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Daily Wire Tip Feb. 20: Copper Snapsets

By on February 19, 2011
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Daily Wire Jewelry Making Tip for
February 20, 2011

Question:

Do you have copper snapsets? If so, what are the pros and cons?

-Ellie in Mechanicsville, Virginia

Answer:

No, Ellie, we do not carry copper snapsets. Your question piqued my curiosity though, and I did some research, finding that no one makes or sells them.

I do not know the actual reason why, perhaps because copper is soft by nature and would not hold up – or it may be that the manufacturers would have to design a new product, with huge costs.

Either way, with the prices of precious metals rising at almost an hourly rate, I imagine that someone soon will have something like them that we can use in our alterative metal jewelry designs. In the meantime, sterling silver snapsets work well in copper designs!

Answer contributed by Dale “Cougar” Armstrong

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5 Comments

  1. avatar

    Linda Overman

    February 20, 2011 at 8:13 am

    Hi Dale
    I found gold and silver plated snap sets. I’m just not sure how well they would hold up especially in a ring where they get a lot of wear.

    • avatar

      dalecgr

      February 20, 2011 at 10:51 am

      Linda, the plated snap sets will work just fine as the base metal is strong, the only issue will be that the plating will come off after a while. If you use the technique I teach, wrapping around each snap set used, this situation will be almost unnoticeable.

  2. avatar

    Kathy Bloom

    February 20, 2011 at 2:52 pm

    Copper patina is available from stained glass suppliers that might work on silver.

  3. avatar

    Joe Barela

    February 20, 2011 at 7:01 pm

    Hello everyone, A little tip for those who do not know; for snapset settings, if your stone has too thick a Girdle it may not fit properly into a snapset setting. This is because the girdle sits in the cupped out part of the prongs. The stone is not stable if the girdle is not positioned into the cupped part of the prong and the prong is not fully bent down onto the stone. If U encounter this problem, it would be easier to make your own custom wire setting. Then U can use copper wire, or brass, etc. If U are worried about durability, be sure to use half hard and a little larger gage wire and it should not be a problem. Have a good day…..Joe

  4. avatar

    mary

    February 21, 2011 at 10:30 am

    Oh do I wish they did make copper snapsets. But for now, silver looks good with copper so I am using them. I think we may see them eventually as more and more manufacturers do see the need for them as well as the market.
    Like Dale said, wrapping and locking the snap set offers additional protection against wear. So use of the plated items should be fine.