Cold Connections in Jewelry and Metalwork
By
Master
Muin maqq Minain
There are many methods to
assemble jewelry elements, many of which require heat. Intense heat. Crazy
levels of heat! HEAT! HEAT! HEAT! Soldering! Welding! Brazing! Fusing! A
plethora of casting methods.
Not every crafter wants to
bother with heat methods, some for cost reasons, some for safety concerns…and
some because they are snowmen in disguise, infiltrating our world on every
level! (Be aware! THEY’RE HERE! Or…not.)
Rivets-
A rivet is
a form of permanent fastener, once installed it is not an easy process to
remove, unlike a screw, or bolt. Before being installed, a rivet consists of a
smooth cylindrical shaft with a head on one end. The end opposite to
the head is called the tail. On installation, the rivet is placed
in a punched or drilled hole, and the tail is upset, so that it
expands to be larger than the original shaft diameter, and the hole it passed
through, holding the rivet in place. In other words, pounding creates a new
"head" on the other end by smashing the "tail" material
flatter, resulting in a rivet that is roughly the shape two wheels on an axel.
To distinguish between the
two ends of the rivet, the original head is called the factory head and
the deformed end is called the buck-tail.
For those who need the terminology.
Some
basic Rules:
These are not the only kinds
of rivets…just a common sampling.
Bring ALL parts as close to
completion as you can before you begin riveting.
The tail should be tightly
fit to the hole.
The tail should be trimmed
for length before you start hammering the upset.
Materials for rivets should
be annealed. Work hardened materials, or materials with no natural plasticity
will make your task more difficult. Why would you do that to yourself? Weren’t
you raised better? Your mother and I worry so much…
You could go blind…
stop that!
Basic Rivets-
-Select
a drill and wire of the same size. If you cannot match the wire and drill
sizes, use larger wire, and customize the wire (slowly) with file and sand
paper.
-Drill
the materials you with to connect. Match the holes carefully.
-Insert
the rivet into the hole and cut it to a specific length. What length? The rivet
should extend ½ the diameter of the wire from each side of the work.
-Set
the work on a solid, hard surface, and using a riveting hammer (a fine
crosspeen) gently tap the rivet end to spread it. This becomes your factory
head.
-Flip
the work over, repeating the process on the other side, creating a buck-tail.
Nailhead Rivets-
(Note: Requires Heat… make many ahead of time
to have on hand.)
A
popular variation of the basic rivet as noted above. This variation is useful
for when you need a larger head, either for the look it gives, or for the sake
of offering a wider grip on the material.
This
can also be a good choice when dealing either with delicate materials, or when
the rivet is being placed in a hard to reach area of the design. Wire of 16 to 24 gauge is best for this
method.
-Cut
equal lengths of wire, and using a small torch head, bead one end of each wire.
-Slide
the tail into the appropriately sized hole of a draw plate. This can be braced
on the open jaws of a vice, or simply across two boards of equal thickness. Strike
beaded end with a hammer to flatten the new rivet head. (This becomes your
factory head.)
-Shape
the head to desired parameters.
-Slide
the tail into the material you are trying to connect and place the factory head
on your riveting surface and trim the tail to desired length. Upset the rivet
to create your buck-tail.
Hidden Rivets, and You: The Betrayal and
Sadness-
These
are also known as “Flush Rivets” and are useful for making connections when you
don’t want the connection to be seen.
-Choose
rivet material that is of the same alloy as the work you are trying to connect.
-After
you drill the holes into the work surface, use a slightly larger drill to
create a countersunk hole in both sides of the surface.
-Follow
the basic Rivet method (above), filling the countersunk areas with the heads of
the rivet.
-File
and sand the rivet material flat.-Polish. Polish, LIKE THE WID!!!!
Tube Rivets-
These
rivets are perfect for delicate materials, where you do not want to hammer the
materials much, risking breakage. (Enameled surfaces, shells, stones, …)
-After
having selected the tubing you will be using, drill the appropriate holes in
the work. (As with the other forms, a tight fit is your friend. Loose fits will
destroy you work.)
-Slide
the tube through the work, and trim to size. Standard ½ diameter of riveting
material is good here, as well.
-Set
a burnisher, or a smooth mandrel into the end of the tube, and flair the tube
end out. (Carefully!)
-Reap
on the other side.
-Place
rivet on a round punch, or improvise with ballpeen hammer head, and tap lightly
with another punch (or ballpeen) to curl out the edges of the rivet on both
sides.
The Magic of Washers!!!
When
you are working with more mailable materials (Leather…Pewter…>shudder<
lead…), it may be advisable to include a washer in the assembly process. Make
the washer part of the design and make the washer “pretty” and it can cover a
myriad of sins.
They
MUST be done to fit tightly to be effective.
Tabs!
Tabs
provide a simple, and secure cold connection by bending a set of prongs of
metal from one piece of metal over another piece, or over that of a stone, gem,
shell, bone, or small Muppet. Possibly a Fraggle.
The
parent piece of metal the prongs are cut from is called a “Spider” and the item
held by the spider is the jenny. (I do not know why…flat out…no clue…” jenny” …there
you go.)
-If
the parent metal is substantially thick, cutting, engraving, or filing stress
relieving cuts into the metal where the joints are to be bent into place will
help direct the bending. Never cut the stress relief deeper than 1/3 into the
metal. ¼ is safe.
