QuestionWhat is the best kind of tin snips to use and where would one purchase it. I will be starting to make metal pieces for handcrafted jewelry.
Thank you, Anne
Answerhello Anne,
First tin snips are not the best choice for jewelry- metal sculpture perhaps, or heavy sheet ( 14 gauge and thicker) but most jewelry will be at 20-28 gaug (28 being earrings or lighweight pieces, 30 for bezel strip, etc.)
You need jewelers bench shears. Any jewelry supply store should have them. FDJ tools on time is one of my favorite on line sellers. Rio Grande is expensive but will send you a set of free catalogues- they are widely used by jewelers but as I said on the expensive side of reasonable. OttoFrei is another good company, Contenti jewelry supply on line..Monsterslayer.com is another..There ae so many- if I knew where you were I could recommend one that you could go to and actually hold the shears in your hand..On line there is a seller called finding king- beware- their products are very poor , but reasonably priced and you can view the inventory without registering. Don't buy the harbor freight metal shears with a long handle they are junk..and unwieldy for the kind of metals you will be cutting.
Some jewelers swear by "joyce chen" brand shears - i use regular french shears and xurons shears..It would depend on your hand size and personal budget, and the kind of pieces you want to make- but I can highly recommend the xuron shears, as well as the French jewelrs shears that many suppliers sell .The main thing to mention in relation to maintenance is to only use the shears on metals.. so look at the sites (FDJ first! then Contenti) and see what your budgetary options are and if you still need help in selecting feel free to contact me again.
By the way, tin snips, if you were to purchase them come in straight, left and right cuts..go for the straight cut ones, but they are intended for thick metal and tin that is not for jewelry use as they tend to put a curved edge on the metal that is too hard to straighten for jewelry use..If you are etching though or creating texturing plates of thick gauge sheet brass or copper then you may invest in a pair.
Best regards, Ari
