I am working on a new project and would like find out where I could =
purchase or find out how to make a screw like thread on the end of a
= silver or gold solid rod.
Thanks!
Pat
Just go to most any hardware store and ask for taps & dies in the
tool section. Find a die that fits your wire size and a handle. Or
better yet, buy one of the inexpensive kits for $10-$20. You should
never wear it out on silver. Regis
Swest, Rio, Gueswien, Frie Borel, or most any other jewelry supplier
will have taps (to thread a hole) and dies (to thread a rod) in sizes
appropriate for jewelry. Also model builders catalogs are a good
source for these and many other items usable in the jewelry trade.
John Dach
MidLife Crisis Enterprises
Cynthia Thomas Designs
Cynthia’s sculptures are at: http://www.mlce.net
Maiden Metals,
A small bronze foundry, no web site yet!!
Hi Pat, You didn’t say how large or small the rod is! If it’s smaller
than about 3\16 th of an inch you will have to find a tool supply
company that has small taps and dies. If it’s for larger than 3/16 th
of an inch almost any Hardware Store should have both taps and dies.
If the hardware store doesn’t have the size that you want, ask him
where to get that size, he should be able to get it for you and/or
tell you where the nearest tool supply company is located. You will
also have to have a tool to hold the die. The hardware store should
have these in stock. If you need to get the rod threaded, look in the
yellow pages for a machine shop. GL
The easiest method, assuming that you want to put a standard thread
size on the gold rod is to use a threading die. These can be found at
any quality machine tool outlet. The diameter of the rod and the
number of threads per inch (if American) will determine the size die
to use. Any tool rep can help you with that. Then all you do is
screw the die onto the rod and the threads will be cut. 14K gold is
soft enough to do this very easily without any cutting oil. If you
are planning on putting a nut or cap on the end of the rod, make sure
that you get a die that is the same dimension as the threads in the
receiving end. If you will be making the receiving end then you need
to drill an undersized hole and then run a tap into the hole to cut
the threads.
HTH,
Daniel J. Statman, Statman Designs
For small size taps and dies, check out your local hobby shop. The one
near me has them down to the 0-96 size.
Don
Pat, This is actually quite simple. Most of my work involves using a
“tap” and/or a “die” A tap is used to make threads inside something,
like a tube or some sheet metal. A die is used to make threads on the
outside of something, such as a piece of wire. If you are using wire
that is 13 gauge or smaller you won’t be able to find small enough
taps and dies at the local hardware store, or at least I have never
found them there. The best place to purchase them is through a model
train catalog, a place called Micro-Mark (www.micromark.com), Reactive
Metals (www.reactivemetals.com) or my favorite (but most expensive :()
Small Parts (www.small-parts.com). Sounds like all you need is the
die.
First determine the gauge of your wire and look at the tap and die
chart on this page: www.reactivemetals.com/rmsref.htm, match it up
with the correct die and purchase it from your source of choice and
don’t forget the die stock (the thing that holds the die) although if
I’m using a 0-80 or 00-90 die I don’t use the die stock. Pick up some
cutting oil as well, a small can will last forever.
I’ve found you need at least 3 or 4 threads to make a good
connection, consider this when designing. Cut a piece of wire longer
than you need and put it in a vice with an inch or so sticking out.
If you look at the die one end will have a taper that goes from wider
to thinner, basically you want to screw this on to the wire. But, you
can’t just screw it on, this is especially true with taps, taps like
to break. So turn with the wire sticking up, apply the wide end of
the die and turn it counter clockwise slowly for a turn or so and then
take half a turn back and apply a bit of cutting oil. You can
continue like this down the whole length of wire or just a few turns.
I always thread more than I need and cut it to fit. Also rounding the
end will make it easier to thread, just look at the end of any screw
and you will see what I mean.
Good Luck!
Ed Colbeth
Metalsmith/Computer Geek
Quincy Ma
617-359-1116