Hardening silver screw-on ear ring findings

Jewelry Discussion
1

Being new to the art, I have purchased a set of screw-on ear ring
findings and soldered them to the design I made. I quenched them in
water and then put them in my tumbler but the silver “U’s” did not
harden. I was advised to quench them in ice water but that did not
toughen them. How do I decrease their flex?

thanks

2

Hi Mike,

How do I decrease their flex?

Using pliers (preferably with nylon jaws to avoid marring the metal
– or you could use tape-wrapped, steel-jawed pliers) grab the wire
at alternating points and gently wiggle it back and forth, but not
too far. It will gradually work-harden and become springy. Be sure to
stop before getting too much resistance because at a certain point,
the silver will snap. You might want to experiment with a piece of
silver wire first.

It’s easier with earring posts which usually just require a twist.
In this case, though, you don’t want to distort the U-shape so a back
and forth motion should do it.

Beth Rosengard

3 
I have purchased a set of screw-on ear ring findings and soldered
them to the design I made. I quenched them in water and then put
them in my tumbler but the silver "U's" did not harden. How do I
decrease their flex?

I would try bending the U shape back and forth until it work
hardens.

M’lou Brubaker
Minnesota, USA

4 
I have purchased a set of screw-on ear ring findings and soldered
them to the design I made. I quenched them in water and then put
them in my tumbler but the silver "U's" did not harden. How do I
decrease their flex?

I think maybe I would try “snapping” the U’s with a pair of pliers.
Open and shut the pliers in a snapping motion as you move the pliers
up and down the U and see if that helps. This technique has worked
for me to harden the occasional ear post. I’d be a bit cautious with
the “bending the U back and forth until it work hardens”. I think if
you did this too vigorously, you could also break it off.

5 
I have purchased a set of screw-on ear ring findings and soldered
them to the design I made. I quenched them in water and then put
them in my tumbler but the silver "U's" did not harden. How do I
decrease their flex?

Gently hammer the wire on the flat plane until it is three quarters
the thickness, and wider. When polished it appears to be oval in
section. The wire is hardened by the hammering, and the wider part is
orientated to resist bending when the screw is tightened. Don’t
over-do it or the “U” will be subject to twisting or buckling in use.

Another way is to straighten the wire, twist the whole length one
and a half turns and untwist the same amount, and then reshape the
“U”. If only a portion of the wire is soft, the softest part will
twist the most and end up a similar hardness to the rest of the wire.

Regards, Alastair