Do you use pliers to set gemstones? Where & when => 24 photos.

 This latest essay has been on my mind for some many months! What do my pliers look like and where are they used? 

 (I've just been looking through my past essays and selected photos that had 'pliers' in the writing.) Let me show you what 'some of them' will do to help me to set gemstones. 

  This essay will enable you use these fine jaw pliers. Many of them were 'individually modified' on my bench-grinder for specific gemstone purposes. 

  These pliers have a serrated grooves cut in on them, for one purpose. These are to grip the metal when being used, the problem is that they will leave marks in the metal. (This problem is shown further in this essay).

  Here is another set of pliers that I use when I need to grasp the metal from another hand-angle.

If I feel that the serrated edges are too deep, I'd use an Emery Wheel to soften the markings prior to the setting process.

Here is a prime example when the serrated edges come in handy. I don't want the jaws to slip off when I need the utmost care in moving the metal over the stone.

 

  Why bend your hand or fingers when the modified plier jaws can do it for you?

 Here is another photo of when your hand, or fingers need to hold the claws without any effort.

 In these sample photos where another little pair of pliers will be necessary in bending claws towards the stone. I don't want to push the claws together by hand as two claws are meant to be 'moved together' in unison.

I have a smaller set of pliers to greatly assist me in this stone setting process. But I wouldn't dare use any serrated indentations in my plier jaws as the cleaning would be an immense problem.

 As these claws must be moved towards each other, utmost care is needed in dealing with diamonds of this size. (BTW, these diamonds were 0.25 points EACH).

 I had to greatly modify my new pliers as I needed a jaws that were thin in their uses. 

 Here are my large claws that were used with serrated edges. You can now see the errors in the setting, my job now is to clean these deep gripping marks left behind.

 Sometimes a good idea leads to major problems and these must be rectified immediately.

 In working with Genuine Emeralds, the utmost care is warranted. I could go at length in how these tips of the claws are not fully pushed over. As you can see the diamond on the 'far right' needs to be repaired. My pliers must be with out any marks on the jaws, or a full repair will start.

  DON'T EVEN THINK OF PUSHING OVER ANY CLAW WITH A "HAND-PUSHER".

I want a pair of jaws with a serrated edge to grab and move the claws together. 

These jaws MUST NEVER MOVE ON OPPOSING CLAWS. THEY MUST BE MOVED BOTH ON ONE SIDE.

 

As there are two sides on each "V" shaped claw. You have an opportunity of squeezing the "V" claw to a point and over the corner of the stone.  

  In this photograph, you will understand that I brought the 4 sides together and the corners of the stone will be nicely covered. 

 The claws must be remaining upright and not crooked, this is done with thin plier jaws. If you use serrated jaws, then you will have much cleaning to do afterwards.

 In this last photograph, I used a small handle pair of pliers. Very careful setting in your work is needed here! The plier jaws should be touching only the tips of the claws and making sure that all of the claws are straight and not out of alignment.