I used to live in Pforzheim. I lived there for four years, when I studied at
: the Goldschmiedeschule (school for goldsmithing) there, and where I did my
: apprenticeship with Guenther Krauss and where I worked for Klaus Ullrich. I
: have some very fond memories of that (very ugly) town.

: Snip, snip, read the previous post!

: Abrasha
: http://www.abrasha.com

Thank you for the excellent information, I can not wait to get to
Pforzheim!

-Chris.

--

BTW, if you get there during the right time in October, you should most
definitely check out the "Oktoberfest". It's nowhere like the Oktoberfest in
Munich, but nevertheless it will give you a taste of how Germans party. Strange
people those Germans are.

To tell you the truth, as a jewish man, I found it a little scary to walk into a
German beer hall. I could just see a "Putsch" happening. I most definitely had
a feeling of "Oh yes, now I understand how this could have happened".

But the beer and the sausages are so excellent, you will most likely enjoy
yourself. Real sausages, none of that those imitation bratwurst you get over
here. Also check out the "real" Frankfurters, Thueringer, etc.

Abrasha
http://www.abrasha.com

"Abrasha" schreef
But the beer and the sausages are so excellent, you will most likely enjoy
yourself. Real sausages, none of that those imitation bratwurst you get
over
here. Also check out the "real" Frankfurters, Thueringer, etc.

I recommend a 'Krakauer' with lots of mustard!

Greetings,

Jaap