Bezel Making and Setting

Nancy LT Hamilton

Updates:  2/21/25, 8/4/23, 4/13/23, 3/27/23, 3/26/23

To Karen, who inspired this page with all her hard work and perseverance!

Please see my disclaimer page

Under Construction (like every page on this site!)

Also, see my webpage:  Soldering Stone Settings

Contents

Bezel Making and Setting Notes

Measure and look at your stone

  • When creating a bezel strip, your first job is to measure the stone’s length, width, and height. Write these measurements down.
  • Using a 10X loupe, look for fractures, inclusions, etc. Write down your observations as to the shape and condition of your stone.
    • Is the shoulder high?  Low?
    • Is it level and even?
    • What does the back look like?

What gauge metal to use when creating a bezel?

  Thin bezel wall and poor edge cleanup.

  • Don’t use metal that is too thin.  26 gauge and up is recommended.
    • Thin metal doesn’t last for decades like heirloom jewelry should.  It tends to wear down – especially on rings.
    • Thin metal is horrible for adjusting with filing as it bends and collapses under pressure.
    • It is hard to keep a bezel’s shape with thin strip.
    • It can tear at the seam line due to the small amount of soldered metal there.
    • Thin material (28 – 30 gauge – common pre-made bezel strip gauges) can become too thin to hold the stone during the finishing stage.
    • Thicker material will give you a wider ledge.  It’s also easier to file, and it keeps its shape better than thin strip, when filing, finishing, and shaping.
    • Thick material can be difficult to shape.  Your hand strength will be a determinant in your choice of material.
    • 24 gauge is sufficient for many sizes of stone.  Although, if I’m making a bezel for a 8 X 6 oval stone, I’d prefer 26 gauge because it’s easier to work with.
    • Also, the size of the stone will have a say in what gauge you use.
      • Making a bezel for a very small stone can be difficult with 22 gauge and up.  Much depends on your patience, skills, and strength.
      • Conversely, using a very thin bezel strip with a large stone can be challenging.  Trying to keep the walls parallel and unruffled is very difficult.

A well-done thick bezel.  Clean inner bezel

  A regular bezel wall.  Clean inner bezel.

A thick bezel with a rough inner surface.

Determining bezel Height

  • To determine the height of the bezel wall, it’s recommended to multiply the height of the stone by 25% or 33% (.25 or .333) – depending on the metal thickness.  This number is the minimum FINISHED height needed for the stone.  That said, usually, 25% is too small. I’d stick with 33% or even a little more.  But it all depends on your stone, its shape, and its size. I often add half a millimeter or even a whole millimeter for adjustments and to take into consideration the metal thickness.  You may want to increase the height slightly if using very thin material.
  • I double-check my height calculation with my Mitutoyo digital calipers.  Do that by holding one leg of your calipers against the bottom of the stone and measuring to right past where the cabochon starts to curve or lean in.
  • Too short bezels offer too little material to push over the stone.  It can take more force to bend it over the stone too.  Also, a short bezel may not hold the stone well enough and could fall out.
  • Too tall bezels will bury the stone beneath its walls. Also, they look terrible.
  • A thicker bezel strip can be slightly shorter than a thin one.

The following examples illustrate the challenges that you, as the setter, will face.

In the example above, the yellow stone shows three lines.  Line A could work.  It’s a little low.  If I was really unsure, I would make a test strip from thin metal to check how it looks against the stone. Line B is a little safer, and line C is too high. The turquoise and black stone has a funny, straight end.  I would probably create a combo bezel with prongs at the square end and a bezel that was a hair shorter than point A. If I bezeled the end, I would end up covering up a lot of that pretty stone.

