" This essay is on...BURS!"

BURS! <=> BURS! <= (and still more) => BURS!

   In this extensive diamond setting essay, I’m going to show where my burs are located inside my bench. Not only are these "bur-pads" well maintained, but I prefer to have each bur-shape in its own pad. I can, within one moment, know just where any bur is located, with no second-guessing!!

Actually, this essay would be great if you could read it many times, as this is going to be “almost like your own bible” for many years to come.

1) If one of my H.S.S. (HIGH-SPEED STEEL) burs is worn down, I can recut it & here is the easy technique in doing this re-cutting process.

2) The “77B”, or “Cup-Bur” is another bur of further interest to you! When you get it from your tool-supplier you should alter its final shape. The cup-bur is meant to “round the claw/prong”. Here is a hand-drawn diagram showing how it should be altered.

3) How do you secure & tighten a round stone in cluster-setting? All you need is your “Flat graver #40”, this graver must be wide @ 1.50mm's, but not too wide as this should only be used to hold the stone in place!

 From this array of burs laying on my bench, my first job now is to select the 1) shape 2) size 3) quality of the cutting teeth before I use any of them. 

This singular task is above all, so very important to any setter! This bur pad only has my "77B burs" so far much less wasting my time. You can see that I have the largest burs on top and further down, I have the smaller burs that are needed! 

 I keep checking to see how my viewing is progressing by occasionally throwing away any old worn down burs..."So sorry, but these cannot be repaired". The teeth are inside of the bur, you can view these further down on my essay but on a larger photograph.

I'm still in the process of arranging my #77B cup burs as it appears in this view!

 This bur-pad is for round burs of all sizes. I will organize these even further, once I find other round burs. I'm so very sure that there are hundreds more to organize.

This one pad of two is for pumice wheels, corundum & felt, cleaning-burs.

Here are Pumice wheels of #180, #240, PINK-#1,000 grit & mandrels for the 'Snap-On' Emery sanding disks. In the top row are the mini-cloth polishing wheels. As this speed is much slower than the larger polishing machine, I can give much more care to any piece that I'm currently working on.

 This box is mainly for any other remaining assortment of Pumice wheels and Emery "Medium" grade 'Snap-On'  Emery disks.

 This bur-pad is ready to leave alone inside my bench. This is just one pad out of about 10-12 pads that I now have. I did a rough count a few days ago, I have 1,475 burs of all shapes and sizes!!!

 This plastic pad is only for bud-shaped burs. As this is only a 'temporary layout', I might change my mind in a few day's time.

 All of these on this pad is aptly named "Large 156C", or "Under-Cutting burs". These "Carbide" burs also cannot be modified, or re-sharpened.

 If these get damaged or worn you just have one option, that is just to throw them away!

 This wooden box is for my 'prized possessions. These are all "High-Speed Steel" Hart Shaped burs. I keep these in pristine condition as this wooden box costs me about $400 - $500.00 just for all of these burs and including the box. Is this an expensive collection of burs?

 This is just one of two boxes of Carbide burs containing the following shapes of burs; Bud shaped, Very (6 & 8mm's) Large Round, basic round burs. Each wooden box costs me $50.00 and you do the mathematics with double the box of bur costs.

 If I didn't have a bur when the tool supply shop is closed, what would I do? Even when I now plan to purchase the necessary burs and other tools prior to starting the large setting project. In my setting language, "buy tools & bur prepared!"

 In this leather pouch, there is an 'additional assortment' of MORE BURS and still MORE cleaning buffs. "A setter just never seems to have enough tools or burs at his, or her disposal."

My second "Box of Goodies!" in the front row is my favourite cup-burs or #77B. 

I remember that each of these large cup burs cost me $16.00 EACH and each bur is 6.50 mm's in diameter. 

 In this one box, are my special H.S.S. burs, with sizes ranging from 0.75 <=> 8mm's in size.

MORE cleaning burs, (enough said!) There are just not enough cleaning burs!!! When the pumice wheels are reduced in size, then you can use them inside of the ring for pre-polishing! I use them many times in these cases.

This is my favourite project for many years and classes, why so? It covers all of the many aspects of setting gemstones.

 It involves the following 7 uses: Flat gravers (used for tightening stones), #77B, Cup burring (rounding claw tips), using the #156C-Carbide bur (undercutting for making bearings to sit a stone), 45degree, H.S.S. (setting the 6-claw head), Bead-Burnisher, used to push-over the 6 claws, Pumice Wheels (of #180 & #1,000 grit).

 This is a set of 12, or sometimes 18 burnishers that I use to assist me in burnishing beads in Pave' setting. I also use it in pushing over little 'mini-claws'.

In the center of this metal rod is a little hole. This does only one thing, it holds the top of the claw and

 helps to bend over that one claw. 

In this bur pad, I have my Bud-shaped burs as these are multi-use burs. 

 I have a wide assortment of Cup burs (a.k.a.77B). These range from 0.75 all the way up to 3.0mm's.

 In this bur-pad, I have numerous small round and bud-shaped burs all ranging from 0.5 to 1.5mm's. If one bur is well-used, I could use it to clean any little metal bur from casting

In my extended inventory of packets of burs are so very special, why? Many bur companies are now phasing out these manufacturing of round burs (#005) The number "005" actually means .05mm's and these small burs are getting expensive to produce. 

