PMC and enamel

Jewelry Discussion
1

I know that it is possible to make a hybrid of PMC and enamel - the
trouble is that although I’m using PMC+ and firing at a low temp
(800-850C) the enamel either floods the entire surface of the item or
it burns out (especially the reds).

Any advice from colleagues would be very welcome!

Tony Konrath
Gold and Stone
www.goldandstone.com
tony@goldandstone.com

2

Hi Tony, Which reds are you using? Red is notoriously bad on silver,
sometimes even a flux undercoat will not help. You may want to try
Ninomiya Red for silver (#A-105B in the Enamelworks catalog), it
performs very well over silver and is a nice red, a bit more to the
purple side than true red. From what I have heard of the PMC, it is
still pretty porous so you might expect some problems with wicking,
you could try bringing the temperature down to 760-780C and see if
your enamel stays put. Good luck!

Nikki

3

I made a reproduction of a Scythian horse in pmc+ which I tumbled
with Steel varied shot for 11/2 hours with Dawn detergent and water. I
then laid wet enamels in the textured areas where jewels had been
pried out of the original piece I did two firings of transparents at
1200. The Greens and Blues were good , but the Garnet was muddy. Hope
this helps. Bill from Long Island

4

two firings of transparents at 1200. The Greens and Blues were good ,
but the Garnet was muddy.

Depending upon the brand of enamels you use, most reds, oranges, pinks
and some yellows need a barrier coat of silver flux between the metal
and the enamels.

Donna in VA

5

Thanks all for the responses on this one but I need to be a bit
clearer.

By mixing enamel powder and PMC clay it’s possible to produce a
material that is still silver but is colored (purple, yellow, green
etc.)

What I’m interested in is about the most successful
enamels for this type of work, enamel manufactures name and the enamel
number etc.

Any additional help would be greatly appreciated!

Tony Konrath
Gold and Stone
www.goldandstone.com
tony@goldandstone.com