Great question! I don't have specific books that I used to learn wax carving, as it was part of my metalsmithing curriculum and then I went on to learn more via practice and some videos. It's the practice and practice more part that I recommend. That said, here are some references for you (heads up that some of these are my affiliate codes, so I may make money off of any purchase that you make with them. I only recommend sources that I use or create myself, so rest assured that I have vetted these) First up, any wax classes by Emilie Shapiro - emilieshapiro.com/collections/classes?aff=6 I have known her for years and she is a great resource on wax carving and creative uses of wax. She has a couple of books, including this one one general ways to create a jewelry line - bookshop.org/a/18410/9781454709336 I also offer a couple of online wax carving classes, including this one on the basics of hand carving - ecourses.sharonz-consulting.com/products/courses/view/1167182 and this one that requires the use of a Dremel or flex shaft - ecourses.sharonz-consulting.com/products/courses/view/1168439 Hope these help and give you some direction!

I use mine with Propane and oxygen. You can get the Little Torch for Acetylene and oxygen too. It just depends on your needs.

Yay! I am so glad that this helped you out!

Yes you can do build up methods! You need the build up wax which sometimes is a stickier wax. I think Kate Wolf wax used to sell a variety of it. As for when to change to the other kind of wax pen, that really depends on you and your work. I personally have tried both pens and just found that I prefer this battery-operated one. I recommend trying both if you are able to see when the other kind makes the most sense. It also depends on whether or not you make wax work that requires a constant heat source. Or if you need a specific tip. It's a highly individual choice.

@@SharonZJewelry Ah that's great thanks for explaining :)

Unfortunately I never used either of those torches, so I can't say. Butane tends to be a less powerful fuel for torches than propane of acetylene though. Not sure how the nitrous would affect that. If you have your hands on an Archer and can find a school or indie jeweler who would let you test out the torches, you could see how they compare that way.

That's the one that uses MAP gas? I haven't used it. It looks like an atmospheric torch, meaning it doesn't come with a separate oxygen source, but draws oxygen from the air. Everyone's experiences are different, but I prefer a torch where you can control the mix of oxygen and gas easily and the air torches (like the Prestolite too), don't allow as much flexibility. Also, I don't see if the Bernzomatic offers smaller torch tips. That would also be a consideration when looking at torches as multiple sizes of torch tips gives you the most options for working on small or large work.

Glad I could help!

Oh I am so glad that this helped you! And the Wolf tools are amazing and I love mine, but jewelers were carving wax for many years before they existed. They can definitely be a treat yourself purchase later or an upgrade. Especially since that Canadian to USD exchange rate is brutal for jewelry supplies and tools right now.

Agreed on all points! I had the blessing & curse of using the Wolf carving tools when I was a part of a co-op studio who had them on hand for artists to sign out, and wow... They really are wonderful, but now I'm left wanting haha! But I think I will most definitely be taking your advice here, not give up on my hand tools by investing in a whetstone! Once again, thank you! Be well :)@@SharonZJewelry

Oh wow! And yes, it will definitely do the same to silver or gold. I would also clean your silver cuffs if you can, since the Zinc Oxide can linger on the jewelry itself. Glad you found this out, but sorry that you had to find out the hard way!

So sorry that happened! You would need to use special pliers to make it perfectly round again. Or if you bought it at a piercing shop, that same shop might be able to do it for you.

Sort of? It won't look anything like hand engraving though. You could probably super sharpen one of the tools and get an approximation of engraving, but since the bit is moving up and down, it won't carve as deeply or as finely as a hand engraver would. But you could get some really interesting and artistic textures out of it. That' what I sue my very fine bit for - to make some fine, pebbled textures in silver and gold.

Thank you so much, @@SharonZJewelry!

This battery operated pen does not have a rheostat, so you control the temperature by holding and releasing the power button. It's subtle, but it has worked well for me. That way I don't need my other had to reach over and adjust the rheostat and the temp control I think happens faster. But if you prefer the kind with the rheostat, then you can get the plug into the wall kind of wax pen and that usually comes with temp control.

These are drill bits. They just have a wider base that makes them the same base size as burs, which is why I like them - it makes swapping out tools faster. As for the material they are made out of, they come in a variety - you can get tungsten vanadium, carbide or HSS. The material you need may depend on your flex shaft or your drill press, the volume of drilling you need to do, the speed at which you need to drill, or the specific drill bit size you need. Personally, I am agnostic on the material of the drill bit that's needed as I almost exclusively use my Foredom to drill holes with and I frequently need to focus on the specific size of drill bit that I need, so I have these in both carbide and vanadium, but I think that HSS is fine too. Your experience may vary.