In the above example, we are looking at two (small!) 5 X 7 stones magnified six times.  Note how the opal on the left is not even and has a weird straight edge around it.  I would have my bezel right where line A is – right above that funny wall (after adjustments).   The citrine on the right has tall sides and a barely perceptible curve starting from the bottom.  Line C would be a bit too short with this stone.  I would opt for line B.  If you started the bezel where the curve is more pronounced, you would be covering up a lot of the stone.  BTW, it’s a good idea to zoom in and take photos of your stones before you start creating bezel strip.  As you can see from my images, you get a better view than you would, even with magnifiers.  Your cell phone is a great tool in your arsenal!

Determining Bezel Length

  • To determine the length of the bezel strip, you can wrap a thin strip of paper around the stone.  You can also use wire of the same gauge as your bezel strip.  With paper, wrap the stone and mark where the outer strip crosses the beginning of the strip.  With wire, wrap it around the stone and mark both ends where they intersect.
    • Determine where your seam will be before bending your strip for an oval.  Putting the seam on the side is always best, as the solder contains copper and zinc. These two elements are stiffer than gold or silver, making the seam less malleable.  The side requires less compression than the more rounded ends do.
  • Another method is to mark one edge of the stone and then roll it in something like polymer clay.  Roll from right to left, ensuring the entire stone circumference is recorded in the clay.  Measure the length of the indentation.
  • Perhaps the simplest method, though, is wrapping the bezel strip around the stone.  This is easy if you are using 26 gauge or thinner.  24 gauge might be possible, too, but it depends on the size of the stone.  That little 5 X 7 cab from our example above would be a bear to wrap with 24 gauge. I mark where the long part of the strip overlaps with the other end of the strip.  That becomes my cut line. You can saw through both ends of the strip but be aware that the saw can often catch on the inner end and bend it downwards.
  •     I hold my bezels while sawing with a ring clamp like my favorite one from PepeTools. That way, I don’t saw through my fingers (as much!).

Mathematical calculations for determining the length of a round and oval bezel strip

  • Length for a round bezel – To mathematically determine the length of a round bezel, multiply the stone’s diameter by a slightly inflated version of pi:  3.5.  These measurements will be close to the actual size needed but will be slightly off due to the metal thickness.  Always give yourself extra material – it’s much easier to shorten a bezel strip than stretch one!
  • Length for an oval bezel – To determine the length of an oval bezel mathematically, add the length and width together, divide by 2, and multiply by 3.5 (rounded up pi).  I.e., for a 6 X 8 stone, 6 + 8 = 14, 14/2 = 7, 7 X 3.50 = a 24.5 mms long strip is required. Don’t forget to add .5 – 1.5 millimeters to take in the metal’s thickness.
  • You will need a slightly longer strip for an 18 gauge strip than you will for a 26 gauge.
  • There really isn’t a method for 100% accuracy in measuring what length is needed.  You can get close or get lucky.  Usually, there is some adjustment involved.

Things to think about when determining bezel height

  • Consider the following thoughts when determining how long to make your bezel strip.
    • How good are you at sawing or cutting straight lines?
    • Do you think .50 millimeters is sufficient material to clean up that edge?  Don’t forget you’ll be filing the top of the bezel again, right before setting.
    • Maybe a millimeter or more is necessary for you?  It’s always better to have too much metal than too little.
    • If you make the bezel height at 33% of the height of the stone, that will give you a little extra material to play with – only if you don’t absolutely need that extra height to cover your bezel’s shoulders.

Bezel design

An open bezel

The bezel walls

  • Think about how you will set your stone.  How will you set it if you have many bezels right next to each other or have a bezel butted up to a wall?
  • Should you make a bezel with partial walls?  Is your metal thick enough for that?
  • Do you want a thick or thin rim?
  • If soldering your bezel between a ring shank, is your bezel wall thick enough to bear up under that type of pressure?
  • Will the walls be high enough for you to solder it in place and set it?