The best bur to use in this mini-post pendant is the "156C" Under-Cutting bur, the teeth are close together. If you use the H.S.S. bur, you will find that the teeth are too far apart. Even I wouldn't use them, I want a bur that will cut smoothly and not dig into the metal.

What kind of bur is this used for? Would you believe these are for drilling a flat base opening, for preparing to set "seed pearls". These pearls are Round, but with a Flat base.

 This pencil lead is used only for one purpose, that is to rub pencil graphite into the pores of the polishing paper. Supposing that you have an #400 paper and you don't have any paper smoother at your disposal, well you do now.

 Get your graphite-pencil lead and rub this into the paper and now your paper is smoother to a #600.

Here are the specifications, or information for this pencil. This is my favourite pencil for my papers.

I use the razor blade just to keep the pencil sharp at all times.

 I want all of my gravers sharp at all times. As I mentioned in previous essays all of my graver blades MUST BE SHARP AND IN PRISTINE CONDITION AT ALL TIMES!

 Here are all of my gravers! Although they maybe small, they are still in great condition, as my graver handle can be adjusted to allow them to be used.

 

Here is my collection of "polishing papers". Here is my graphite pencil ready to use again, if needed at a moments notice!

 You can see the "Face" of the graphite-pencil which soon it will be used to rub its pencil into the pores of the paper.

This #1,200 polishing paper will now be turned into at least a #1,400 or #1,600 paper. Instead of buying a paper that is difficult to buy, you can turn this #1,200 into a smoother paper.

 We're going to now discuss "H.S.S. Under-Cutting burs", and how to re-cut and as well as

"Re-Sharpen the Steel Teeth". Instead of throwing this expensive bur away, you can refurbish this $25.00 bur all by yourself. A bur with dimensions of 5-6.00 mms has a price of $25.00 (or more)!!! 

What tools do you need? You need only one tool to re-cut your bur, that is a Corundum wheel of .025mm's or 1/4 mm. thick. I'll black paint the teeth all around, why? I want and need to see which tooth am I cutting.

 As you can now see the tooth that's being re-cut. I will only re-cut the very edge of the tooth that is near the cutting edge. This "cutting edge" is where all the 'action is taking place.

Here is a very close-up view of this one tooth being re-cut. Now you can see that I only need to touch the nearest edge of the bur, not the whole length to the point, interesting isn't this?

If the wheel is 7/8" in width, now you can see just how large the bur is....very large isn't it?

Now the darkened bur is being painted just to see the worn down teeth, ouch! This bur won't cut anymore, it will only slide along the metal and nothing else, pity!

The shiny surface is where the "re-cutting" has taken place and its now ready for setting again.

This bur is named "77B". It is a "Cup Bur", that is used namely in making claw tips rounded and for no other reasons.

The ridge or edge of this bur has an unusual tip to the outside edge. That is the cutting section will not give you the exact rounding that is needed. Let's have look to see how I modified it.

Oh, now you can see the difference, the teeth are now at the edge of the bur or the cutting-teeth. I'm going to show you just how easy it is, it's really easy!

 Here is a sampling of my 'well-used' 77B-cup burs. If they are too worn (into the garbage they go). The teeth are too far worn and have no longer any use!

From having the bur held in a 90Degree angle I'm going to do something rather interesting, watch me and be amazed, as I was when I first saw the results.

Just holding your bur at a 45degree angle and rotate this bur on your oilstone, something extraordinary will occur.

Now with your new "modified bur" that was almost ready for the recycle bin. This bur will last for another long time in being used to round many burs!

My selection of well used gravers is another example of recycling old & nearly to be thrown away setting tools. These blades are my favourite Flat gravers, I will use them until the blade are completely worn down to the "name". How is that done? Now let me show how it's done, it's easy!

The lower graver is at the end of its 'usage'. It all depends upon the graver handle that I will be using. Then let's go and scroll down to the next photograph!

The graver handle on the left can only hold a graver that can only get to be used depending upon the length of the wooden handle, if the blade gets too small, end of this life, bye-bye!

 But the three graver handles on the right, can hold any length of blade that you can put inside of the 'metal extension. How easy again is this?

How can you put a long or short length into the handle? This is done by unscrewing the graver and allowing the blade to be removed and adjusting its length. I can easily put in any length that's allowed!

What are the "HSS" letters signifying? It means "HIGH-SPEED STEEL" which means that the steel is hardened and made to be used with a longer lifespan. It's the same with burs, HSS burs is the same with gravers, these have stronger tensile strength. The numbers 39, 12 or 10 are a basic identification system for the width of the blades. 

These gravers have been shaped very thin for my own choosing, why? I don't want to push a heavy or thick blade into the metal, what I do is to make this blade cut with great ease.

Here you have three widths of gravers, each one may be used for separate purposes. Not one can be left untouched, I can use any of them equally.

Here is my little collection of "burs, burs and more burs". Every set of burs are kept separate from each other. Even today, I prefer this bur arranging, when I started my apprenticeship 60 years ago!

Round burs are kept in one bur-pad, another of 77B Cup burs in another pad, Bud shaped burs are again easy to find all by themselves.

 My box of HSS burs are kept safe, as the box on the far right bottom might cost me $350.00. If I had to figure out the costs of every bur that I own, plus my unseen inventory is somewhere in the many thousands of $$'s.

 My answer is that if I had to do some Diamond Setting over the weekend, I had to be ready for burs of the right size, at any time. "Be prepared, be ready!"

If you have any questions, kindly email me at any time.

"Gerrylewy18@gmail.com"