Daily Wire Jewelry Making Tip
March 17, 2010

Question:

What is the most multi purpose gauge of wire? Please also include square, half round or round wire.

Answer:

Here’s where I will receive more comments about being vague, but I really cannot tell you exactly which shape, size and temper of wire is used most often, as each ‘style’ of wire jewelry creation calls for it’s own specifics. For example, my personal style of ‘traditional’ uses mostly half-hard square wire in gauges from 18 through 24 and half round, half hard wire from 18g to 21g; whereas ‘sculpting’ uses similar gauges, the majority of which are dead soft in temper; and chain maille wire jewelry uses round wire in similar gauges, usually half or full hard. For more information, we do have a good article (‘What type of Wire should I Use?)  Part 1 http://wire-sculpture.com/jewelry-making-blog/37/part-1-what-type-of-wire-should-i-use/ and Part 2 http://wire-sculpture.com/jewelry-making-blog/31/part-2-what-type-of-wire-should-i-use/

Whenever this question is asked, my advise is: find a project you enjoy making, practice and then expand to other projects. While working and growing, you will determine which gauge, temper and shape you enjoy working with the best and can then alter patterns to fit YOUR favorite wire style.

Answer contributed by Dale “Cougar” Armstrong

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Daily Wire Jewelry Making Tip
March 08, 2010

Question:

If the instruction says 20-gauge dead soft wire or 26-gauge dead soft wire, how do you know if you use flat, round etc.

Answer:

If you have a picture of the finished project, you should be able to figure out which shape the wires need to be by looking at the gauges; remembering smaller wire sizes are written in larger numbers and vice versa. More often than not, 26g or larger numbered wire means small to very fine, Round wire (as 24g is about the smallest square you can readily purchase). If you still have a challenge, directly contact either the publisher or the author of the questionable directions.

Answer contributed by Dale “Cougar” Armstrong

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Daily Wire Jewelry Making Tip
March 06, 2010

Question:

I found some cuff bracelets made with very large gauge (18) wire & am trying my hand at it. Any tips you can give me on working with it? Some design ideas would be great, too. I plan to mount a large focal stone in the center & am not really sure how to do it right.

Answer:

If the 18g wire you plan to work with is round, be prepared for some denting of the wire with your pliers, as with a round surface there is no way to firmly hold large, round wire with a flat surface (like the inside of pliers) and not dent it. If the wire is square and half-hard, you should have very few problems with dents as long as your frame is made ‘on the square’.

Regarding adding cabs to the design, personally I would set my stone separately and then attach it to the frame (similar to the bracelet design on my book cover) or set the cab first, making the frame in 2 pieces, side-to-side, and where it joins on each side (like where you would normally put a bail) make sure the wires are long enough to be incorporated into the entire bracelet bundle. If done in this manner, the bracelet frame will usually have to be shaped to be able to incorporate the stone, by bending the wires out and around while planning the main bundle, so the stone has room to be placed between them before taping and then wrapping the entire bracelet.

Of course, I suggest that you make the actual pattern you are looking at first, so you are familiar with how the designer/author suggests making their design, before you plan to alter it.

Answer contributed by Dale “Cougar” Armstrong

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Daily Wire Jewelry Making Tip
January 17, 2010

Question:

I’m not sure what thickness to use. I have a 22 gauge craft wire that is too thin. I want a thicker wire. Do I go higher in number or lower. I thought that the higher numbers are thicker but  on this website (Wire-Sculpture.com) the higher numbers (say 26 gauge) are cheaper than the lower numbers (22 gauge). So I am confused. Shouldn’t the thicker wire be more expensive since it has more silver in it? Am I incorrect in thinking that the higher numbers are thicker.

Answer:

Wire sizes get smaller as their gauge number gets larger. For example, a 12 gauge wire is 2.88mm or 0.11 inch across, whereas a 24 gauge wire is only 0.511mm or 0.02 inch across. Round wire will appear smaller than square wire because the distance that determines the gauge/size is measured across the center of the wire. Wire-Sculpture does have a chart that shows wire gauge conversions:  http://wire-sculpture.com/pages/All_About_Wire.html

Answer contributed by Dale “Cougar” Armstrong

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