A bezel set between a ring shank

  • You can make your bezel’s walls from gallery or scalloped wire.  This can be purchased premade, or you can cut your own!
    • Usually, you’ll want the gallery wire slightly longer than you would use with a solid wall, as it is usually pretty thin stuff.  It is also easier to catch on fabric or something else and pull up the little prongs.  So, making it a little taller is not a bad idea.
    • You won’t be able to adjust the height by much as you’ll probably sand off the pattern, AND it’s so thin that filing can be challenging.

Gallery wire at Cool Tools

The bezel back

  • Your bezel can be soldered to a backing or soldered directly onto your piece or soldered to a backing and THEN soldered onto your piece.  It all depends on what your design and your stone require.
    • How will your bezel be soldered on?
    • Will it be soldered on its side, or will it sit flat on your piece?
    • Will the bezel base be beveled or curved to fit over a curvature like with a wide cuff?

I had to file a 1/2 round shape on this bezel so the large stone would lie flat on the cuff.

    • Some people drill a hole into their backing to ensure they can remove their stone from the bezel.  This is not recommended as it looks out of place, and having only one small hole will allow dirt, liquid, and debris to enter the setting, making it nearly impossible to get out. This can cause oxidation and discoloration of the metal.   If your stone is translucent or slightly opaque, all these results could mar the look of your piece and trap pickle – which will corrode your work (I’ve done this!). Two holes (and more)  will allow for more airflow and better drainage.
    • If you must have openings, design them to make sense with your design.
    • Should you have an open or pierced back? Or should the back be closed?
      • Is the back of your stone good-looking, or is it just rough material?
      • Is your stone translucent?
      • Do you want the light to shine through your stone?
        • Consider an open or pierced back.
        • Make the design of the back cohesive with the design on the front.
        • When piercing or cutting out bezel backs, leave a place to attach your findings, like earring posts, pin backs, bails, etc.  I.e if you need to attach earring posts, leave a bar or little circle to attach them to.
L. Sue Szabo – Beautifully pierced and finished pinbacks
  • Don’t use too thin of metal for the backing – especially for a ring – as the metal can bend and twist.

How to make bezel strip

  • Drag your dividers or digital calipers down one side of a perfectly machined edge, leaving a faint score mark.  You can highlight it with a very fine permanent marker to make it easier to see.  Saign Charlestein of SC Studios turned me on to these very thin markers.
    • Digital calipers will allow you to mark measurements involving tens and hundredths of a millimeter.  It is much more precise.
    • I find it easier to drag the calipers toward me.
    • Drag on a very flat surface without holes.
  • Decide where to put the leg of the divider on the ruler if you use dividers.  I recommend putting it dead center on the line.

Wear magnification when doing this.

  • Easier than the item above is to try and source a premade bezel wire or strip that is close to the size and gauge you need.  You can always file it down if it is too tall, but you don’t want to file metal more than 2 millimeters over what you need.  It will take you forever.
  • Cut the strip with French Shop Shears (usually 24 – 26 gauge max), heavy-duty shears, a precision shear, or a jeweler’s saw.  All cuts should be made to the outside of your scribed line. This leaves extra room for cleanup.
    • Hand shears and some open-throat shears will distort the metal.

To flatten metal, anneal it, and place a piece of wood over it on a steel bench block.  Whack it with your biggest mallet.  Flip it over and repeat.  You may have to adjust it several times.  Anneal often.

  • Another method for flattening a strip is to place it on a steel block.  Lay a piece of wood on top of it and push it down firmly.  Grab the end of the strip with or without pliers, and drag it through the wood/steel sandwich.

Strip Length

  • I usually cut a longer strip than I need so that I have extra. Four to six inches is long enough.  Longer than that, and it starts getting difficult to file and square.
    • Write the gauge and width on the extra metal and store it in a bezel strip dedicated container for easy retrieval for your next bezel adventure.

