QuestionQUESTION: Hi. I wanted to know if you could help me with a design? I am a sculptor. Someone suggested making some of my designs into jewelry. Because I am disabled I can not get to a class to learn how to make jewelry. I have been sculpting my designs in wax. I would like to make them into a locket. My problem is I am not sure how a locket is constructed. How it is sculpted to hold the picture. Or if the hinge is sculpted or added later. I would like the hinge to blend in. How is the locking mechanics sculpted. Is it added later. etc. I would like to make a regular locket and a three fold locket. One that has three separate pieces like a hamburger with a hinge. Bun-front-one pic, meat-middle-two pics and the bottom bun-back-one pic. I can not find any info on how this is done. No plans, schematics, layouts, sketches etc. I found one book on sculpting for lost wax casting. It is a hundred dollars and I have no idea if it has the info I need. I would appreciate any info on how to construct or where to find the info to construct a locket. I also found a casting house a few hours away. Just because it is closer does not mean it is better. Can you suggest any info on how to figure out what casting house would be the best for my designs? Any info would be greatly appreciated. Thank You Lene
ANSWER: Lene if you are a sculptor and have had experience carving wax then I would suggest you start with a block of wax I recommend the Blue wax for carving you can order it from most jewelry supply houses it is easy to carve and works well. If you are carving a hamburger you might try a solid ring stick instead of a square block, it might save you some carving time. Rough in your outside shape and make it thick enough to cut in half for the 2 piece and cut twice for the 3 piece, be sure to leave the center section thick enough to mount 2 thin rings in to hold your pictures in place, If you can study a door hinge it is basically the same idea if you are going to make it hidden you need to first cut the hamburger in to 2 or 3 pieces. horizontally. then score the hinge with a pin. Using a jewelers saw, cut out the center section of the hinge that you have marked. ( only on one side for the 2 parts and on both sides on the 3 part). they can be made separately and probably should be cut or punched out of plate and annealed to enough tension so as to have some spring. They will also have to be a little larger than your opening so as to snap in or you can make them the same size and add a small notch to hold them in place on both sides of the frame. Don't forget that once you cut out the areas that you are going to install pictures to also rout out a shelf for the picture to sit in and make it deep enough to also hold an acetate or glass lens or crystal to protect your pictures. It is nice to have a drill press or a lathe to insure that your picture cut outs are even and match up. it can be trying to do by hand.
When you cut out the hinge sections you can use the part you cut out from the center of the hinge and melt it on to the other side of the frame. then once they fit and you get them shaped properly to function you can drill through them lengthwise to allow for a wire hinge pin to tie them together after they are cast.
Don't forget to design in a latch to close the locket in your wax. it can be as simple as a small lip on one side that fits into a grove on the other side or you can get industrious and make a moving latch to secure the locket when it's closed these will probably have to be made separately and peenned in place once the locket is assembled. Design a pin and a small spinner bar with a S or C shape on the ends that can be drilled out in the center and burnished down on your pin to be turned to lock the locket on a notch that you ad to the other side or the outside halves of the 3 part piece and the pin on the center section.. Personally I like this better but it is a lot more work I think it last longer and is easier to repair if the locket wears. from usage.
As far as the casting company there are lots of good ones I use one in Rhode Island that is very reasonable when I have large volume work It's sometimes easier than doing it myself. Most of the supply the metal and charge a casting fee/ item. don't forget they also charge extra to spru up your piece for casting but if they do it it's probably going to be their responsibility to make sure it's sprued properly. just remember the more sprues they use the more metal is required and the higher the cost. .. Experience helps to plan there.
Let me know if you have any questions I will be glad to follow up with you.
Chris
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QUESTION: Thank you for the fast response but you did not answer my question. I know how a hinge works. I know I need some sort of latch. What I do not know is how it needs to be sculpted to make it. Do I need to leave a spot for them. Is the hinge part of the original wax design? Is the latch part of the original wax design? If so how do I need to sculpt it? I want to know how to sculpt it to hold a picture. I am not making it out of separate sheets of metal fastened together. I am not sawing or hammering anything. All the design will be in the wax. I am sculpting the pieces in wax to be cast. I just have no plans or schematics on how this is done. Thanks
Answer
Disney sculpture anima Nice hidden hasp locke
Sorry I didn't get to fully answer your question the first time. I did think you would have to chat back and forth a little to get all your questions answered.
1.
