Tool Making – Ornamento

Make a Pottery Throwing Gauge

By: ornamento.blog April 22, 2021April 12, 2021

Art, DIY pottery tools, Pottery tools, problem solving, repurposing, Tool Making, ToolsArt, DIYPottery tools, Pottery and Ceramics, Pottery Throwing GaugeLeave a Comment

One way to make similar-sized pottery plates, bowls and mugs is to start out with a given weight of clay for each item. Here’s a handy chart of recommended amounts of clay needed for certain items. But I have a hard time throwing consistently-sized items even if I do start out with equal weights of clay. It would be nice to make a set of four mugs that are nearly the same size on purpose and not by accident. A pottery throwing gauge is a tool that is supposed to help you do just that. You set the gauges to the height and width you want your piece to be and, if you don’t knock it over, you might end up with an evenly-matched set of bowls or mugs.

I’d never even heard of a pottery throwing gauge until I saw this video by Florian Gadsby on YouTube. I was intrigued needless to say. I love tools but I’m not the kind of person who buys tools willy nilly thinking they can make me a better artist. But I will buy a tool if I think it will be helpful. (I just snagged a KitchenAid mixer on Craigslist and it sure makes kneading bread easier.) And if I think I can make a tool that will be helpful, even better.

So I decided to make a pottery throwing gauge. I gathered up my nut and bolt collection, and my scrap wood. Aside from some wood screws, the only other material I used was a broken set of pottery calipers from the pottery studio. I sawed these in two, to make two positionable gauges which can be used in tandem to measure the height and width of the pot. They fold up out of the way if they’re not needed. I fastened the gauge parts with bolts, wing nuts and rubber washers like these because they make it easy to tighten the wing nuts and position the gauges. I used bigger bolts, washers and wing nuts to attach the gauges to the center post.

My tool list was short: a drill and bits, an electric screwdriver, a metal saw, a wood saw, a ruler, and a clamp to hold the wood during sawing.

The gauges cover a pretty wide range of sizes. I drilled holes in the main post about four inches apart so the gauges could be taken out and repositioned as needed.

I screwed the main post into a crosspiece which seems steady, but I might have to weight it down with a brick when I am throwing pots on an active wheel. I also drew lines at one-inch intervals let me know how to set the gauges. The center post is about 15 inches high.

Oval Jump Ring Ovation!

By: ornamento.blog June 25, 2020June 23, 2020

Art, jewelry making tools, Jump rings, problem solving, Tool Making, tutorialsArt, DIY jewelry making tools, Oval Jump RingsLeave a Comment

I like to use oval jump rings in my jewelry because they are strong and attractive. But it can be difficult to make them. I tried the oval winder you see below. Unless your wire is very stiff, it twists when you take it off the mandrel making it hard to cut jump rings with consistently-positioned seams, and even harder to saw them in a jump ring jig.

After some experimenting, I found the best solution for me is to make my own mandrels that I modify slightly so I can saw even, consistent jump rings.

Tape two round mandrels together, wind the wire evenly around them and saw, positioning your saw at an angle as you would for round jump rings. The notch or space between the mandrels allows you to angle your saw and cut a perfect jump ring. Here are some pictures of the process of sawing oval jump rings using two 10 mm mandrels. Be sure to securely clamp your mandrel to something to hold it steady while you saw. And don’t forget to lubricate your saw blade.

Saw the top wire only

Perfect flush ends

The size and shape of your jump rings are limited only by the size and shape of your mandrels. I wanted some smaller jump rings and used drill bits I taped together at the drilling ends so I could use the smooth parts as mandrels. Again, the space between the two drill bits allows you to saw your jump rings at an angle, one jump ring at a time.

I used 1/4″ drill bits here. You could go smaller if you needed smaller jump rings. You could use nails with the heads sawed off, or any kind of smooth mandrels taped together.

Some more mandrels to try: Paint stirrers and Popsicle sticks make great oval-shaped jump rings. Just clamp them to a steady surface, wind the wire, and saw.

Paint Stirrers

Popsicle Sticks

I All sizes

Here’s a sampling of different oval jump rings you can make with the mandrels I’ve described. The ends are nice and flush for soldering or you can close them with pliers and leave them unsoldered. Give it a try!

McGyver Your Ring Clamp

By: ornamento.blog May 28, 2020May 20, 2020

altering tools, Art, jewelry making tools, problem solving, Tool MakingJewelry Making Tools, McGyvering a ring clamp, Ring Clamps2 Comments

I bought a ring clamp when I took my first metalsmithing class years ago but could never figure out how to use it. Then I saw Helen Driggs’ article on how to use a ring clamp and decided to try. But my wedge was too small and I couldn’t hold anything very tight. I was too cheap to buy another ring clamp so back in the drawer it went.