Squaring the Edge

  • Square up the sawn/cut edge.
    • See my videos on squaring metal at the end of this page.
    • It’s challenging to create perfect edges, but it can be done.  Practice, practice, practice…
  • I use a miter cutting vise to square my ends and cut down on cleanup.  The vise is great for filing off tiny incremental pieces of metal.
    • I start by filing one end in the vise.
    • Then I’ll measure what I’ll need for my strip.
    • If possible, I keep the strip long to wrap it around the stone.  If the metal is too thick to shape by hand, I use ½ round or oval pliers.
    •     I like this style – with a parallel rounded arm – not the type that has a conical arm.  PepeTools sells these pretty Tronex.
    •     You can also use oval pliers like these from Wubers. (on Amazon) I have on hand the small, medium, and large.
    • When the strip mimics the shape of the stone, I compress it tightly around it and mark it on the long outer portion of the strip, where the edge meets.
    • Next, I cut it on the outside of my mark.  I flatten the strip, put it back into the miter cutting vise, and square the end.
    • If it’s a tad too small after soldering, It’s easy to stretch a little with a bezel mandrel and a mallet. Or use jump ring mandrels or the shafts of dapping punches.
  • Remove burs by dragging the strip FLAT across a nail file, sanding stick, or just a piece of 400 grit sandpaper.  You can tape it down to help hold the sandpaper in place.  You do not want to file an arc on the end of your strip! So, keep the metal as flat as you can when removing burs.
  • Always remove burs, which can cause fit problems when joining pieces together.
  • You aim for the bezel strip to perfectly fit the stone – not too tight or loose with parallel walls. It’s better to have a slightly too-small bezel than a too-large bezel. Stretching a bezel is pretty simple, but the only way to shrink it is to cut and resolder it. It’s always best to stop and correct the size, whether recutting or stretching.
    •  ½ round pliers can be used to stretch a bezel by squeezing hard. This may mar your metal.
    • You can also hammer a too-small bezel on a bezel mandrel.
    • For round bezels, you can use dapping punches or mandrels to hammer the bezel over to stretch it.
    • Oval bezel mandrels can be used for oval settings with either a leather or plastic mallet (for small incremental changes) or a steel, shiny-faced hammer when more stretching is required.

How to solder a setting to your piece

Please see this page on soldering stone settings.

  • Before soldering, check your stone’s fit – one last time!
  • Your second mission is to solder the bezel onto its backing or your piece without changing the angle of your bezel walls.  Keep them parallel.

How to fix some common bezel setting problems

What to do if my bezel doesn’t fit my stone?  My bezel is too small!  My bezel is too large!  My bezel fit before, but now it doesn’t.

  • If your bezel is too small
    • Place it on a steel mandrel and hit it with a plastic, wood, or leather mallet.
  • If your bezel is WAY too small
    • Place it on a steel mandrel and hit it with a steel mallet.
    • Hammer evenly.
      • Check your fit OFTEN!
      • You will probably have to sand the bezel walls.
    • Sometimes, you can use a 1/2 round file to remove some internal material.  Don’t over-thin your walls!
    • Don’t place the solder on the inside of the bezel.  It’s harder to clean up and can shrink the space you have for your stone.
  • If your bezel is too large
    • Consider recutting and resoldering your bezel strip because a too-big bezel will allow the stone to move around in the setting.  This makes it harder to set and is also very unprofessional, especially if the stone is ricocheting off the bezel’s walls!
    • If your bezel is a tad too large, apply your solder to the inside of the bezel when soldering the strip together and the bezel to your piece.
    • This is NOT the best way to handle an over-big bezel wall.  Adjusting the bezel is the best method, but it might work if it’s only a few hundredths of a millimeter off.
  • If your bezel is tapered.
    • Did you check the fit before soldering?
    • Often, a stone may fit in through the top but not be able to reach the bottom of the setting.  The best way to avoid that is not to make a tapered setting in the first place!  Haha.  Easier said than done!  This mistake is especially common when using very thin bezel strips (25 – 30 gauge).  The stuff is like tin foil, and I only recommend it for very uneven stones where you want the bezel to conform to a stone’s unusual shape, like a crystal’s facets. A thin strip is useful for very small settings too.  But, other than these situations (and possibly a few that I can’t recall right now), I recommend using 26 gauge and thicker.
    • Use half-round pliers to correct a tapered bezel and re-square up the walls.  Sometimes you can use a burnisher by pressing it outwards against a flat piece of steel or other metal held tightly to the outside of the bezel – with the bezel sandwiched in between.

