All, Iam thinking of buying or leasing a laser welder and have a few
questions for you laser folks such as: Is the set up time for say
doing a ring sizing down, longer than if you were to do it by hand?I
can do a ring sizing down in about four minutes start to finish.How
many repair orders a week would you need to do to justify the cost of
the unit?Where is the best place to find a unit?And what are the best
machines to use?Thanks ahead of time.
J Morley Coyote Ridge Studio
I had purchased a Crafford Laserstar in about september. I am a sole
jeweler working for an extremely busy business with more work than I
have time. I still use my torch…the laser is not a cure all, and
you will find that some things are still easier and quicker to do
with a torch…However…the laser welder is great for multiple
purposes that would normally take longer…ie… how great is it to
retip a stone and NOT have to remove it…or to just have to remove
one stone out of twenty to do work on the ring. I accept jobs now
that I couldn’t normally do…rope chains I can reweave and weld
with no visible trace of repair, and the links are still moveable!
(and more durable of a bond than solder.) I can fix bezels with the
stones in the mount. Platinum is the best. gold is good.
silver…(eh, not so good) It also works well on titanium, steel and
pewter. I do alot of metoerite wedding bands, and you can do a
collar and the sleeve with the torch, but the other collar would have
to be peened over, but with the laser I can just weld the top collar
and not damage the meteorite with heat. I do love my laser. It has
also opened up designs that cannot be traditionally done with a
torch. can you imagine wrapping a briolette with wire, and with a
weld it’s caged??? Or you have a loose bezel…a little wire under
the girdle of the stone, weld it in place, no more loose stone! It,
like any machine or equipment, takes time to master and to use with
maximum efficiency. I have found many time-saving uses for my laser,
however, somethings are easier with the torch… I do not know where
you are located, but most of the laser companies will put you in
touch with someone near you so you can go and try their laser, or see
how it works. good luck, and you can e-mail if you have anymore
questions that I could answer. -julia justine093@aol.com