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Gyrogami Blog - Precious Metals, Jewelry, Artwork

A Most Difficult Bracelet		Blog Index
Finished piece Better than I expected Categories: Products; Jewelry Word count/read time: 370 words; 1-1/2 minutes Completed piece can be found here. Dragonscale is a sheet that can be made as wide as needed and works perfectly as a narrow chain. A magnificent weave like this is ho-hum when large and bulky so it would have to be something special. The spreadsheet I designed to calculate labor and materials estimates wire length, finishing weight, and more. The results made me gasp. It would be a heavy bracelet in my preferred gauge and my most expensive silver bracelet. Might as well go for broke. Silver is incredibly difficult to weld because it's the most heat-conductive metal. With such fine wire and tiny spaces, errors are quite destructive. The flame has to target one link or the surrounding links will melt or fuse together...grab the nippers and start amputating. The biggest time toilet turned out to be positioning each new link prior to welding. Precious metals make weak chains unless they are welded or soldered. It's irresponsible otherwise. This is what separates "novelty items" from "real jewelry." Everyone has an opinion but the laws of physics are not something to casually disregard. Most chain makers ignore these facts which is why so few chains are made properly. Weave tutorials are not always suited for advanced joining techniques like welding or soldering. Thus, it often takes several attempts before figuring out if it is even possible. In other words, I'm confident I've assembled Dragonscale more ways than anyone else. Choosing micromaille came back to bite me. After a few hours I had a section barely 1/2" long; after a few more, somehow it ended up shorter. Between casting the ingot, making wire, cutting rings, and establishing the process - more than a day's work - I still do not have any usable chain! All I have to show are wasted rings, two ugly chain sections, and knowing this is the most difficult weave yet. This chain languished on the back burner for many weeks and came out better than expected 40+ hours later (not including many hours of prep work). It has a unique feel, a sheer tactile delight for anyone lucky enough to experience it. As much as I want to sell it, I dread doing it again. Posted by M: September 12, 2020 Please email any thoughts or comments regarding this post. Previous Entry  . . . .  Next Entry Comment Section NOTE: Your comments will be included in this section as long as they aren't illegal. This section is censor-free so show me your intelligence or ignorance and everything in between!		2024 Update Those Displays   Fly on the Wall   Greed Won Out   German Silver   Save It for Desert   Toeing the Line   Time for a Redo   USPS Is Broken   Not Enough Space   Jump Ring Stretcher   Nope! That's Not Green   2023 Mandrels   Twistin' the Night Away   A New Batch of Lazy   Industrial Origami   Just a Jig-olo   Seeing Stars   How Much Do I Know?   I'll Believe in AI When...   Making Chain Link Jewelry   I Used the Mother Excuse   I Can't Read   My 200   Jeweler I Am Not   Cuts Like a Knife   Rolling on a...Roller   A Matter of Perspective   Making an Earring   Laser Focused   "Made in the USA"   The Earth Is Flat   Review: Microfold Brake   Mining, Whining, and Pining   Toolbox Upgrade   Jewelry Lies   Spring Back or Jump Ring Ahead   Steel...in Pure Silver?   Food for Thought   Cloudy, Chance of Buttercream   Step It Up   Artist? It's Relative   Chemical Dependency   2022 Free Energy   Nose, Septum, and Cartilage Rings   Price Gouging   The Lottery Bite   Forgiveness   I've Been Served   Criticism Welcome   Improved Driver's License   Pinch-Cut Ring Excuses   Mind Your Own Business   Look What You Bought   Review: Rustoleum Floor Coating   Cleaning the Floor   Five-Star Reviews   Artist Collaborative   Not So Believable   Monopoly: A Bored Game   Responsible Jewelry   A Difficult Customer   Viking Knit Chains   Too Many Choices   Made in America   Are You Qualified?   Hallmarking and Selling   Just an Earwire   Apostrophe 'S'   Handmade Lie Revisited   My Private Idaho   Display Booth   Parameters   Synners, All of You!   