Casting a Silver Ring!

My wife sorted out several silver jewelry items and asked me if I could do something with them. I suggested that I would take them to the local gold dealer and exchange them for something that she might like, but she asked me if I could make some new jewelry or ornaments with them myself.

I have often made rings out of ebony and other very dense woods, something that started years ago when I made two tings in Walnut to celebrate our first wedding anniversary, known traditionally (here) as the 'Wood' anniversary. We wore them on our first anniversary for that day. The first ring on the left is my Wooden Anniversary ring. But I has never actually caste anything in silver before.

I purchased a clay crucible locally and went to U-Tube for some lessons in casting silver, then purchased a cuttlefish bone from the local pet-shop and after preparing it I impressed a lovely onyx ring in to the two halves of bone and got ready to melt some of the silver.

I am used to melting and casting lead bullets, had done that for many years, it was just a question of achieving much higher temperatures with my butane-propane gas torch than that. I didn't expect to succeed first time, in fact I have just purchased a propane torch for higher temperatures, but my first attempt would be with my existing gear.

I was so surprised when I opened the mould after casting, to find a lovely silver ring, completely formed and ready to finish with hand tools and dremel! The pics show the ring after casting, and also beside the onyx ring which I copied.

I've enough silver left to caste a 50mm clam (these are on our foreshore) which my wife would like for her display shelf, but I will certainly need a propane torch for that heavier amount of silver casting.

Does anybody else make jewelry castings? I expect that engineers like @Revoltingest make heavier casting altogether.

I look forward to any replies

I don't do castings....except worm castings (compost bin).

Revoltingest said:

I don't do castings....except worm castings (compost bin).

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I remember that wonderful film 'The Fastest Indian' and that New Zealander rider used to caste his own pistons for his Indian Engine. I thought of you.

oldbadger said:

I remember that wonderful film 'The Fastest Indian' and that New Zealander rider used to caste his own pistons for his Indian Engine. I thought of you.

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I remember that from the movie too.
He was a real do-it-yourself kind of guy.

oldbadger said:

My wife sorted out several silver jewelry items and asked me if I could do something with them. I suggested that I would take them to the local gold dealer and exchange them for something that she might like, but she asked me if I could make some new jewelry or ornaments with them myself.

I have often made rings out of ebony and other very dense woods, something that started years ago when I made two tings in Walnut to celebrate our first wedding anniversary, known traditionally (here) as the 'Wood' anniversary. We wore them on our first anniversary for that day. The first ring on the left is my Wooden Anniversary ring. But I has never actually caste anything in silver before.

I purchased a clay crucible locally and went to U-Tube for some lessons in casting silver, then purchased a cuttlefish bone from the local pet-shop and after preparing it I impressed a lovely onyx ring in to the two halves of bone and got ready to melt some of the silver.

I am used to melting and casting lead bullets, had done that for many years, it was just a question of achieving much higher temperatures with my butane-propane gas torch than that. I didn't expect to succeed first time, in fact I have just purchased a propane torch for higher temperatures, but my first attempt would be with my existing gear.

I was so surprised when I opened the mould after casting, to find a lovely silver ring, completely formed and ready to finish with hand tools and dremel! The pics show the ring after casting, and also beside the onyx ring which I copied.

I've enough silver left to caste a 50mm clam (these are on our foreshore) which my wife would like for her display shelf, but I will certainly need a propane torch for that heavier amount of silver casting.

Does anybody else make jewelry castings? I expect that engineers like @Revoltingest make heavier casting altogether.

I look forward to any replies
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Nice work!

I haven't got into casting but I may look into bronze casting for a Celtic antenna dagger.
Where'd you get the idea of using cuttlebone? Wouldn't sand be much easier?

Good job.

I love silver. It's my favorite metal for jewelry. I also love hand casted and hand forged jewelry. I'm wearing a hand forged steel Mjölnir pendant.

Revoltingest said:

I remember that from the movie too.
He was a real do-it-yourself kind of guy.

Click to expand...

A wonderful film and story about an amazing guy.

Heyo said:

Nice work!

I haven't got into casting but I may look into bronze casting for a Celtic antenna dagger.
Where'd you get the idea of using cuttlebone? Wouldn't sand be much easier?

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A neighbour told me that she used to use cuttlefish bone, and I went straight out and bought one, then to U-tube for some lessons!

I have purchased a Delf sand frame from ebay for more extensive projects, but I'm so glad that I was able to try that idea immediately.

I would love to forge and caste in Bronze. I once found a bronze axe-head in a field just off the Dover Road, Kent, UK. It's in a museum now, but loads of them have been found around here. And I found a Celtic Potin at Marshside beside the Wantsum channel, Kent. UK in 1980.

This has got me going now.

oldbadger said:

My wife sorted out several silver jewelry items and asked me if I could do something with them. I suggested that I would take them to the local gold dealer and exchange them for something that she might like, but she asked me if I could make some new jewelry or ornaments with them myself.