Dental floss in a bezel

      •  Use dental floss under the stone to allow for easy removal.
        • Lay two pieces or more (you can tape the ends together to make it more manageable) of flat dental floss into the bottom of the setting with long ends draping over each side.  This allows you to pull out your stone after checking the fit and makes the need to drill holes in a backing to push out the stone obsolete.
  • Last ditch efforts – only do these things if you are close to tears and you’ve tried everything else to make your stone fit!!!
    • If your stone isn’t super valuable, you can grind away some of the stone.  Figure out where it doesn’t fit and grind off bits of the stone using a little water in a jar lid and use a diamond wheel to grind the stone.  Try not to touch the visible portion of the stone with the diamond wheel, or you will have a lot of refinishing to do.  Keep the stone wet and cool by dipping it in the water often.
    • If your bezel is too tall, you can prop the stone up by gluing metal or plastic discs underneath it.  This is a last-ditch thing, though, as there’s a possibility that the inserts will move.  It’s also frowned upon. Don’t use anything that isn’t waterproof, as any liquid will cause it to break down. If you use sufficiently thick metal, you should be able to file it to fit and not resort to trickery, but, you know…it’s life.  All about those shades of gray (not those 50!)
    • If you haven’t set your stone, you can try removing the setting.  Hold the setting in cross-locks and heat the metal it is soldered to.  Be careful not to melt your surrounding parts.  I hold the cross-locks slightly above my soldering surface, letting gravity take charge.  As the solder reaches flow temperature, the setting should stay in the slightly raised cross-locks while gravity pulls the rest of the piece off.  I use this removal option every once in a while.  Recently, I created a piece and hated what I had soldered to the surface.  I had to remove the three elements I had soldered on as it was so much easier than redoing the entire piece.  Occasionally, this can destroy a piece, or only part of the setting comes off.  Soldering is fraught with excitement!

Holding your work while setting

There are a variety of materials and tools suitable for holding your work.

  • Vices
    • Engraver’s block
    • Universal vise
    • Ring clamp.  I really like this one from PepeTools
    • GRS Benchmate
    • GRS Benchmate Inside Ring Holder
    • And more!
  • Materials to hold your work
    • Pitch – not the black petroleum-based stuff!  Toxic!!!  Green, German red, red, and Japanese Black Pitch (Matsuyani) are a few kinds.
    • Dop wax.
    • Shellac (with plaster of Paris – add slightly less than the volume of the shellac).
    • My favorite is a thermoplastic like Jett Ballistic (better than Jett Sett regular) or GRS’s Thermo-Loc.  It gets soft in hot water and hardens super hard.
    • Rings can be set using a ring mandrel.  The mandrel can be placed into a hole on your bench for hands-free work.  I use a plumber’s pipe vise to hold my mandrels.  Plumber’s pipe vise.
    • Be sure to rotate the ring on the ring mandrel during the process, or you will end up with a conically-shaped ring!
    • You can make holders for some of these products from dowels or use a dowel with a small block of wood screwed to the top to hold pitch, dop wax, shellac, or thermoplastics.

