DIY: Propane Torch Ring

Pewter can be melted with a propane torch.

Making jewelry at home can be a time-consuming and difficult hobby, but you can get a taste for it with a simple ring mold and a propane torch. Craft your ring from pewter, a metal with a relatively low melting point. Your mold will be open on one end, allowing you to simply pour the molten pewter directly into it. This will result in a ring that is somewhat crude, but perfectly wearable.

Things You'll Need

• Plaster
• Small container
• Pipe
• Petroleum jelly
• Pewter pellets
• Crucible
• Propane torch
• Tongs
• Protective gloves
• Goggles

Instructions

1. Mix enough plaster and water and fill the bottom of a small, plastic container. This will be part of your ring mold. Add the plaster to a depth of 1/4 inch to 3/8 inch, depending on how wide you want your ring band. Allow the plaster to begin to harden.

2. Grease the end of a plain, straight pipe with a thin coat of petroleum jelly. Ensure that the pipe is the same diameter as the ring that you want to make and that it has no threads at the end.

3. Stand the greased end of the pipe in the middle of the container on the slightly hardened plaster. Remove the pipe when the plaster is firm enough to hold the ring shape. Allow the plaster harden completely.

4. Place several pewter pellets into a metal crucible. The number depends on the size of your ring, but it is better to melt too many than too few.

5. Melt the pellets with a propane torch capable of reaching at least 572 degrees Fahrenheit.

6. Lift the crucible with a set of tongs and pour the molten pewter into the mold until it reaches the top.

7. Scrape the top of the mold with a scrap of wood to remove any excess pewter.

8. Allow the pewter to cool and harden. Break the mold to remove the ring.

9. Sand any rough edges on the ring with 60-grit sandpaper to remove burrs and other sharp imperfections.

Tips & Warnings

• Wear thick leather gloves and goggles when working with fire and hot metal.

References

• Prince August: Low Melting Point Alloys
• "The Prop Builder's Molding and Casting Handbook"; Thurston James; 1989