Then I saw Nancy L.T. Hamilton’s article on how to convert a ring clamp with a too-small wedge into one that would actually hold something. You basically drill a hole in the clamp so you can insert a bolt with a wing nut to hold the clamp shut. What a great idea! I went to drill out my clamp and saw that it was made out of plastic, not wood. I didn’t know whether I would destroy it by drilling it so back in the drawer it went.

And while this seems like a non-sequitur, it’s not: I ate a lot of popsicles last summer and the sticks are littering my workshop. And I have duct tape. And that was my solution to my non-functional ring clamp.

Duct tape four popsicle stocks to the wedge.

The wedge should fit tightly into the clamp

I was able to saw the ring comfortably. The altered wedge held it tight.

May your days be merry and bright and may all your ring clamps hold your jewelry tight! (Sorry)

A Cane Slicer on the Cheap!

By: ornamento.blog January 9, 2020February 27, 2020

Art, cane cutter, Polymer Clay, Tool Making, videoArt, Polymer Clay, Tool MakingLeave a Comment

I am gearing up for Clayathon 2020. I haven’t touched polymer in a while but started working with it again recently because I figured it would be good therapy for my hand and thumb.

I used to make a lot of canes and even wrote a little article on making geometric canes which you can read here. There is so much better information on Youtube nowadays. But once you make the canes, you have to slice them. Below are two videos showing how to make inexpensive cane cutters. I made the first video (which I totally forgot about until someone saw it on YouTube this week and left a comment) to send to a friend to see if it was feasible to manufacture and sell an inexpensive cane cutter. Maybe it would have been, but the project never came to be. None of my ideas for the cane cutter, however, are particularly brilliant. If you find anything that inspires you, please feel free to copy, share, or whatever. I

The second video by Unruly Housewife, shows how to make a cane cutter that works on the same basic principles as mine (which were not original with me), but that is much easier to make. Her instructions are clearer and her video is definitely better shot than mine.

A third low-cost option for a cane slicer is this one developed by Sherman Oberson and sold through Penn State Industries. Not very high tech, but it holds all shapes of canes steady for slicing and its small size makes it handy to throw into your toolbox.

mcm-csj

Happy cane slicing!

Cheap and Easy (Drill Bit Storage That Is!)

By: ornamento.blog February 28, 2013February 26, 2013

Found Objects, Hand Made, Personal History, problem solving, recycling, repurposing, Tool Making, ToolsArt, creativity, inspiration, Jewelry Tools, repurposing2 Comments

I was trolling that delightful time sucker Pinterest a few months ago when I saw an awesome bur holder sold on the Stuller website. It looked like it would hold hundreds of burs and drill bits in a compact space and could sit right on the top of my jewelry bench. Did I mention that I wanted one right then and there? I’m not given to impulse purchases, however, so I tucked it into the back of my mind. Then one trash day, I found a wooden thing with four sides that spins. I think it’s a mug tree and kitchen utensil holder. I took it home and studied it. Then I realized that it was a drill bit and bur holder waiting for me to liberate it from its former job as a kitchen caddy. It now sits proudly atop my jewelry bench enjoying its new role.

To make the transition from the kitchen to the jewelry bench, I first marked where the holes would go and then I drilled pilot holes with an electric drill and a 1/8 inch drill bit. Then I went back and drilled the holes at an angle so the burs and drill buts would slip in and stay put.

The wood caddy is hollow in the middle (probably meant for spoon storage) so I took care to drill a number of holes only partially through so the bits without a brush, polisher or wheel on the top would not fall through. If I want, I can drill more holes on the top lip for more storage.

This project was easy and cheap since I found the wooden caddy. It would probably be easy to make one of these with scrap wood and a lazy susan base. Unless you can build something yourself, however, it probably wouldn’t pay to buy an item similar to the one I used to convert to a drill bit holder. But keep your eyes open at house sales and flea markets. And on trash day.

More Ideas for Making Jewelry Tools

Even though I have posted articles on making simple jewelry tools, there is always something more to learn. Here are some of my recent efforts: You can make texturing hammers out of cheap ball peen hammers. I filed the faces of the hammers and used grinding tools on my flex shaft (you can also use a rotary tool) to get some interesting textures. I didn’t have any instructions; I just made it up as I went. If you try this, however, wear safety goggles, because they hug your head with no gaps for tiny metal fragments to fly through. When sanding and finishing metal, I also wear a dust mask because you can breathe in tiny metal particles. You might want to go a step further and use a respirator.

You can also file and grind metal punches and chisels to get great texturing effects.

