I am working on perfecting my gyspy setting skills. The area I’m
having the most problems with (no surprise) is putting in the seat
with a hart drill. Any tips on how to keep the hart burr:
at the proper level
Level! and
How to get the right depth on the seat without enlarging it too
much.
Actually any hart burr hints would be most welcome.
Thanks.
Carla
Carla,
my best advise on hart burrs is start with a very small burr say a
1.5 to 1.8 mm and work your way up to a larger burr as needed. The
smaller burrs give you more room to correct your height on the seat
of the cut. Make sure the top edge of the cut is the same distance
from the top edge of the hole all the way around in order to keep it
level. Adjust the seat or bottom edge according to the cut of the
stone so the stone sets in the seat level. Study the stone carefully
under a loupe or microscope so you know how it is cut before you
start to cut the seat. Last I usually mark the stone with a magic
marker and the surface of both the stone and the metal so the stone
is always oriented the same in the seat each time I check the fit.
Marking for orientation also works for prong setting as well. A magic
marker on the seat will also show up high and low spots when you put
the stone in place and move it around a little. The marker will rub
off or scuff where the stone hits metal. Hope this helps and makes
sense.
Frank Goss