AboutThomas Expertise A lot of hobbyist are out there looking for answers, lapidary, jewelry making craft, etc. I can answer to many topics in those areas. I do not generally deal with costume jewelry but can give some advice regarding such. Note that I do not string pearls(or other bead work) or do twisted wire work jewelry. I can give info on gemstones and jewelry making tools and techniques.
Experience Experience: Over 25 years as a professional jeweler, working at the bench with the everyday problems of everyday people, plus good knnowledge on the do`s and dont`t, what to expect, what is unexpected, how to get beyond the simple into a rewarding hobby.
Clients: Owned and operated a "trade shop" servicing designers, retail jewelers, etc, and owned and operated a school for jewelers now gone by the wayside due to certain personal and economic conditions). I produced fine jewelry for one national opal company. Also lectured, demonstrated, and taught at the request of clubs, societies,etc.
Question QUESTION: I am a hobbyist. Trying to work wax for jewelry for casting. Mostly ring work right now.
My question is how to do the carving of the wax. I have purchased several sets of wax carving tools but they don't seem to carve. I just made a graver and that seems to work okay. Using Matt wax blue and purple. Are all of the other tools supposed to be heated before I use them? Thoroughly confused.
Also if graver is the way to go, what size is best I see alot to purchase.
Just need a nudge in the right direction.
Thanks for the help.
ANSWER: Hello, Ken. I will try to give you a nudge in the right direction working with wax.
Wax is generally hand worked in two ways: Heat is used to form and build up wax shapes and cutting tools are used to carve hard waxes suitable for carving. A combination of both methods is often used to produce a final design.
There is a chance your “wax carving tools” are the sort made to be used with heat, looking like modified dental tools. As for the tools to actually carve wax, see the link below for some rotary tools which will work. (Copy and Paste the link please.) I have a few of the tools you need to heat and actually did not use those much. Now, those tools are likely lost somewhere not to be found. My wax work today uses cutting burs in my flex shaft machine and a heated wax pen with various tips and homemade modified tips. A decent wax pen can be had for about $150 or you can make a less convenient but workable one with a 15 watt soldering iron, a rotary light dimmer to control the temp and a plastic mounting box. I made several of those over the years with the stuff coming from Radio Shack. Get a low wattage soldering iron and extra tips. Those tips will be modified as you need to form controllable heated tools.
A typcal carved ring can be formed by carving the wax with a rotary file and then using small metal cutting burs to form the grooves. This is then sanded with a mild 3M woven abrasive pad (simulated steel wool) and wet/dry sandpaper used wet. I sand just enough to smooth and form any places in the wax which would require extensive work in metal if not done first in wax. I do not try to polish the wax since the casting will not come out polished in the first place and I prefer to finish the surface of the metal with hand tool techniques.
Wax carving tools need not be expensive or unique, though some you make may be quite unique. Any piece of metal which will hold and edge suitable for scraping, carving and cutting wax will work. I use rotary tools for 90% of the work then follow in detail with what tool seems best to fit the job, be that a graver, a homemade flattened and sharpened piece of steel rod, a coarse hand file or whatever! I cannot recommend a specific graver since what you will need depends on the job and design at hand. Use your imagination and make tools as needed. You can find some small cutting bits of various shapes at some hardware stores, just be sure those tools will fit your hand piece of the rotary engine you might have. (The quality of the steel is not so important since wax is quite soft compared to even soft metals.)
CARVING WAX IS DIFFERENT THAN CARVING WOOD, FOR INSTANCE
Do not expect to carve wax as wood is carved. It does not generally work that way. Still, sharp and tiny wood tools such as gouges and chisels will work wax well as do metal cutting gravers. You will not whittle wax as a wood carver would do with wood. With wax, there is more scraping, filing and cutting with other tools and not so much with sharpened blades suitable for wood.
I do this: Use a sharp point to mark the wax just beyond what needs to be carved. Take a fairly aggressive tool and cut the wax away(rotary file preferred). For a ring, be certain to start with a finger hole close to the desired size, then mark the wax and quickly remove large areas of unwanted wax. Go in slower and with other tools if needed to refine the carving. You may even scrape the wax for very gentle removal using the squared edge of a piece of metal.
To add more wax for re-carving, a heated tool is used. To form smooth and different forms, a heated tool may be used. All has to do with the design and your level of skill and comfort of control with the tools. I have much more control with cutting and removing wax than with using heated tools. I use heat mostly to repair my over cuts and build up areas of a pattern. Some wax workers can form an entire miniature sculpture using heated tools an wax added, drawn and arranged with the tip of a hot tool.
Ok, all that is one big nudge to get to experimenting. You have already found that a graver does a fine job of carving wax. Now, try rotary tools with a variable speed tool, such as a flex shaft or a Dremel™ type tool with variable speed. Slow and controlled speed is a total must in using rotary tools on wax!
Best wishes with wax work! God Bless and Peace. Thomas.
PS. I tried to attach an image but for some reason attachments were not accepted tonight. Sorry.
---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------
QUESTION: Thank you very much for answering the questions. I am off to try the burs, which seems to me to be a great way to do it.
One question, you said: "Slow and controlled speed is a total must in using rotary tools on wax! " So can you tell me the speed i.e. rpm that you are talking about.
Thanks.
Answer Ken, actually I cannot tell you rpm for the tools. I use a flexshaft and foot petal and guessing rpm it might be about 300-400rpm max. Honestly, all has to do with the cut you are wanting to make and the aggressiveness of the tool you are using. Speed is a "feel it through" thing and is adjusted a lot. That is one reason a pedal and not a knob to turn is the best way to control motor speed in this case. For instance, you may start quite slowly then speed up a bit, see the wax is melting more than chipping away and slow down. Then you may be making a more controlled cut, perhaps shaping the initial side view of the ring shank. For that, you are using the same cutter but must slow down to safely control the depth of cutting.
Ken, feel your way through with the burs. The process is almost an instant learning event. I have no doubt you will know at the moment if too fast or too slow in cutting speed.
Thanks for getting back. Again, best wishes in the carving. You will find burs a joy to use with the harder carving waxes.
God Bless and Peace. Thomas. August 8, 2008 6:43pm
