so i made my 1st silver coin ring ,i am surprised with the results

[snowdogg70]

hey decided to try to make a coin ring from a 1945 canadian 50 cent piece, i think it tuned out well . now im going to try making one from a silver dollar as i have large hands (size 18 ring) this ring will fit most people with normal size hands lol. as you see i managed to save about 99% of the silver by wire edming the center out . i hope you like it!

 

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[Lakemonster]

Nice job on that.... really sharp!

 

[gleaner1]

That is good coin ring skill right there

 

[fistfulladirt]

Nice job! I butchered the one that I tried. :P

 

[Jason in Enid]

Nice job!

size 18?! are you part squatch? Thems some monster sized hands!

 

[pongo]

Very nice looking ring,well done for first try

 

[suprdave]

tell me how you did that , i would love to try to make one of those is it hard to make Suprdave

 

[Mzjavert]

I never thought about doing that. Very nice job.

 

[snowdogg70]

Nice job!

size 18?! are you part squatch? Thems some monster sized hands!

lol it runs in the family all the guys have "sausage" fingers as everyone tells me. I'm not fat but I can afford to lose a few lbs tho 6'2" 220. I received a ring for 12 years at our company (14 k 11 diamonds) but it is a size 10 1/2 i think, and of coarse it wont even fit my pinky. my work was gonna get it re-sized for me, but because it has a flat face where the diamonds are mounted the jeweler said he couldn't make it that size cause it would warp the flat face ,make it dished.
so my boss said next time someone else is up for the ring he would have one specially made for me and take the old one back polish it up and give it to the next guy, problem is recession hit gold went up now they dont hand out rings anymore so im stuck with a 1/2 gold I cant wear lol.

 

[snowdogg70]

tell me how you did that , i would love to try to make one of those is it hard to make Suprdave

no it's not hard to make just time consuming .
i just used a really small tacking hammer and a small plate of steel to use like an anvil.
during lightning storms i'd sit in my garage and tap the rim evenly around the edge perpendicular to the anvil and hammer ( this is important as not hitting down the center of the coin will cause it to warp also using to big a hammer will warp it too , this is where you need patience)the trick is hitting lightly many times not hit it harder fewer times.
over the next bunch of storms i had hit the coin enough that it had the shape i wanted . next i wire cut the center out (you would most likely have to drill it yourself) .then i used a dremmel tool to remove the little bit of excess silver from the hole. next i stuck it on a bar at work and spun it in the lathe while i filed and sanded with 600 - 800 grit sandpaper i then polished it with diamond compound

 

[Argentium]

Snowdogg, You mentioned that you saved 99% of the silver by " wire edming " the center
in your next explanation you called it "wire cutting" I am a silversmith , but am unclear as to
what you did to remove the center - i would have used a drill and a jewelers saw very likely .
Any light you could shed on your technique would be appreciated . Argentium.

 

[snowdogg70]

Snowdogg, You mentioned that you saved 99% of the silver by " wire edming " the center
in your next explanation you called it "wire cutting" I am a silversmith , but am unclear as to
what you did to remove the center - i would have used a drill and a jewelers saw very likely .
Any light you could shed on your technique would be appreciated . Argentium.

wire edm stands for electric discharge machine it is a high tech $300 000 machine that cuts through metals very accurately ( with in .00002 of an inch) it is a wire on a spool that is fed to another spool and anything in between will be cut by the wire (width of cut is approx .012 of an inch) i cuts when power flows through the wire it "burns" the metal in the path of the wire . path of wire is programed in a computer program
i hope this clears it up for you

 

[Lanny in AB]

Great little thread--interesting read, thanks.

All the best,

Lanny

 

[onfire]

Instead of a hammer just use a heavy spoon. it won't oblong it. Used to make these 25 years ago. Just sit there and bang away.

 

[snowdogg70]

Instead of a hammer just use a heavy spoon. it won't oblong it. Used to make these 25 years ago. Just sit there and bang away.

the hammer i used is not much heavier than a spoon

 

[Argentium]

Thank you for clearing that up - just two more questions - did you anneal the silver coin at
any point during the hammering phase, to relax the work hardening of the metal ? and
about what purity of silver is the coin you started with ? Thanks ! Argentium.

 

[snowdogg70]

Thank you for clearing that up - just two more questions - did you anneal the silver coin at
any point during the hammering phase, to relax the work hardening of the metal ? and
about what purity of silver is the coin you started with ? Thanks ! Argentium.

it was a 1945 canadian 50 cent piece 80% silver.
and i didnt anneal it at all just kept hitting it until it was the size/shape i wanted

 

[snowdogg70]

now Argentium, i would like to ask you a question, since your a silver smith . is it hard to set a stone into it at this stage? i plan on making more rings and would like to try setting some stones. i work in a tool and die shop i'm a tool maker and a tool steel tig/mig/arc/acetylene welder. and i have tig welded silver.and i do have the capabilty to cut a pop can (smoothly) in half and weld it back together watertight, so i believe i have the tools and skill to do whats needed i just have never made any other rings so i am lacking the knowledge which is where i am hoping you may have some insight thanks

 

[Argentium]

Snodogg, Thanks for your info ! No , it is not hard to set stones - If I were you I would
go to Youtube - type into the search box : making a silver ring with basic stone setting - there
will likely be many jewelers showing their video/demo of this - I'll take a look in a while and get
back to you if i see one that is particularly clear . Argentium.

 

[snowdogg70]

Snodogg, Thanks for your info ! No , it is not hard to set stones - If I were you I would
go to Youtube - type into the search box : making a silver ring with basic stone setting - there
will likely be many jewelers showing their video/demo of this - I'll take a look in a while and get
back to you if i see one that is particularly clear . Argentium.

ok thanks