Hi
So i have a ring blank prong setting
7mm x 5mm
Stone fits in perfectly (oval)
Should i just tighten the prongs (eg. tighten and fold over) or should i cut the seat etc.
With a dremel and burr its slipping because of the size i think.
Being fairly small, or should i just mark the lines and file a little touch,
or alternatively glue the stone in and then tighten prongs.
Someone with more experience then me in this field, can point me in the right direction hopefully.
Appreciate any advice.
Folks probably have different opinions here, but I think your best path forward is to carefully bend the prongs over as they are. If you don’t have much experience with setting a faceted oval stone, there’s a good chance that you’ll make it worse by grinding a seat with a Dremel tool. What kind of metal is it? Gold? Silver?
Let’s see what others say.
Jeff
Hi:
Here is the short answer to your questions: Make sure the stone’s pavilion fits the seat; as you say, if it fits perfectly, you don’t need to cut one. As for the prongs or claw, you will need to cut a notch that matches the girdle/pavilion profile; this notch is usually cut to 1/3 the thickness of the prong. Cutting deeper than this will weaken the prong. Then close the prongs in a crosswise (opposite-prong) pattern. Usually the top of the prongs needs to be shortened and dressed to make them even and rounded smooth. Cup burs are good for this, though it can be done with a barrette file that has a smooth edge; just be super careful not to scratch the stone.
Do not rely on glue… ever. It is a sign of poor craftsmanship. Also glue will fail eventually with a high risk of losing the stone.
A longer answer.
Using an HSS setting bur is tricky at first and takes some practice; the bur must not be vertical to cut the notch. The 90° part of the bur must be brought in with a tilt/angle matching the pavilion of the stone as it is brought into the prong to begin cutting the notch with an upward motion. It’s best to make several small cuts until the height and depth of the notch are reached.
After the notches are cut and the stone is test-fitted into the prongs, there shouldn’t be any spaces anywhere against the girdle or the pavilion facets.
If the rotating HSS bur is not at the right angle, like when it is vertical, gaps and pressure points will result, which will be very dangerous when the claws are closed.
As far as your Dremel/burr slipping, use a slow RPM, light passes, a larger/sharper bur maybe, and brace your hand against the ring holder. If the bur keeps skating, switch to a hand file for the final shaping. Dremels are pretty big and are harder to brace when doing more delicate tasks; that’s why a flex shaft is a better choice. An out-of-control bur can do a lot of damage in half a second.
I hope this helps. Other folks may have a different take and catch anything that I missed.
Look up some setting videos on YouTube; it will make it much clearer.
Well, for starters, I would not try to set a stone in that ring. Why? Because it appears that the under gallery is thinner than the rest of the ring. Thus when worn the thinnest area will bend first and the stone will likely pop out of the mounting. Now that said I could be wrong because in the photo I can’t see how thick much of the shank as well as the bottom of the shank are.
If you have never set a faceted stone in prongs I would recommend that you have a professional stone setter do that for you. If possible it would be a good idea to watch that person as they set it so that you can learn how to do it yourself.
You are right about the poor craftmanship using glue, and as i am not experienced enough to use bur on small pieces, the file is an excellent idea.
Yes, you are correct about the ring, a better ring can be used to set this stone, and definitely a good idea for long term to get a stone setter and watch and learn from him.
Yes exactly what I was thinking, dremel will make it worse, as i dont have much experience in this field. Its 925 silver.
