QuestionHi Thomas. I was supplied with a collegiate ring from my alma mater in the USA and the company sent it around 4 or 5 sizes to big by mistake. Short version is they can't resize, only remake & two jewelers in Melbourne say stainless resizing is not possible. I know I'm probably clutching at straws and asking a silly question, but is that really the final word? Should I be trying to find an artist working in steel instead of a jeweler? Or do I need to just have another made? I've read your other answers and feel you might have a 'Hail Mary' if no-one else does. Thank you for your time! Michael
AnswerMichael, unfortunately there is not a "reach up and hope to get the ball" answer for stainless steel class and fraternal rings. The short answer is the ring should be remade in the correct finger size. Since the company sent the incorrect size by a whopping amount it sounds like their mistake and they take care of the correct ring at no charge to you.
You might wonder why jewelers will not even attempt the work and why an artist working in steel is not a viable answer. First of all consider the normal problems with sizing a class or fraternal ring, stainless steel or jewelry gold. A piece of the ring shank (band) from the bottom must be cut out in the correct amount so that the ring will be the correct size when reformed. Reforming means bringing the ends of the shank together and then rounding the entire ring. With a ring so much larger than needed, the top section begins with terribly incorrect curvature. To reshape the top is very difficult if even possible without creating a lot of damage or even cracking the sides and top. To not reshape the top of the ring means bringing in the sides straightly; if the sides do not crack or break, the form will be a ring with a straight flat bottom and an overly large top section.
Because of the "mechanical" aspects of form and shaping, I would not do this ring in gold, much less in stainless steel.
Even if the section removed happened to be quite small and the ends of the shank were easily brought together cleanly, joining means welding. There is not a strong and clean brazing or soldering method available to a jeweler which will work with stainless steel. Welding means either a jewelry laser or a jewelry pulse arc welder. Cover gas is needed. Torch work is out of the picture. As much hype as is given on laser welding for jewelry, my experience tells me the job would be quite expensive and very likely somewhat messy and pitted...but above all, not a strong join. Yes, the wonder tool for jewelers does do wonderfully in some jobs but in others the performance is several levels below the advertising hype. The weld is essentially a hot weld against a cold section, leaving a difference in grain structures in the weld and the adjoining section of metal. Even if clean and not pitted, the joint is likely to break when hammered to form. Many of these joints simply do not handle cold working and cold working is needed to some extent to complete the sizing of the ring. If all this should happen to work, the shank is then ready to form and finish to match the original. The labor to do forming and finishing on steel is vastly more demanding than with gold and jewelers do not want that sort of work and do not want to contaminate buffs used on gold with steel residue...new buffs needed for the steel work.
A jeweler will not accept the job first because it is most certainly going to be an exercise in futility, lost time and an unhappy customer. A steel working artist works within constraints of the item at hand but not generally in constraints of an item which must be welded and formed to a predetermined manufactured design standard. The risks of a miscue are too great to accept the work. All the artist would gain is a bad reputation for the moment if a failure and if success, the dubious name as "the one to do your stainless steel class ring"...I would pull down the shades of the shop door!
Bottom line: To be able to do the work with a high quality result is very, very unlikely. Even the attempt will be very time consuming and expensive for you with no guarantees. The jeweler is going to suggest having the factory redo the ring, after all, there is some reason the factory finds a total remake more cost efficient than trying to alter the size of an already made ring.
Michael, I do hope this is a clear answer. I do wish the "hail Mary" would bring results but do not see that happening. If you need more info on this question, please feel free to use the follow-up option to get back to me. Fair enough? Oh, rate the answer if you want to do that to help me know how it goes on the other side of allexperts.
God Bless and Peace. Thomas.
Worth a Look. Small pulse arc welder as used for jewelry work:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a-hgbGPpflI