I have often made rings out of ebony and other very dense woods, something that started years ago when I made two tings in Walnut to celebrate our first wedding anniversary, known traditionally (here) as the 'Wood' anniversary. We wore them on our first anniversary for that day. The first ring on the left is my Wooden Anniversary ring. But I has never actually caste anything in silver before.

I purchased a clay crucible locally and went to U-Tube for some lessons in casting silver, then purchased a cuttlefish bone from the local pet-shop and after preparing it I impressed a lovely onyx ring in to the two halves of bone and got ready to melt some of the silver.

I am used to melting and casting lead bullets, had done that for many years, it was just a question of achieving much higher temperatures with my butane-propane gas torch than that. I didn't expect to succeed first time, in fact I have just purchased a propane torch for higher temperatures, but my first attempt would be with my existing gear.

I was so surprised when I opened the mould after casting, to find a lovely silver ring, completely formed and ready to finish with hand tools and dremel! The pics show the ring after casting, and also beside the onyx ring which I copied.

I've enough silver left to caste a 50mm clam (these are on our foreshore) which my wife would like for her display shelf, but I will certainly need a propane torch for that heavier amount of silver casting.

Does anybody else make jewelry castings? I expect that engineers like @Revoltingest make heavier casting altogether.

I look forward to any replies
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Click to expand...

I don't do anything like that but it is very nice and worth more than shop bought.

My hubby had our wedding rings made out of a chunky gold signet ring that his great grandfather gave him when he was pre teen. They mean a lot.

Saint Frankenstein said:

Good job.

I love silver. It's my favorite metal for jewelry. I also love hand casted and hand forged jewelry. I'm wearing a hand forged steel Mjölnir pendant.

Click to expand...

I'll never sell another piece of silver, ever. It can go in to the crucible and become something else from now on.

I still have a few ounces of scrap silver and so I would like to try casting a small clam next. If I'm successful I'll post it up here.

ChristineM said:

I don't do anything like that but it is very nice and worth more than shop bought.

My hubby had our wedding rings made out of a chunky gold signet ring that his great grandfather gave him when he was pre teen. They mean a lot.

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Excellent! What a great idea! My wife will really enjoy to hear about your wedding rings, I know. She's asleep now, but tomorrow........

I wish I'd started out on this 50 or 60 years ago, but better late than never!

oldbadger said:

My wife sorted out several silver jewelry items and asked me if I could do something with them. I suggested that I would take them to the local gold dealer and exchange them for something that she might like, but she asked me if I could make some new jewelry or ornaments with them myself.

I have often made rings out of ebony and other very dense woods, something that started years ago when I made two tings in Walnut to celebrate our first wedding anniversary, known traditionally (here) as the 'Wood' anniversary. We wore them on our first anniversary for that day. The first ring on the left is my Wooden Anniversary ring. But I has never actually caste anything in silver before.

I purchased a clay crucible locally and went to U-Tube for some lessons in casting silver, then purchased a cuttlefish bone from the local pet-shop and after preparing it I impressed a lovely onyx ring in to the two halves of bone and got ready to melt some of the silver.

I am used to melting and casting lead bullets, had done that for many years, it was just a question of achieving much higher temperatures with my butane-propane gas torch than that. I didn't expect to succeed first time, in fact I have just purchased a propane torch for higher temperatures, but my first attempt would be with my existing gear.

I was so surprised when I opened the mould after casting, to find a lovely silver ring, completely formed and ready to finish with hand tools and dremel! The pics show the ring after casting, and also beside the onyx ring which I copied.

I've enough silver left to caste a 50mm clam (these are on our foreshore) which my wife would like for her display shelf, but I will certainly need a propane torch for that heavier amount of silver casting.

Does anybody else make jewelry castings? I expect that engineers like @Revoltingest make heavier casting altogether.

I look forward to any replies
View attachment 36219 View attachment 36219 View attachment 36220 View attachment 36221

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That is amazing! I have incredible respect for anyone who can do handcrafted metal casting.

This is awesome. There's tons and tons of youtube vids on making your own melding ovens for casting, and everyone seems to prefer graphite crucibles.

A small blower (even a hair dryer with high volume) some reactionary cement (heat proof) and a metal can of some sort, and you can make your own melter. Many have even fabricated burners out of common plumbing pipe, and some brass fittings for the fiddly bits at the end.

I've watched vids of melting brass, copper, aluminum, lead, silver and even gold. It's amazing to watch those clever folk do what they do.

Your silver ring looks lovely, and will literally be priceless, because it has your handiwork cast into it's substance.

You can put a price on raw metals. You cannot price the personal handiwork (well you can, but you know what I mean here-- you're building memories. What price for one's memories?)

