BenchNews

I fianlly got a chance to get back to work with the Unimat, and it performed as expected, perfectly. I tried to reconfigure it without refering to the manual, and it was fairly easy untill the point where I had to think about tooling. That where I had to get creative, but overall it help me out of a bind where I was just not at all sure how to go about a job…I love it.

Im getting ready to move into my new condo (first time homeowner , and with it I will fianlly have a rather good size home studio. With this new freedom I am looking forward to venturing into new territory, Steel sculpture and woodworking in particular. Another thing that intrest me is bicycle building. One of the things that attracts me to it is how its done, it involves brazing, using 56% silver solders and bronze to create fillets or to solder lugs. Whats cool about it to me is…I already know how to braze, its part of my job. Bicycle building would just be on a larger scale. Here is a link to a site that gives you some valuable information on how to get started doing just such a thing.

I have been finding trade related tips in the darndest places latey, namely popular online blogs. Here is one that struck me as particularly usefull. It explains a technique for removing a ring from a swollen finger without having to cut the ring itself. I am actually pretty excited to see if this works (Im sure it does), but I think there will be a number of customers who will be relieved that there is another way. Even though ring cutters are very safe, I can’t help but notice the looks of concern on the customers faces when doing the cutting. Any way here is the link to the original post.
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I heard on public radio the other day about a book called Blink, the author was on the show, and was explaining what his book was about. It basically broke down to how your subconscious was more capable of making correct decisions over that of rational/deliberate thought.
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I had an extra ring clamp for my Benchmate system so I decided to modify it for holding bezels eazily without mess.


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Not only is it fun, it lets you express your creative side. Being able to carve a wax puts you into a whole diferent catagory of metalsmithing. Being able to go from idea, to product, expands the posibilties of customer relations/your business potential. Here is a great tutorial on wax carving basics.
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You spend a lot of time in your chair, shouldn’t you make sure its the best you can get? Here is a start to knowing good seat ergonomics. Being in command of your workspace will make everyday a lot more comfortable.
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Speeding things up at the bench is the key to doing quailty and profitable work. Doing quality and profitable work makes you a valuable jeweler. So here is a leg up on knowing more than the next guy.
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Ever wonder how? Well, here is just one way. Check back often for techniques and tricks of the trade…
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