Separating Discs--Flush Cutters

Jewelry Discussion
1

Dave–Do you know where to locate Flush Cutters that are flush on
both sides? I have been looking for one for a long time, and either
haven’t identified them properly, or haven’t seen them in any of the catalogues.
Thanks Sandra

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2 
Dave--Do you know where to locate Flush Cutters that are flush on
both sides? I have been looking for one for a long time, and either
haven't identified them properly, or haven't seen them in any of
the catalogues.

I got the pair I have from Progress Machine & Tool (800-841-8665) in
LA. The tool is made by Xuron. They make lots of tools for the
electronics industry. Another place you might check is a hobby shop
that sell model train supplies. They usually have flush cutters for
cutting rails, but I don’t know if they cut both sides flush.

I’ve seen rail cutters listed in the MicroMark catalog, but again
I’ve never seen a pair personally.

Dave

3

Hi, Good news (cutter that will leave both sides flush) is on the
horizon. Proto types are done. Testing is nearly done. Please
contact me off line for more

Tim
jastws@aol.com

4 
   Dave--Do you know where to locate Flush Cutters that are flush
on both sides? I have been looking for one for a long time, and
either haven't identified them properly, or haven't seen them in any
of the catalogues.

You cannot actually make a flush cutting nipper that cuts flush on
both sides, since the flush side of the blades need to be pretty much
flat across the two faces that form the flush side. that cut side
then is straight, except for the fine seam line across the middle. A
good shear type cutter, like solder snips, can produce a fairly clean
sheared cut in wire, where both sides are about the same, but the
sheared faces are usually slightly angled, not quite straight, and
usually the front/leading edge of the blade leaves a mark on the side
of the wire just next to the sheared edge. A modification is a shear
type blade where a hole drilled through the blades, the same size as
the wire to be cut, lets you insert the wire, and when the blades are
moved in any direction, the wire gets sheared. such cutters will
produce an almost flush cut on both sides. But they don’t usually
look like normal jewelry nippers. One version I’ve seen is bench
mounted. Frie and borel sells it, and I think Rio might too. And
another poster mentioned that cheap electronics wire strippers
sometimes also have wire or screw cutting holes, that are designed to
function as the cutter I describe above. The trouble with most of
these that I’ve seen is that the hole sizes are generally larger than
jewelry guage wires. But such a shear could easily be made by
someone, so look again in the catalogs for a short stubby scissor
type blade, (the blades pass next to each other, instead of meeting in
the middle and pinching) where there are holes drilled through the
both blades… That would be the cutter you’re looking for. Or easier
yet, buy a cheap electronics wire stripper, or other such shear type
tool, and heat the working end hot enough to blue the steel. This
isn’t completely annealed for steel, but it’s soft enough to drill.
Use super glue to then glue the blades in one fixed position, so they
overlap, but could still be closed farther by another millimeter or
two, depending on the size wire you wish to cut. Now drill through
holes that go through both blades of the cutter, the size of the wires
you wish to cut. The tighter the fit, the cleaner it will cut. Heat
the blades (but not so far down as the hinge. Only the end with the
cutting holes) bright red and quench in oil. Lightly emery again to
bright steel, and gently reheat till the blades turn a medium yellow
color. They’re now hardened and tempered. Very lightly hone the
mating faces of the cutting blades so they are clean, sharp hole
edges, and if needed, readjust the hinge of the shear so the blades
are sufficiently tight to each other. The result should be a shear
that gives you a nice clean flush cut on both ends of the wire. The
commercially made version adds a neat touch: a small movable bar that
can be extended to the side of one blade, with a bend or end plate at
it’s end. It’s adjustable as to how far that end plate or bent end is
from the blades, and it’s use is as a depth stop, so the user can
easily cut many lengths of wire all the same length.

Peter Rowe

Note From Ganoksin Staff:
Looking for a disc cutter for your jewelry projects? We recommend: