ACS Work Tips

[Metalman]

2/17/2005 Art Clay and Stone settings
I have revised a work tip from 2003 and that text is below. As to mounting the stones - I have had great fortune firing them straight into the clay.  I design ahead of time [at least a little bit] so that I know where a stone will be located. Depending on the size of the stones, I try to put a small hole down the center of the location. This helps with the pushing out of the stones [due to the 8 to 10 % shrinkage] as well as potentially adding a bit of light to the back of the stone.  I usually press the stones down evenly into moist clay until there is about a 1mm relief of clay around the edge. For smaller stones it could be less but should be at least .5mm. I would consider 2mm stones small and so if it is troublesome to put a hole behind them, I would not worry about it. Make sure the stones are cleaned of any metal clay on their surface - it will fire on. I clean before firing using solvent alcohol. A second way to do this direct mount is to build your piece and let it dry. When it is dry, drill a shallow hole a shade larger then your stones and not too deep. Then place the stones in to the holes and using the syringe clay pipe a small ring of clay above the stones. You can then blend and detail the piping into the rest of the piece. Clean up and fire.
Another way to work is to 'set' the stones with a crown setting or your own prongs.  You can buy settings, the fine silver ones work best in the Art Clay but you could experiment with others.  You can also set wire into the Art Clay  and then cut the prong setting into it. This is rather detailed and demanding work but - gives good results. You can use silver or white gold wire for prongs. You may want to look at some jewelry setting or metalsmithing books for tech and ideas.  I always recommend the Tim McCrieght book 'The Complete Metalsmith' [R&T cat # 62-010] as the basic book to have.
I suggest that you experiment a little to refine your methods. The cubic zirconuium stones are very inexpensive to work with.

Some guidlines for Art Clay and stones:
1]  You can fire Cubic Zirconium stones right into the clay.  Just let the piece cool slowly.  You can fire them in the kiln or by torch. The important factor is slow cooling so the stones don't crack.
'>  Note: Most of the greens are not stable.  You should probably test your stones to see if there is a color shift unless they are vouched for by the dealer.
2]  If you have other stones you want to use and are willing to give them the 'Trial by Fire'  then put a group of stones you are going to test in the kiln and fire them to 1470 for 30 minutes, let them cool slowly and see what you get.  This can cause stones to crack, change color, lose any plastic fills and burn off most dyes.  You will probably have a stone that looks different than when you started but - if you still like it, and it came through this firing, then you can build it into a piece and fire it again.
For natural stones as opposed to man made stones, every firing is a risk but once tested, the risk will be 'somewhat lower'.  
Once you have built and fired your piece, you may have to do repairs due to the shrinkage shift of the clay[8 to 10%]. You will sometimes have to fire a second, even a third time.

[Metalman]

3/7/05
Just a word on safety - the bad and the good
Many of us have our studios closely connected to our home - in the basement or the garage. As we work with many of the art materials as well as metalsmithing we generate toxic byproducts and dusts. All you pastel artists out there are not exempt here either.  So the point is - know your materials and what they may cause in the air or your microenvironment. working out a ventilation system is a good idea.  Silver soldering often has cadmium in it. Soft solder generates flux fumes and may have lead in it. The colors in pastels and many air paints have metal oxides, cadmium, chrome compounds in them. Polymer clays are made of polyvinyl chloride plastic compounds [PVC] If you are making dust with these, or spilling on the floor and scuffing it around then this is going into your household ventilation system. And ending up on the baby's pillow?  Some of the most toxic things we cannot smell so our nose is not a gauge of toxicity - in fact many of the things we can smell are not as toxic as the ones we can't.
So - figure out that ventilation stuff - you can actually do a small and light weight system preety inexpensively.
The Good News:  Art Clay Silver products are certified non toxic by the Art & Creative Materials Institute. They have given it an AP seal  This seal is found on products that contain no materials in sufficient quantities to be toxic or injurious to humans or to cause acute or chronic health problems. The AP Seal currently can appear in four versions: two older style with and without the word "Non-Toxic" within the seal, the new version of the seal, and the new seal (AP + PC) that also shows conformance to quality standards (which is replacing the old CP Seals). Products bearing any of the ACMI seals are also certified to comply to ASTM D 4236 and the U. S. Labeling of Hazardous Art Materials Act (LHAMA).
http://www.artclay.co.jp/htm/what.html#ap

[Metalman]

June 3, 2005  Check out Art Clay - Japan website
I thought you might find this site interesting.
It is the Art Clay site in Japan, the english version with links to a gallery and tips and some projects
ENJOY!!
http://www.artclay.co.jp/htm/index.html

[Metalman]

7/5/05  Costs and grams.
Just a reminder to check your 'per gram' price when you are buying Art Clay Materials.  Generally, the larger packages will give you a lower 'per gram' cost.  If you are going to be buying and using it, may as well buy larger packages.

[Metalman]

Tip for 7/12/05
So you have your torch and you are ready to get started with firing some pieces but you never did it before.  A small experiment to do would be to make a roll or worm of ACS about an inch or so long.  Cut it in half and dry both pieces.  Then set up your firing supplies and fire both pieces together for the appropriate timing.  If you hate the idea of just using the clay for this, make 2 small matching beads.
Now - take one of the 2 items you just fired and push it aside and start heating the remaining one up again. Go  slow but just keep heating, You want to melt this one, but do it slowly so you can observe all of the stages and effects of the piece melting.  This will give you a good sense of what to watch for so that you don't over fire and melt one of your good pieces.

[Metalman]

Advanced tool recommendations for the Metal Clay Studio

Books:
1]   The Complete Metalsmith  by Tim McCreight   #62-489
[there is a pro version of this book which is great, we can special order it]
2]   Art Clay Silver and Gold by Jackie Truty   #62-399
3]   Creative Metal Clay Jewelry    by CeCe Wire   #62-489
4]   Misc. Art Clay books from Japan, check topic and subjects:  ACS Basics Book = #62-509; ACS Book 2 = #62-329; ACS Book 3 = #62-339; Overlay Paste Book = #62-349

Tools:
1]   Scratch Brush   #69-111
      refills   #69-112
2]   Double ended stainless brush   #69-113
3]   Bench Pin with anvil   #69-129
4]   Wood Dapping Block   #69-130
5]   Klay gun extruder (metal)   #85-305
6]   3/16ths” Kemper pattern cutters   #85-341
7]   5/16ths” Kemper pattern cutters   #85-342
8]   3/8ths” Kemper pattern cutters   #85-343
9]   Agate Burnisher   #69-100
10]   Mini Anvil   #69-127
11]   Steel Block (4”x 4”x .75”)   #69-125
12]   Xtra small jars   #69-132
13]   Large Texture plates   #87-056
14]   Bead Reamer, battery operated   #69-058

Materials and Supplies
1]   Liver of Sulfur, 4oz.   #86-354
2]   Silver Black   #89-344
3]   Tool Magic   #69-160
4]   Putty, 5 minute cold molding compound  #87-041
5]   Teflon Work Surface (by the foot)   #87-051-FT
6]   Rubber Carving Sheet   #69-121
7]   Fine Silver bezel wires   
                     #64-572; 64-573; 64-574; 64-575
8]   Cork Clay   #87-040

[Metalman]

12/07/05
I have spoken with a number of people working to solve the crimp bead problem. There are the crimp bead covers, which work fine but sometimes don't solve the problem.
I make Art Clay Silver beads with one side of the hole large enough for the crimps to fit inside and the other side small. Then when I build my necklace, I slide the bead cover back, tighten everything as much as possible, crimp and pull the covering bead over crimped crimps and there you have - a nice finish

[Metalman]

Tip for 2/15/06 ACS Overlay Paste
This is a great material for silver surfacing glass or ceramic pieces. You can also build a structure that transits from glass or ceramic to metal without any glue interface. Sensible mechanical structure is worthwhile when doing this but the materials will fire together and hold.  The material will also allow you to work with ACS products on a larger scale, by using a ceramic base for structure. I have had great results using porcelain and fired ceramics as a base for the Art Clay Silver Overlay Paste.  I prefer to use finish fired materials rather then bisque.
You just paint a couple of layers on and fire. On larger and/or complex forms and shapes, the ~9% shrinkage will sometimes cause splits in the surface. Paint additional layers and refire - should be good to go. Sometimes you may need to do 2 or 3 firings to get the finish you want.
Once you have a layer of Overlay Paste you can build further with regular clay, syringe or connect in silver wire fittings. The Overlay paste works as an interface between the base material [ceramic or glass] and the metal clay and other metals.
This method allows for larger artworks built of a base material with a great silver surface look.

