DIY Hardened Chain Maille

Making chain maille jewelry is a popular hobby.

Chain maille jewelry is made up of numerous tiny rings, called jump rings, linked to one another. These are made from soft metal and it may be necessary to harden them up so they will be strong enough to hold together. An effective method of hardening a chain maille jump ring is by twisting it repeatedly with pliers until the metal stiffens. However, with several hundred jump rings required for one piece of jewelry, this can be time consuming, so some jewelry makers prefer to harden the outer layer of the jump rings in a jewelry tumbler.

Things You'll Need

• Stainless steel shot
• Jump rings
• Water tumbler
• Wire
• Wire cutters

Instructions

1. Clean the stainless steel shot of any dirt or impurities. Fill the tub of the tumbler to about a third of the way with the shot.

2. Cut a piece of wire and thread the jump rings onto it. Twist the ends of the wire together securely. This will keep the jump rings from becoming mixed in with the shot so it will be easier for you to remove them all from the tumbler afterwards.

3. Place the jump rings in the tumbler, on top of the shot. Add water and two or three drops of dish washing liquid. There should be just enough water to cover the jump rings. The tub of the tumbler should not be much more than half full.

4. Tumble the jump rings for an hour and then check on them. They may have hardened sufficiently by then. If not, tumble them for longer, as needed.

Tips & Warnings

• Check the water frequently throughout the tumbling process to make sure it is still clean. If it becomes dirty, the water can deposit impurities on the jump rings leaving them dull or discolored, so change it for fresh water. Add more dish washing liquid, as required.

• Two kinds of tumblers are commonly used to harden chain maille. These are the rotary and the vibratory tumbler. The rotary tumbler is normally cheaper but the choice of tumbler is a matter of personal preference.

• In addition to hardening the jump rings, tumbling also polishes the metal and smooths off rough edges. Avoid tumbling plated metals as this could wear off the plating.

• Not all tumblers have the same capacity. Check the instructions on your tumbler. Do not overload it or you could damage the tumbler.

• Some jewelry makers find that tumbling does not harden the jump rings sufficiently for their needs. If you find this to be the case, manually twisting the metal with pliers may deliver better results.

References

• How to Tumble Polish and Harden Metal Jewelry