Just curious, I find that when drilling I'm doing a lot of it and use the smaller carbide dental burs (1/16th I think) mostly shells and some jasper (medium hard rock) for my crafts. They seam to hold up well, I'd assume gold and silver, depending on the alloys, would be softer than these not sure about platinum. It does seem you are drilling a very fine hole. I think .8mm or 1mm is about as fine as mine do and I usually use something a bit larger/round bur to start the cut, reduces chip out and I'll repeat on the other side to smooth out.

So I can't really speak to the difference between drilling into metal vs stones as I don't do any lapidary work. Metal is softer but can still wear down your burs especially if you aren't using oil or wax to lubricate the drill bits. Platinum especially can wear them down since it is so dense. Mostly, I like these drill bits because that wider base seems to result in fewer broken drill bits for me and the way that I work.

It depends on the size of the melt and what kind of fuel you use. I have melted small amounts (1 gram or so) of platinum, I have balled dup the ends of platinum wire with this torch and I have used it for attaching ear posts to stud earrings in platinum, but I'm not sure that it would do as well with larger platinum work.

I'm sorry to hear that! What kind of metal is your nose ring made of? Something titanium or stainless steel will be harder to close, and if its a gauge above 18 ga, the thicker metal can also make it harder to close. You might need a pair of flat or chain nose pliers to help you close it.

try turning to the outside of your nose and using pliers. mini ones are easier but either works

Thank you for your comment! There are wax pens that plug into the wall, like Dura Bull or BesQual. They are fine and I have used them (I reference that kind at about :46 in the video), but I prefer the control on the battery operated kind. It's a personal preference and ergonomic preference. The plug-in kind are also a little less portable and much more expensive (the plug-in kind can start at $175 and have a small rheostat), so I like the combo of this battery operated wax pen with rechargeable batteries to keep costs low and to get that instant heat. But I know many jewelers who swear by the Dura Bull brand of wax pen and it has more variable heat and it stays on constantly. If you have access to someone else's plug-in wax pen, it might be worth checking out both to see which one works best for you.

Thanks so much for your comment! I agree that a butane torch isn't easier, but I also get that a lot of beginners don't have access to or the funds for a better torch setup. Or sometimes don't have access to great ventilation or large soldering surfaces - so I can understand why a lot of designers get started with it. At the moment, I only have one of my torches setup in my studio, so it will be awhile before I can demo other torches, but thanks for the suggestion!

Great question, and the answer is that I don't always clean it. If I am using it frequently, I might hold the button down on the wax pen and let the wax either burn or drip off of the tip, but otherwise, no actual cleaning. You could use something like Wax Kleen or Goo Gone (basically the same substance) to wipe away a lot of excess wax. FYI that I wrote up why I prefer Goo Gone to Wax Kleen in one of my blog posts about other tools that don't break the bank - www.sharonz-consulting.com/the-jewelry-guide/jewelry-making-tools-that-wont-break-the-bank

Yes! Ergonomics are the reason why the Meco doesn't work for me - it feels so awkward in my hand and always has. And that's amazing that you have the skill to refurbish torches - such an underrated skill set. I love refurbishing older flex shafts - one of mine is more than 35 years old and still works like a dream because I can tune it up.

Yay! Glad I could help. And if you have access to rechargeable batteries, I highly recommend them - better for your wallet and for the planet. These pens can eat up batteries.

@@SharonZJewelry sure will, can’t wait for it to arrive and start using.

You are so welcome! Glad you like the videos!

Oh no! I hope you were able to get it!

Thanks!

Thank you! I hope this helped!

Possibly? Go ahead and post the link in your comment and I'll take a look.

Glad it was helpful!

You can order direct from their company - they are old school, so you might have to call or even send a check to buy it, but they are well worth it. I even have a used one that is 30+ years old and still runs perfectly. - lucasdentalcompany.com/lucadent

Thank you again, I was able to order one.

Thank you for watching!

So I use Propane with mine, and I have the smaller barbeque sized tank and I think I have the 46 cu size for oxygen (I've had it for so long, and I can't find the number, just went off of an old invoice). The size of the tank itself won't necessarily affect the size of the jewelry you are making, though the larger the pieces that you make, the faster you will burn through fuel and oxygen, so if you don't have room for back up tanks, get the slightly larger sizes to be able to work consistently on larger jewelry without the disruption of having to get your tanks refilled.