Here are examples of textures I achieved on annealed copper with the tools I made. The upper left was made with the altered chisel. The other three were made with the altered hammers. I worked on a metal block.

Another tool I love is a gizmo to hold jump rings while you saw them. I first saw a picture of this tool in Robert Dancik’s book Amulets and Talismans. He didn’t give any directions, but it looked so simple to make and such a great idea that I made my own. You can buy one at John Lewis’ Etsy Shop, and you can find directions on how to use it on Barbara Lewis’ blog, Painting with Fire. If you want to try making one yourself, Art Jewelry Magazine published and article by Howard Siegel that subscribers can download here.

My V block tool. Not pretty, but it gets the job done.

It wasn’t until I saw Shailyn Miller’s DVD Rings of Beauty, that I realized how useful a ring mandrel holder could be. I built a home made version from a wood box that held a bottle of wine. If you are handy with hole saws or and spade drill bits, you could make one easily and clamp it to your table when you work on wire rings.

Last in my bag of tricks is a makeshift clamp for small jewelry pieces. If you are trying to saw a small piece on your bench pin and can’t hold it still, try using a large metal binder clip with a piece of craft felt or other sturdy fabric. Your piece won’t move and you can saw or file to your heart’s content.

Mixing It Up

This year, I’ve gone from a metal and soldering frenzy to a lamp working frenzy, to a glass and ceramics tumbling frenzy, to a glass fusing frenzy, to a felting frenzy. Every so often, I get in the torch enameling. And there are always the seed beading designs I’m working on. Did I mention that I ruin a lot of stuff? But some of the metal can be recycled and most of it started out as recycled anyway. (I used to have a lovely let of brass charger plates.) The fused glass can be cut up and refused. The lamp working failures can be turned into frit or become elements in fused pieces so long as you keep the COE straight. And you can use an ugly felted bead as a base for another bead.

I decided to combine the polymer beads and lamp work into a necklace and make a clasp. The polymer beads are interspersed with the lamp worked beads. Many of the lamp worked beads are fumed with silver and the focal bead is hollow . For for the clasp. I made jump rings and soldered them to copper washers from Harbor Freight that I textured with my home made texturing hammers. I’m not sure if I am happy with all of the polymer beads; I might make some new polymer beads at Clayathon . But here’s what I have so far.

Amulets, Talismans, Polymer and Wire

There are two new books that will enhance the library of anyone creative. Both show you how to elevate non precious material into art imbued with special meaning.

The first one is Amulets and Talismans by Robert Dancik. I took Dancik’s class on cold connections last year and put the book on pre-order as soon as I could. I was not disappointed. The book is crammed with information on cold connections techniques, and full of ideas on how to take ordinary objects and showcase them in original, one of a kind pieces of jewelry that tell a story that could be about the wearer, maker or materials themselves.

If you are a tool junky like me, you will relish Dancik’s ideas for making custom tools. He shows a nifty little jump ring cutting gizmo you can make yourself. I made one. There are no directions, but one look at it is all you need. (If Truman Capote had met me when he first came to New York, his book would have been entitled Breakfast at Harbor Freight.)

The next gotta have it book is Ancient Modern: Polymer Clay + Wire Jewelry by Ronna Sarvas Weltman.

Weltman’s designs have an inimitable primitive sophistication that’s fresh and inspiring. Her projects and instructions will stoke your creativity and have might change the way you think about polymer clay and wire.

This time last year

Make Your Own Jewelry Tools

About a month ago, I put up a post about how I made a small jeweler’s bench from a small desk and scrap wood. Since then, I have been trolling for tool making directions and tutorials.

I recommend two excellent articles from Lapidary Journal Jewelry Artist. The first one is on how to make a swage block from hardwood by Tom and Kay Benham. It’s in the November 2007 issue which you can order by pressing here. You can find other tips on making swage blocks here. The authors used a Fostner drill bit set and a drill press to make their swage block. Since I don’t have access to tools like that, I used a spade drill bit set and hole saws to make mine. I got pretty good results. You can buy hole saw and spade drill sets from Harbor Freight or your local home center.

T 409 he other article from the April 2009 issue of Lapidary Journal Jewelry Artist is about how to make a hammered wire cuff bracelet. Author William Fretz throws in a nifty side bar on how to construct a jig so you can get consistent curves in heavy gauge wire. Press here to order the back issue.

Ganoksin is a treasure trove of jewelry making information. Be sure to check out Charles Lewton-Brain’s article on making chasing tools and Tina Wojtkielo’s article for tool junkies. It’s full of tips for making and using tools that she collected from several jewelry artists.

The last item comes from a great Internet resource, the How-To-Make-Jewelry Blog. It’s a useful bracelet sizing template you can download for free. The video that shows how to use it is below.