Ted Dreger Metalwork

Gold is so insanely expensive rn. Shown is ~52grams of 18k gold being alloyed and made into wire. The intrinsic value of the gold is $4173.

If I purchased 18K gold wire instead of making it, it would have been an additional $1000 in processing charges.

#jewelry #handmade #goldsmith #tdmw

Do you remember seeing the mushroom cloud to the north? I do, mostly because it was confusing that it looked like a nuclear mushroom cloud which I also didn't understand

Also I had poor suction on this test because I skipped adding the wax tubes I normally add on the walls of the solid flask. At least that's what I think happened.

I use wet paper towels to get a better/consistent seal and also extends the life of my rubber gaskets.

Prototype flask base.

It's a challenge to target the 18mm/.75" pour spout (in black below) with a graphite crucible, especially when pouring small amounts for say 1-2 gold rings (15-30g total weight).

New funnel is 50mm/2" wide and test pour went well, though flask not well seated for vacuum

Two Graphite melting crucibles, one brand new and one used and disintegrating.

New baby, old baby.

Graphite crucibles wear out fast. The fresh one is smooth and shiny, the other used ~15 times is a crumbling mess.

#lostwaxcasting

Containers of the molding product Defiant 25 2 part silicone mold and a U-frame mold.

Siraya Tech Defiant 25 (1:1) is my new favorite molding silicone. I used to use Sorta-Clear 37 (1:1) and sometimes Sorta-Clear 18 (10:1)

It is thinner, trapping less bubbles (I still vacuum after mixing) and cheaper. Durability is TBD.

#moldmaking #jewelrymaking #silversmithing #sirayatech #tdmw

#chinoiserie #arthistory

Day one Tokyo: I always wondered where the "land" hanging in space on classic Chinoiserie wallpaper etc from Europeans (left, pic 1) was based on. Was it maps (right, pic 2) like this one at Tokyo National Museum that present space in an unusual way? Any art history majors know?

Prototype flask base (right)

Vacuum casting when using an electro-melt furnace is a challenge with small flasks b/c the pouring area is so small.

Trying to make an improved wider funnel base unless someone knows where do buy something like this commercially?

#tdmw #lostwaxcasting #metalsmith

This is old country studio. I just expanded it last year before I received my residency visa

Smith® Little Torch™ Propane and Oxygen Set for Disposable Tanks - RioGrande

One path to lower upfront costs would be a smith little torch with regulators for disposable tanks (propane + oxygen) so you can defer buying regulators and full size tanks

Yeah, just not compatible with tips #1 and #2 for reasons I forget

I switched to a smith little torch (oxygen acetylene) about 15 years ago. I love it! I also switched to oxygen and propane about 4 years ago, just means you can't use the smallest two tips.

People work differently, but for me, i use the wire mill all the time (had for ~10 years) and I rarely use my flat mill (20+ years) for me, the flat mill was a mistake

New small studio solution: I now have my rolling mills on wooden skids w/ felt bottoms that slide into place and are bolted down to the bench. Both slide into corner when not in use. Hopefully next studio will have more space.

#tdmw #maker #studio #handmade #metalsmith #jewelry

If you have pickle you want to keep, just pour out a cup/250ml and use that like you would when making Super Pickle to remove an accidental copper plating on say a silver piece you added to a pickle pot in a student studio 😄 then dispose of that small amount responsibly.

Place item in pickle and dip something steel in pickle. Plates a thin layer of copper.

Needs to be used pickle, used to pickle copper.

This happens frequently in a shared studio on accident.

Lmk if you decide to make one and have questions.

Thanks!

Thank you!

Thank you!

I confess I'm ignorant of the others, I'll have to read about them.

These are all amazing. Is the birdhouse one inspired by Baba Yaga? I love them all.

sabotage | Etymology of sabotage by etymonline "malicious damaging or destruction of an employer's property by workmen," from French… See origin and meaning of sabotage.

TIL: throwing sabots into machinery as the origin of 'sabotage' is probably not true. The origin is about the sound these wooden shoes made:

Made this little sabot charm yesterday with the conflagrated idea of the French Resistance and the origin of the word "sabotage".

I fear the US is sliding into fascism and acts of resistance small and large will be necessary to stop it.

#tdmw #lostwaxcasting #waxcarving #handmade #jewelry #maker

The new General Public Safety Rules (GPSR) for selling into Europe are also very new and unclear. Many sellers have stopped offering until EU clarifies rules.

We're on a ridge between Kirland and Redmond so it always snows/hails/freezes a little more here.

My studio in the snow.

I like the snow for about 5 minutes. It's been days and I'm so over it.