Hello everyone, this is Shindo from MITUBACI.
Previously I shared a bit on the workshop tools kanadoko and mokudai (see article below). This time I'd like to share about the wooden mallet (and more) we use in crafting jewelry.
(Click here to read the previous anvil story.)
Please bear with us until the end!
Wooden mallets are used to bend the raw metal and form it into the shape of a ring. In the picture above, from left to right, are hammers made with harder wood to softer wood—the leftmost being the metal hammer and the rightmost being a wooden mallet wrapped in leather.
The leftmost one in the photo is a hammer. The rightmost one is a mallet made of soft wood, and the rightmost one is a mallet with leather attached.
The type of hammer used to make jewelry depends on the hardness of the material. Using the wrong hammer, for instance, using a hard hammer on a soft material, may cause the size of the ring to become bigger. In the case of resizing slim rings, we use the leather-wrapped mallet instead to soften the impact on the jewelry.
If a soft base metal ring is worked by striking it with a hard mallet, the ring size will increase.
When resizing thin rings, for example, a leather-lined mallet is used to prevent scratches.
To maintain the wear and tear of the mallets, we sharpen and shape them every two weeks, carving out the center to give it a little protrusion and chamfering sharp edges. With each trim, the mallet gets shorter but also more comfortable to use.
At that time, the center of the face of the mallet is ground out so that it bulges out slightly.
The corners should be beveled.
You will notice the very shortened mallet in the photo.
It gets a little shorter, but I like this short mallet because it is easy to use besides.
Maintaining the tools and equipment is a very important aspect of jewelry-making. Through the past 50 years, our first-generation founder has been maintaining our tools. Below is an image of maintenance work behind the scene.
Caring for the tools is also an important part of the job.
***
Thank you for reading this article!
Feel free to drop us an inquiry, or click the "Book Now" button to make an appointment: BOOK NOW
Our Instagram will be updated every now and then, so please stay tuned!