Death of a Prototype   Get Jiggy With It   Doping Ain't Bad   Manufacturing Time   Toxic Jewelry   I'm Stumped   Elegant Impressions   Experience Matters...Sometimes   2021 The Other Seventeen Fifty   What Is Your Superpower?   Repurpose Your Heirlooms   It's All About Price   That's a World Record?!   Welded the Proper Way   Honesty Is a Bad Policy   Yep, It's My Fault   Don't Give Up   Sharpening a Pencil   Thanks for the Fraud   Recall Gone Crazy   Oops, Wrong Baking Soda   Four Days of Work   House It Goin'?   Hunting Flies   It's Only a Hole   Beauty Is a Story   Invasion of the Bugs   Changes Ahead   How Campy   Me the Not Gourmet   Aftermath   Scared Shitless   A Riveting Experience   With   Review: Disc Cutter   Let's Get High!   Movin' on Up   Clothesing Time   Lemonade   Closing Jump Rings: Fixes   Closing Jump Rings: Action   Closing Jump Rings: Primer   But Is It Edible?   A Short Pencil...   Stamp of Approval   Storm the Capitol   Wire Drawing Machine No. 2   2020 Man Versus Machine   Review: Durston Rolling Mill   How Much Wire?   This Holiday Season   Loop-in-Loop Chains   Byzantine Graduated Necklace   4:33pm Saturday   My Personal Jewelry   Chainmaille Finger Rings   Leather-n-Lace   Show Booth   A Most Difficult Bracelet   Location, Location, Location   It's a Win/Win But I Lost   Follow Me - I'll Bribe You!   Wire Drawing Machine   Unique, One-of-a-Kind, Custom   Clasps Everywhere   Reward Yourself with Jewelry   It's the Tumbler's Fault!   Riveted Cuff Bracelets   Boycott Power   Review: Tronex Carbide Cutters   Pricing Items - Labor   Pricing Items - Materials   Pricing Items - Your Market   Micromaille Challenges   New Earwires Are Here   Some Are Dreamers; Others, Weavers   Jewelry from the Stars   Barter: The Permanent Currency   Gerbil Exercise Balls   Solid Gold Chain, V6   Solid Gold Chain, V4 & V5   Your Privacy Is Yours   Solid Gold Chain, V3   Hypo-allergenic? Maybe, Maybe Not   2019 Solid Gold Chain Updated, V2   Review: PEPE Superior Ring Bender   Does Handmade Matter?   Quality Is Important!   Sustainably Harvested   Another Paper Cutter?!   Solid Gold Chain Updated   Eco-UNconscious Recycled Packaging   Celebrate Your Hobby   Internet Selling Venues   Review: Ringinator   Spoon Rings and Utensil Jewelry   Make It Stick   Aspect Ratio   Road Trip   Those Damn Findings!   Weld, Solder, and Braze   Ironing the Shower Curtain   Townies to the Rescue   A Lesson Learned   Let's Get Ready to Tumble!   Hardhat? For Real!?   Coil Winding Machine   Coiling Wire on a Mandrel   Which Mesh Purse?   Pre-ruined Jump Rings   Anatomy of a Bad Closure   What Picture?   The Lowly Jump Ring   Jewelry Has Meaning   Drawing and Making Wire   A Tactile Element   2018 Shop Local   Schwag Conundrum   Sterling Silver Plated   Custom Pumpkin   The Crucible   Energy Jewelry   Theory of Art   Assets Beware   It Sing Lush   Be a Better Liar   Cutting Jump Rings   It's Hammer Time   Building a Chain   Solid Gold Chain   Customer Service   An Unexpected Deal   Refining Process   Panning for Gold   Shipping   F*#k This   The Scrap Pile   Imperfections Everywhere!   2017 Craft Fairs   Corrosion Proof...NOT!   Conflict Materials Revisited   Ethics, Please!   Bigger Isn't Always Better   Value and Price   Handmade Jewelry   Gold What?   More Chinese Fake Silver   New Digs   Silver Is Special   2016 Chainmail Buyer's Guide, Part 6   Chainmail Buyer's Guide, Part 5   Chainmail Buyer's Guide, Part 4   Chainmail Buyer's Guide, Part 3   Chainmail Buyer's Guide, Part 2   Chainmail Buyer's Guide, Part 1   Things That Don't Exist   Chainmaille Not Welcome   Intellectual Property Theft   Know What You're Selling   Blinding Stupidity   Call a Medic!   Recent Commission   Bracelet Sizing   Extreme Jump Rings   2015 Holy Micromaille!   What Business Name?   Collectibles: Trash or Treasure?   Weights of Common Sterling Items   The Quest for Tools   Reporting Fraud   Jewelry Myths   Counterfeit Precious Metals   Conflict Metals, Minerals, and Gems   Softness of Silver and Gold   2014 Troy Weight Measurements   These Metals Are Not Silver Either   Testing for Silver, Conclusion   Testing for Silver, Part 2   Testing for Silver, Part 1   Identifying Silver Alloys   Silverplated or Sterling, Part 2   Silverplated or Sterling, Part 1   How Thin Is a Mil or Mill?   What Is Silver?   What Are Precious Metals?

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