If you browse through books and study tube rivets, clearly some are prettier than others. Actually, if I peruse my own work some are more fetching than others. What makes for a great tube rivet?
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- No unintended split in the rivet
- A rounded lip at the edge of the rivet
- Makes for a good, strong connection
- Hole is placed correctly so that the link (i.e., jump ring) moves freely
- Hole is placed correctly for aesthetic reasons
- Metal is not distorted due to the riveting process
This bracelet has tube rivets for some of its connections.
In the cold connections world I get that some folks have a more organic, natural style that is not aiming for perfection. I believe this style works best when you have good technique and you have chosen a more relaxed look because it is your aesthetic. Why slip into the “organic look” only because you are lacking technical skill?
Here is some information about tube riveting that I hope will help you make these little cuties with ease and precision. These steps will apply to working with flat pieces of metal.
Safety
If you do not have experience with power equipment, tools, or methods mentioned in this tutorial, I recommend you get guidance from a qualified instructor. In drilling, always wear safety glasses. Drill bits can break and harm your eyes. Any time you use your flex shaft or Dremel, wear safety glasses. No cheating here! Always hold the metal with a ring clamp with fingers away from the metal. The metal can catch, spin up the drill bit and cut your fingers. Use good common sense, foreseeing potential problems before they arise and ask for help if you are uncertain about a procedure.
1) The Sheet Metal and Tubing It is easier to rivet on heavier sheet metal. The metal will have less of a tendency to distort in the riveting process than with thinner metal. The wall thickness of the tubing is important. Stay in the range of .014″ (thinnest) to .032″ (thickest) wall thickness. One thing that makes shopping for tubing wall thickness a challenge is some suppliers use gauge and others use mm or inches.
Conversions
26 g = .016″ = .40mm
24 g = .020″ = .50mm
20 g = .032″ = .81mm
A Couple of Additional Resources for Tubing: Hauser and Miller (for sterling silver and gold) – Micro Mark (for copper and brass)
More on this topic in an upcoming blog post!
~Connie
All images and text are ©Copyright 2010-2012 Connie Fox. All rights reserved.
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