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Purchasing Jewelry Making Equipment is a Great Investment

Taking Some Careful Measures and Doing Some Basic Research Can Save You a Lot of money!

jewelry making equipment - Rolling mill

Before you purchase jewelry making equipment, start by assessing your jewelry-making-ideas, ask yourself the following questions:

  • Do I want to sell my jewelry, or do I want to have a simple hobby?

  • What jewelry making experience do I currently have?

  • What part of jewelry design and jewelry making I enjoy the most?

  • Do I like to design using beads or do I want to learn metalsmithing and work with different metals?

  • What is my time commitment?

  • Do I want to take classes or enroll in a college program?

  • Do I want to work with metal clay?

  • Do I prefer working with glass or gemstones?

Spend some time thinking of how you see yourself joining the jewelry making field. Create a list of ideas that can guide you in the process. Spend some time interviewing people that make and sell jewelry or who design jewelry using different jewelry making tips and techniques. Spend a day at a library or bookstore researching the different jewelry making techniques available. Take a few classes or workshops. After doing all of these you will be in a better position to decide what type of jewelry making equipment and jewelry making tools you need.

When you purchase your jewelry making equipment over a period of time will not only be better for your bank account, but it will also allow you to find the right equipment for your specific needs. Take your time, do your research, shop around for the best value materials and supplies but have fun!

To help you get started here is a list of some of my favorite jewelry making equipment:

Jewelry Making Equipment and Tools to Support Your Jewelry Making Ideas

  • A Flex shaft: Usually the first piece of serious equipment to invest in, the flex-shaft system makes bench work much easier: It reduces effort and fatigue, enhances production, and can be used for a variety of jewelry making tasks.

  • A torch: What kind of torch do you need will depend on the specification of the work you are doing. Jewelers and bead manufacturers fire up their torches to join, alter, and melt metal and glass. Read the soldering-instructions article before purchasing a torch.

  • Lighting and Magnifying Lamps: Good lighting is essential in jewelry making, Invest in a good quality magnifying lamp. Start with one and latter on purchase more to light the different areas in your jewelry studio. Rio Grande Jewelry Supply Company has a great selection of lamps for every need.

  • Bench Pin and Anvil: Consider also buying a pre-notched pin to use when sawing. The Pin or anvil is invaluable jewelry making equipment. They can be used for hammering, sawing, bending, etc.

  • Kiln: This is an incredible piece of equipment that can be used for glass jewelry making, precious metal clay and enameling.

  • Dapping Punch Set with Cube: A Dapping set is a tool that allows you to hammer metal into hemispherical and generally concave shapes.

  • Rolling Mill: Is used to apply pressure to flatten metal and lengthen it. The basic components of a rolling mill are: a tightening screw, rollers, and a crank. The rollers on jewelry rolling mills may be half flat and half grooved. The flat side is for sheet, the grooved is for wire. In jewelry, a rolling mill is often used to press an ingot (a bar or block of metal) into a more easily workable sheet or wire. Other uses for it include roll printing or patterning, and metal distortion in general.

  • Heavy Duty Combination Vise: A vise is used to hold different size mandrels while you are working a piece of jewelry.

  • Electric Polisher and Dust Collector: This is a MUST, it will speed you work and allow you to produce more quality pieces. The dual polishing system helps you start by smoothing the metal using Tripoli compound and then give it a final shine using rouge compound.

  • Magnetic Tumbler: Magnetic tumbling has revolutionized the art of jewelry polishing, cutting hours of expensive hand labor from the process. Magnetic tumblers can polish to a bright finish the undersides of rings, undercuts, channels, fine filigree and other hard to reach places in as little as 30 minutes for gold and 45 minutes for platinum.

    • More information on jewelry making equipment – Beyond the basics, coming soon!

    Jewelry Making Tips:
    PAY FOR QUALITY SO YOU DON’T PAY FOR MISTAKES. You need quality equipment that will last a life time with good care. There is nothing more frustrating that buying a cheap piece of jewelry making equipment that ends falling apart while you are working.

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