Setting 

Setting Tools

  • Hammer handpiece
    • Works great with thinner material.
    • It can be hazardous to fragile or flawed stones.
    • Harder to control than a hand punch.
    • Has a variety of punches that can be customized. Don’t use them as they come out of the box.  (See bezel punch finishing below).
    • Quicker to use with less effort exerted.
  • Bezel rocker
    • Good for pushing down around the stone when held horizontally. Turn it vertically to use as a punch.
    • The surface will need to be altered.  Don’t use just “out of the box.”  Clean up and soften hard angles. 
    • Rio Grande sells a brass version.  Although, they are pretty easy to make.  You can sweat solder two or three thick pieces of brass together, saw the shape, and finish.  But for five bucks? Hmmm…

   Brass bezel rocker at Rio Grande Jewelry Supply

  • Bezel Punch Set

Another GREAT and easy-to-use setting tool is the Bezel Punch Set.  This has a cup-shaped opening that fits over the top of smaller bezels and tube settings.  It creates a nice setting.  The conical area pushes the metal evenly over the stone.  You push down with the punch over the walls of the setting and then rotate the punch, at an angle, around the setting.  You can use a hammer/mallet or just your arm/hand strength.  I use a hammer as I no longer have the strength to push that hard.

. Here’s the set I have. 

  • Bezel punches or pushers

  My bezel punches

    • I recommend a steel square or rectangular face or a brass square or rectangular rod in a handle. Most bezel punches are made from ⅛” thick material.
      • You can make your own from a #16-D common nail.  File the tips to the shape you want.
      • Remove sharp edges.
      • Have a variety of sizes and shapes to fit various setting scenarios – such as a tool for tight spaces.  
        • I like a rectangular pusher because I use it vertically to push the walls in, then horizontally to rock the bezel wall down around the stone. Similar to a bezel rocker.
      • With heavier-walled material, use your punch with a small chasing hammer. If you use a hammer with your punch, you need to harden and temper the punch.  

  SC Studios Chasing Hammers

    • Finish your punch by sanding the face with 320-grit sandpaper or tapping the face of a funky file against it.  You don’t want a mirror finish, as that makes it easier for the punch to slip.  Conversely, you don’t want too rough of a finish, as it will leave unsightly marks on your bezel (which you will have to clean up).
    • You can also make a decent punch from a small chisel.  Just be sure to file down the end so that it’s flat.  You’ll probably have to anneal it first, as most chisels are hardened steel.  Heat the end until it is red hot, and then shove it into a can be filled with something like vermiculite.  You want it to cool very slowly.  Use your funky files because even the annealed steel wears them down slightly.  
  • Burnishers

  My little burnishers that I use for flush setting and bezel setting

    • Make your own burnishers.  My favorite tiny burnishers are made with old 1mm or smaller ball burs.  Make bigger burnishers from larger ball burs.  The ball burs work because they have long, graduated necks.  But you can also make them using finishing nails.  GRS makes a steel point that works too.
      • To learn how to make your own, see my video on flush setting, part one. The burnisher building starts at 5:02 minutes.

    • Those big burnishers sold online are pretty big and are hard to be precise with.

The Setting Process

  • Level the top of your setting with a flat file or flip it over and drag it along a big 10″ – 12″ mill file or 220 or 320 grit sandpaper on a paint stirrer – depending on how unsquare it is.  Try to keep the top layer as level as possible.  You can even use a small level to check!
  • The best way to level a tube bezel setting is to use a miter cutting vise to square both sides of your tubing. 
  • File a bevel – If you are using 22 gauge and up, you will probably need to file a bevel along the bezel’s outer edge to help thin the walls for setting.  If the metal is too thick, it will not easily sit flat on the stone.  DO NOT FILE TO A KNIFE EDGE.  Leave a small ledge (on the interior side) for pushing down onto the stone. You don’t want to thin it too much.  If it has become tin foil-like, re-square the top and try again.
  • For tube setting, the easiest way to make a bevel is to cut off sufficient tubing, put it into your flex shaft handle (if it fits), step on the pedal, and spin the end of the tubing while dragging it down the face of a file. Be sure to determine the angle you want before starting. Set the file at that angle, and don’t move until you finish. Spin the flex shaft slowly.
  • While the tubing is still in the flex shaft, drag the bevel along several grits of sandpaper to create a polished edge.
  • For a regular bezel (or a tube setting), use a sanding stick for better control while sanding.