[Metalman]

06/28/06  Here is a tip to use all those pieces of fired Art Caly that didn't work out. You can also use any scrap sterling silver ot jewelry that you happen to have around. I save these materials up and use them for casting. Sometime/day you may have the opportunity to take a silver casting class somewhere and then you will have some silver to work with.
The Alternative if you don't want to wait or you have alot of scrap building up or you just like to do experiments is to do the following:

You will need:

1]a ladle or crucible to melt silver in, or a charcoal block with a depression carved into it to melt and hold the molten silver in. If you make one of these, you will also want to carve a shallow trough so you can pour the silver out of the 'bowl'. You will also need a tool to pick up the charcoal block so you can pour. Last time I did this, I tied the block to a spatula I had with copper wire. Keep the wire away from the melt location.
2] a small steel can
3] pasta of a size and shape you chose
4] a torch large enough to heat and melt the silver in you crucible [most of the butane torches are a little on the small side for this]
5] Flux or borax for silver soldering

You take the pasta and put it in the can. Set the can on a non-flammable surface, make sure it is stable. Silver melts between 1640°F and 1761°F.  The can will get very hot when you pour the silver.
You melt the silver and pour it over the pasta [make sure that its not wet or damp]. The silver will burn the pasta and cool, making strange silver shapes dependent on the pasta used. Once you have poured the silver, let it set, then quench the can and all with water to get it cool enough to handle. Then you sort through what you get, pick out the good shapes that inspire you or look useful. Then, actually, you can just do it again. You can melt and cast multiple times.

The Complete Metalsmith by Tim McCreight [R&T#62-010] has additional information on casting, charcoal blocks, fluxes, etc.

[Metalman]

11/1/06  About Tourmaline Chips and Heat testing

We had to do some testing so I thought it was worth dropping in here as a tip.
I took a strand of the tourmaline chips and heated about 25 of them up to 1225°F and a second group up to 1350°F. I did both groups with some glass so I could confirm the heat effects on that as well.
While both groups of tourmaline chip had color change effects [the reds got lighter, the greens got duller, the pinks went clearish], there was no melting, shrinkage or distortion in the shape of the chips I tested.

In general, from my tests, I would not consider tourmaline compatible with the  'firing in' techniques used with Art Clay Silver or other metal clays.  The coloration changes were too extreme in my judgement.
I would recommend designing cold attachment methods to enable the use of tourmaline in your ACS projects. This might include bezels or fired in wire strand so as to wire the chips onto the surface

[Zone29]

This is a great forum, I have just bought my first Art Clay 65O and fired my first piece with a small synthetic stone - came out well, although I had to do a bit of finishing after it was fired.   I will make sure I burnish my next piece really well before firing.   I fired with a propane and oxygen gas torch, it worked well.   Thanks for all the information.    '>

[Metalman]

This is a related tip. Many which  of us are trying to preserve polish and brightness in our Art Clay pieces as well as protect patinas or keep copper/brass or other metals - shiny/bright.
If a metal alloy has copper in it - it will react with oxygen, The only protection is to paint/spray or coat the work with lacquer or some other sort of sealant - one of the best is auto body clear coat for repairing car finishes.
Most of the time this sort of coating doesn't look as nice as our fine finishing. You can/could use wax [like auto wax] as a protectant in your display or shop but it will not last very long in the customer's hands.

The only real alternative is to teach your customers how to polish and care for their jewelry . You might have a polishing cloth imprinted with your name and give them away with you gentle instruction on cleaning one's jewelry.
We have a clothe [R&T# -63-549] which you can have printed this way.