I am looking for some templates. First let me say that I have the
Rio chartreuse colored ‘design’ template. Additionally I have the
set of 3 anodized aluminum lapidary templates that Rio also sells. I
have been to Office Max also and have several “Helix” brand drafting
style templates. What I am seeking are a series of templates that
have squares, ovals, circles, pears (teardrops), triangles, and etc.
that go from medium/small to large sizes (ie. 30x40mm+ oval).
I once had a set of these about 20 yrs. ago that I bought at a
jewelry/lapidary store but I loaned them out and the fellow that I
loaned them to passed away and his wife gave them away to the fellow
who bought his equipment. Does anyone on Orchid have any ideas where
I can get something to fill the bill?
Warmest Regards,
Skip
Skip Meister @Skip_Meister
Orchid Jewelry Listserve Member
A day without sunshine is like night!
N.R.A. Endowment
"No man’s life, liberty or fortune is safe…while our legislature is in session." Benjamin
Franklin
Five out of four people have trouble with fractions.
skip - as a ‘displaced’ aero/defense mechanical designer i used to
think “templates’r’me” - just go to either any art supply store or
any larger office supply store. even if they don’t have what you want
they should be able to look it up in one of their catalogs to order -
good luck - ive
ps: new green plastic ones will smell like the living room of a frat
house the morning after a keg party but it wears off if you leave them out -
Skip, Swest (now owned by Stuller) sells templates like the ones you
described. There are five matt templates which includes one with all
the stone shapes you mentioned.Maybe you can purchase just the one you
want, I’m not sure. They are made by Du-Matt Corp. Owned by Adolfo
Mattiello, the inventor of all the Matt wax carving tools. I recently
met him at a jewelry making workshop put on by Swest- now Stuller. He
is a wonderful humble man and has great wax carving tools out there. I
think you will be happy with his templates. Swest’s number is
800-527-5057 Good luck, Selena
I am also looking for a template that I have not been able to locate.
I am looking for one for calibrated ovals that has little marks
designating the center of each side, the top and bottom of the stone.
This also was something available years ago that seems to have
disappeared from the market.
Skip, try a lapidary supply house, which has templates used for
laying out the rock shapes. Plenty of rockhound sites online too, i.e.
Eloxite. If you want even more variety, go to a mom and pop type of
stationery supply store, and ask to browse their catalogs in their
drafting supplies. They’ll have decent French curves, templates in
about every shape and size, in both metric and English measurements.
You’ll be able to find round, oval, ellipse, triangle, rectangle, etc. K.P. in WY
Skip, Du-Matt manufactures some nice plastic templates for jewelry
making. There are design templates, ring shank templates and stone
templates and are available through Gesswein, Rio Grande, Frei &
Borel, etc. For templates of circles, squares, triangles, rectangles,
elipses, hexagons and such, go to a graphics supply house or good art
store that caters to the design community.
I have obtained numerous templates from art stores, graphic design
stores and the like. They are made by Pickett, C-Thru Ruler Co., and
Berol RapiDesign. You could also call Terra Firma Enterprises in
Baltimore at 410-602-2232. They sell lapidary equipment and I think
they have what you want. I will try to remember who I ordered my
lapidary templates from many years ago and let you know.
Skip…Templates with an assortment of sizes of squares,
ovals (or ellipses) circles and triangles are readily available in
most drafting supply stores and in many art supply stores. I do own
sets of these but not teardrops. If you check the drafting supply
shops carefully you may find templates used for electronic drawings
that include teardrops. While you are at it check their catalog for
other templates because some of the specialized ones for particular
trades such as plumbing or hardware design may be useful in ways that
the manufacturer never thought of.
Hi Skip! You have, at your disposal, the best tool for making your own
templates! Your own computer upon which you’re reading this message.
Most computer graphics packages allow you to create ovals, rectangles,
etc. to the desired dimensions. You can print them on label material
with very fine lines, affix to template material and cut them out and
use them to create your own templates. For lapidary use, if you have a
laser printer (waterproof) your can actually affix the template
sticker directly to the stone. Great for roughing preforms!
Food for thought,
Dave
Dave Sebaste
Sebaste Studio and
Carolina Artisans’ Gallery
Charlotte, NC (USA) dave@CarolinaArtisans.com
Will they have the sizes that will fit pre-made findings if I buy one
for engineering purposes? Of course, it is ideal to make your own,
but I sometimes use purchased findings.