In order to sculpt in a latch which I believe is the best way to do it. you just need to add a small notch on one side of the locket and on the opposing side you need a little lip that the notch will fit into. You are the artist and can design anything from a pickle or a piece of lettuce protruding out of the burger that can snap over a piece of cheese from the opposing side of the latch or even a small piece of cheese that can hang over the burger just make enough of a protrusion that can hang over the other and catch it enough to secure it when it is closed... the sky is the limit. This is where artistic license can be fun.
2.You can leave a spot for a latch but it is a lot of after casting construction if you do.
3. If I were you I would try to incorporate my hinge into the locket design itself. As I mentioned in the last answer you can leave a tube or a solid bar section on one side that can be bored out to become the tube for the hinge. Then you can cut it as matches with your design and just insert a wire as the hing pin and peen the ends.
4. In designing the locket once you get your outside shape you can slice the burger into 2 or 3 pieces depending on how many you want. and then hollow out the inside for several reasons, one to make it lighter for cost reasons as well as you don't want it too heavy for a medium weight chain. and second to allow you to make a shelf for the picture and a cover to rest in as well as a locking ring or pin to hold the picture and cover in place. Since a burger is round I suggested round ring stick wax it should make your carving (sculpting) easier they make many burs that can be used to rout a seat for the pictures to rest in. All you really need is a ledge with a small notch at the top on opposite sides to allow the locking ring to snap in and hold the picture in the seat. again since the burger is round I suggest a bur to make this easier than hand carving. They make a cone shaped bit that has a flat bottom that will make your job a lot easier.
5. As to your sawing anything, I have made several lockets with many hinges and I have also made burger pendants for Quiznos but I've not been asked to combine the two. It sounds like a fun project. I would start with the Solid ring stick and carve the outside roughly not to fine detail but to the correct size (leaving enough thickness to allow for 2 on one and 4 on the other since you mentioned a double hinged one as well.) Then with a jewelers saw I would slice the burger into top and bottom for one and the double fold I would leave a large enough pattie in the middle to allow for double seats for the pictures on top and bottom side of the pattie. the buns can also be notched out to hold photos on both the lockets. When you are done cutting the burger locket, one will have 2 pieces to cast the other will have 3.
6. In order to incorporate your hinge you can use your thickest side to cut the hinge tube out of and section it in 3 pieces removing the center section to attach it to the thin side. It might be easier to drill out the hinge tube first before you cut out the center section to attach it on the other side of the locket but it is easy to redrill if you fill it up in the transfer waxing.also the hinge hole is easier to realign if it has been pre-drilled. Usually a 3 part hinge is sufficient to work well on most lockets. The longer the hinge can be the more stable it will be. However them more it will stick out on a round locket. It 's not hard to reach a happy medium that will hold your buns on securely. I would encourage you to do some paper sketches first to get a feel for how you plan to place your hinges and latches. also remember that you can do it any way that you like to do artistically speaking there are no set rules you are the creator and if you want to have it have the look you want then do it. It always amazes me to see some of the sculpting done on the tree of life in Disneyland they incorporated so many animals into the stone tree bark and you can do the same here you can carve the burger locket so that the ingredients and buns actually become the hinges and snaps for the locket. when you open it up you will see the exterior details and the pictures will cover the hollowed out middle sections.
Don't forget there aren't many set rules here if it works it's ok if it doesn't then adjust it.
I know you are a sculptor not a machinist but when you want to make a functional sculpture then you should combine some techniques to make your sculpture functional ( the sawing in half of wax and hammering of wire hinge pins also the use of a bur to carve the wax will make your job a lot easier...) Don't forget that you are also an engineer as well designing a piece of functional sculpture. You are also the designer and should sketch your plans on paper.
If you like I will gladly take a look for you and make some suggestions as to the functionality if you care to scan and load them here. It isn't easy without seeing your idea, and you are the sculptor.
I think you can include the hinge in the design better by sculpting it in these photos shows one that has been added after the locket was made. not sculpted in.
http://www.misi.co.uk/prod_info.php?user_id=68633
http://www.antiquesnavigator.com/d-196222/antique-gold-b--f-double-opening-locke
Where as this one is a little more included into the design and is probably carved into the wax.
http://www.musiclockets.com/necklaces-pendants/vintage-sterling-silver-925-marca
In this piece they actually use the butterflies body as the hinge.:
http://www.priceinspector.co.uk/d/51099287/Mens-Jewellery/Clogau-Silver-And-9ct-
This one is as close to a schematic as I could draw and not bad looking if i do say so. :
http://www.ebay.com/itm/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=290656466803&item=2906564
I hope these links help.
This process takes a lot of time. the planning stages sometimes take lots of rewrites to finally get what you want. Don't let it frustrate you make it an adventure and enjoy it.
Chris
