Are you a custom jewelry designer?
Or…
Do you clean or repair jewelry?
Whichever is the case, you’re in the right place. You need the right jewelry-making tools and supplies to make your work easier.
Jewelry tools are made for all kinds of jewelry projects and materials for successful workmanship. The right tools and cleaners depend on your interest level in jewelry-making.
Some tools you’ll need include:
- A steam cleaner
- An ultrasonic jewelry cleaner
- A jeweler’s bench
- Jewelry hammers
- Hand tools
- Cutting supplies
- Beading pliers
- Files
- Drills, rolling mills, and micro-plating units
- Torches
- Soldering equipment
If you’re a jewelry designer who casts and fabricates precious metals, you’ll need soldering and welding equipment.
With brands ranging from Busch to Durston to Beadalon, the range of jewelry tools on the market are unlimited.
The task at hand also determines the right tools, which, in turn, drives your success. Other benefits of using the right jewelry tools include:
- Making difficult tasks easy
- Simplifying complex jewelry-making problems
- Making time-consuming projects faster
Whether you want to make earrings, necklaces, rings, or bracelets, you need the right tools and equipment. If you’re a beginner and still not sure of the best tools for your business, here’re a few to get you started:
Top 7 Jewelry Tools and Equipment Every Beginner Jeweler Needs
1. Pliers
Jewelry-making involves the use of different types of pliers ranging from basic to advanced versions with specialized uses. Pliers can make jewelry jobs neater, ease tasks, and troubleshoot difficult problems in your boutique.
The various jewelry-making pliers include:
- Flat nose pliers
- Round nose pliers
- Micro crimping pliers
- Nylon tipped pliers
- Half-round pliers
- Heavy-duty side cutters
- Snipe nose or chain nose pliers
- Bent nose pliers
- Side cutters
- Magical crimping pliers
- Metal shears
- Nylon jaw pliers
- Stone setting pliers
2. Wire cutters
High-quality wire cutters are durable and cut thick wires. Toenail clippers make perfect substitutes for cutting thin wires. They eliminate rough stray ends. Lindstrom and Swanstrom are some great brands for wire cutters.
Wire cutters also cut eye pins, headpins, and string wire. Instead of standard wire cutters, use memory wire cutters to cut memory wire. This prevents dents on the tool’s cutting edge.
3. Water softener
If you live in an area with hard water, you also need to ensure that the water you use for your jewelry-making projects is soft. Learn how to make sure that your well water is made soft before using it on your metals, especially when using those that easily react with other elements such as copper.
Using the best water softener ensures that your metals don’t react with water. This ensures that you bring out the real details of your jewelry when handcrafting your best pieces.
4. Flush cutters
If you intend to cut lots of wires, you’ll find a flush cutter handy. They work just like regular wire cutters but without leaving any loose ends. Make sure your flush pliers can cut the gauge of your wires to prevent them from getting damaged.
5. A ruler
A standard ruler is the most basic piece of jewelry tool. A graphing ruler is transparent, making it easier to visualize your work.
6. A disk punch
A disk punch is a tool you need to cut squares, circles, or hearts on your jewelry materials. It allows you to make repeated identical cuts.
Place a sheet of metal between two layers of the disk punch and insert the shape you want to cut out, then hammer a disk out. A heavy-duty brass hammer is powerful enough to deliver optimal results.
It’s also soft enough to produce strong blows without bouncing back every time you use it. A premium disk punch saves you time and produces similar results each time you use it.
7. A jeweler’s saw
Do you need to make small, intricate cuts? You’ll find a jeweler saw handy for the job. You’ll be able to detail your jewelry pieces for a personal touch.
Available in different blade sizes, the saw supports varied uses. Whereas thick blades eliminate more metal, thin ones remove minor metal pieces.
Use a lubricant to protect your fingers from catches when using a jeweler’s saw. The lubricant also preserves the saw’s cutting edge and prevents the blade from breaking.
Choose from deep-throat to standard size saw blades depending on the task at hand. The former makes long cuts when working with larger or long metal pieces.
With a small saw frame, you can get more work done due to easier control. This is an important factor when looking for the right jeweler’s saw for you.
Other tools and equipment you may need for your jewelry business include:
- Bead stringing
- Adhesives
- Benches and accessories
- Cleaning supplies
- Cutting supplies
- Enameling supplies
- Burs and drills
- Engraving tools
- Lapidary supplies
- Flex shafts and rotary tools
- Measuring and testing tools
- Magnifying and optical tools
- Lighting and photography equipment
- Metal clay tools
- Stone setting equipment
- Watch batteries and tools
- Tool kits
- Tweezers
- Plating equipment
- Metal forming tools
- Polishing and finishing tools such as polishing buffs and compounds
- Soldering and welding tools
- Wrapping and wire working tools
- Saw blades and frames
- Safety suppliers and gear
- Stamping equipment
Whichever type of tool you opt to use, you also need your creativity and imagination to handcraft beautiful pieces of jewelry.