Bob the Unbeliever said:

That is amazing! I have incredible respect for anyone who can do handcrafted metal casting.

This is awesome. There's tons and tons of youtube vids on making your own melding ovens for casting, and everyone seems to prefer graphite crucibles.

A small blower (even a hair dryer with high volume) some reactionary cement (heat proof) and a metal can of some sort, and you can make your own melter. Many have even fabricated burners out of common plumbing pipe, and some brass fittings for the fiddly bits at the end.

I've watched vids of melting brass, copper, aluminum, lead, silver and even gold. It's amazing to watch those clever folk do what they do.

Your silver ring looks lovely, and will literally be priceless, because it has your handiwork cast into it's substance.

You can put a price on raw metals. You cannot price the personal handiwork (well you can, but you know what I mean here-- you're building memories. What price for one's memories?)

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Thankyou very much for your kind words.
I still cannot believe that my first attempt worked.
Beginner's luck.

I have ordered a propane torch which burns at higher temperatures than butane-propane, and I have just bought a graphite crucible on ebay.

If my next attempt works (A small silver clam) I will post it up here.

oldbadger said:

Thankyou very much for your kind words.
I still cannot believe that my first attempt worked.
Beginner's luck.

I have ordered a propane torch which burns at higher temperatures than butane-propane, and I have just bought a graphite crucible on ebay.

If my next attempt works (A small silver clam) I will post it up here.

Click to expand...

I've seen any number of reactionary (is that the right term?) furnaces-- made of various tin cans or other. I've seen some as small as a gallon can, with rock wool (basically spun rock fibers, won't burn, won't melt) as insulation. I saw a large one made of a galvanized trash can, too. Re-purposed hot water tanks, the works. There is also mixable cement material, you can get, that when cured, is fireproof, won't melt, won't burn, that you can use to mold your furnace.

Plain old propane will get hot enough to melt copper, if you use an air blower, and a home built torch (such that the flame is perfectly balanced between air and gas) and has a high enough BTU to keep the heat in, and use a heat retention furnace, often with the aforementioned rock wool or castable cement. Note: Ordinary concrete, or mortar, will burn if you get it hot enough-- it's basically limestone after all, and will react with oxygen in the air, if you get it hot enough. So don't use that.

I love the subject of home brew forges, I wish I had the health and money to do some myself.

That's really neat! I've casted a lot of different resins in different casting materials but havent worked with metal yet. I'm really interested in casting aluminum with green sand. Project for later.

Would love to see the ring after detailing is done.

oldbadger said:

I remember that wonderful film 'The Fastest Indian' and that New Zealander rider used to caste his own pistons for his Indian Engine. I thought of you.

Click to expand...

Next- cast inside of a ant nest

Revoltingest said:

I don't do castings....except worm castings (compost bin).

Click to expand...

I do castings for porn movies. Or I will, if any babes out there are interested.

Howard Is said:

I do castings for porn movies. Or I will, if any babes out there are interested.

Click to expand...

I knew it!
(The avatar was a give-away.)

Revoltingest said:

I knew it!
(The avatar was a give-away.)

Click to expand...

It doesn’t hurt to advertise

oldbadger said:

My wife sorted out several silver jewelry items and asked me if I could do something with them. I suggested that I would take them to the local gold dealer and exchange them for something that she might like, but she asked me if I could make some new jewelry or ornaments with them myself.

I have often made rings out of ebony and other very dense woods, something that started years ago when I made two tings in Walnut to celebrate our first wedding anniversary, known traditionally (here) as the 'Wood' anniversary. We wore them on our first anniversary for that day. The first ring on the left is my Wooden Anniversary ring. But I has never actually caste anything in silver before.

I purchased a clay crucible locally and went to U-Tube for some lessons in casting silver, then purchased a cuttlefish bone from the local pet-shop and after preparing it I impressed a lovely onyx ring in to the two halves of bone and got ready to melt some of the silver.

I am used to melting and casting lead bullets, had done that for many years, it was just a question of achieving much higher temperatures with my butane-propane gas torch than that. I didn't expect to succeed first time, in fact I have just purchased a propane torch for higher temperatures, but my first attempt would be with my existing gear.

I was so surprised when I opened the mould after casting, to find a lovely silver ring, completely formed and ready to finish with hand tools and dremel! The pics show the ring after casting, and also beside the onyx ring which I copied.

I've enough silver left to caste a 50mm clam (these are on our foreshore) which my wife would like for her display shelf, but I will certainly need a propane torch for that heavier amount of silver casting.

Does anybody else make jewelry castings? I expect that engineers like @Revoltingest make heavier casting altogether.

I look forward to any replies
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I am very interested in the subject, but unfortunately the only thing I have cast is my fortunes, fishing lines and rarely aspersions.

I think it is pretty interesting and have reviewed a number of videos on aluminum, brass and glass casting.

Nice work.