Not sure - which foot pedal do you have and how long have you had it? With more information I might be able to tell you, but I'd need to know age, usage and brand. If it is the Lucas and it is relatively new, contact the company to see about having it fixed. If it is the Foredom, regardless of age, contact Foredom and get one of their repair kits or replacement parts. They will often even walk you through the process.

@@SharonZJewelry Sharon; I've replied a couple times and it keeps getting deleted. Maybe because of the link I was using. I'll try a reply w/o a link: my pedal was a "moto-tool" foredom (I think?) footpedal. It's made of stamped, gray painted metal and seems to be one of the cheaper(est?) pedals available. I found a pic of it by image searching "foredom footpedal" on Google. There's an Amazon listing of which I was trying to send you a link... when the pedal failed it sorta "popped". The sound and smell was of a failed fuse or burnt out electronics. Also, the pedal was very hot (my shoes stopped me from noticing) Was I misusing the tool? Was it in need of lube? Is it just a cheap, crappy pedal? Anyway, any help is appreciated. Thank you at least for reading this far. Also, thank you for your original reply. Trav

Glad it was helpful!

This torch can use different kinds of gas - there is a version you can get for acetylene and a version you can get for propane/natural gas - I personally have the propane version since I prefer not to have the sootiness of acetylene to have to filter out of the air. Different jewelers have different preferences for gas choices, so you can choose the gas that works best for you and then get the appropriate torch for that gas. Each kind of gas has it's own benefits and issues. Acetylene is a very hot and direct gas, making it even better for tiny work. I also find that because I can solder quickly with acetylene, I have less of an issue with firescale. But, it is a very sooty gas and you will quickly find it coating your work surface and walls. Some buildings in some cities also have regulations against using acetylene. Propane is a fine gas, but I find it a little less powerful. plus propane is not appropriate for a basement set up as any propane leaks settle and are difficult to clean up.

Great question! So if the 14K gold is turning copper, it sounds like you might be overheating the metal and bringing the copper to the surface. Similar to how it happens in sterling silver. Depending on what kind of fuel you are using (acetylene vs propane), I would switch down to a 4 tip (propane) or a 3 tip (acetylene). These choices are based mostly on experience. I can get a really sharp and direct flame with the acetylene and a 3 tip which allows me to solder more quickly and avoid overheating the metal. Alternatively, if you have ever used firecoat (boric acid mixed with alcohol) to prevent firescale on sterling, the same principle applies here and you can use it to prevent the copper rising to the surface. The good news is that if it does turn pink, you just have to remove that layer with pickle or sandpaper. I know it's kind of annoying to do with tiny 14 K jump rings though, so try out the firecoat or the smaller tip first.

You can change out the tips, but you can also bend and shape the tip for this wax pen to work how you need it to. You can also still order extra tips for it. I think that all of them are similar, so no knife tips or anything like that. But I like that I can reshape them. And yes that is the Kerr Perfect Purple wax! It is one of my favorites. I like a couple of the Wolf waxes for building up wax on certain designs, but I love the purple for joining two kinds of wax together - almost like a solder but for wax :)

@@SharonZJewelry thank you for your replay!!! I ask you about the Kerr Perfect Purple wax because I can’t not find it anywhere looks like is discontinued.. by any chance do you have a name of a place where to find it ?? I been looking everywhere without any luck 🥺

Oh no! I hadn't heard that it was sold out. Kerr still lists it as a product offering on their website, but it doesn't look like they sell it directly. But maybe reach out to Kerr directly? www.kerrdental.com/how-buy I wonder if they are having supply chain issues.

@@SharonZJewelry Hi ! I call them already and they say that they don’t have it anymore.. and I been looking everywhere with no luck .. thats why I was wondering if you can have any hint where to find it … please let me know if you do or what other wax will have the same character or use .. I am kind of lost 😞 Thanks !!!

Oh wow I had no idea! I wonder if you could try posting a request to a jewelry forum on FB or maybe the jewelry making thread on Reddit? www.reddit.com/r/jewelrymaking/ I wonder if other designers have found it or are maybe looking to unload old tools and would have some for sale. If I ever come across some I will try to repost it here.

That's true, and you can also loosen the screw on the regular plastic foredom foot pedal. But for some of the more precise work in jewelry making (especially stone setting), I really do love the light touch of the metal foot pedal by Lucas. But for wood work, i think monkeying around with the Foredom is a good call!

You’re welcome 😊