  Bevel on a bezel with a lip.

Next, you’ll want to secure the stone in the bezel. 

    • Hold the bezel punch/rocker at a 90° angle to the bezel wall.
    • As a rule of thumb, start your first push on the bezel seam.  This will be the most malleable that the metal will be during the setting process.  After all the pushing, the metal gets pretty work-hardened.  Whenever we move metal, we reduce its malleability
    • Your second push will be directly opposite of your first crimp.  
    • People think of the pushing sequence as north, south, west, and east. 
    • Next, start crimping between your crimps, starting back near the bezel seam.  So, it would be northeast, southeast, northwest, and southwest.  
    • Crimp between each direction until the bezel strip is almost flat.
    • Now, turn your bezel punch/rocker horizontally and rock it around the bezel, smoothing out all the lumps.  Keep it at a 90° angle!  
      • Note:  if you have difficulty pushing over your bezel wall, switch to a punch and a chasing hammer.  You’ll also need a method to set hands-free if you need a hammer (see holding your work while setting above).
    • Next, push the bezel wall down over the stone.
      • Hold the punch with the long side up and down (vertical). 
      • With the angle slightly smaller than 90° – say 45°, go back through the north, south, east, and west steps and all the intermediate steps – working around the stone until the upper edge is smooth.  Use a rocking motion while moving forward.
      • Lastly, (for the punch part) hold the punch horizontally, with the long edge parallel to your work.  Now, you will planish the top of the bezel by tapping with many light, overlapping strokes to smooth and compact the edge if you have a beveled edge pushed down over the stone.  
    • Don’t even think about using glue!  Gluing a stone into a bezel is frowned upon as it is not permanent.
    • If the bezel setting is for a faceted stone, the stone’s table should be level with the bezel.

Clean up

  • All that hammering and crimping may have created a mess, so now, you must clean it up!  Fun, fun, fun.  Note this is not always necessary.
    • You’ll want a barrette escapement file. Ideally, it should be a fine cut, like a #4 Swiss cut or a #5 – #6 German cut.
    • Before you start filing, though, you’ll want to finish the edges of the barrette file.  Using 220 and increasingly less coarse sandpapers,  create a polished edge on both sides of the file.  If you do this, you’ll have less mess to clean up, as rough file edges can cut the metal and also scratch your stone.  With a polished edge, you will be burnishing wherever the edges touch.
    • File the bezel’s sides and any beveled edges to bring back a crisp shape and remove tool marks.  
    • The stone and whatever your bezel is soldered onto are two things to be careful of.  Don’t scratch them!  If you worry about scratching, you can use masking tape over your stone.
      • Rub a small piece of tape over the stone and, with a toothpick, push the tape into the crease between the stone and the bezel wall. 
      • Using a sharp scalpel, cut away the excess tape by angling the scalpel up into the interior edge of the bezel (not marring any visible surfaces).  This will protect your stone while leaving the bezel workable. 

Applying tape to a stone to protect it during cleanup

  • I often use sanding discs and then move onto silicone knife-edge polishers or Pumice wheels to further smooth the surface.  (Stuller and Rio Grande carry pumice wheels).
  • Pumice wheels are safe around most stones, per Rio Grande.  You can also use bullet points for further refining.
  • Silicone wheels and pumice wheels and points can be shaped by putting them in a rotary tool and dragging them down a file while spinning.

Coming soon – Graver uses and cleaning up the interior of the bezel.

Videos

Flat, Square Edges on Sheet Metal Videos (2)

Have an issue with your metal cracking?  See what I do to intentionally break up my silver – that way you know why it happens and how to avoid it!

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