Wire is available in different types of metal, shapes, sizes and hardness. You can work with different wire shapes. Wire shape refers to the diameter of the wire. The following are industry standard available shapes of wire. Think of these shapes as the cross section of the wire.
Types of Metal Wire:
Brass - Also referred to as unplated, base or raw metal. Different hardnesses and colors are achieved by adjusting the amounts of copper and zinc alloys that make up brass. Colors range from orange to brownish golden yellows. Oxidation will darken brass to a rich patina.
Copper - A base metal. An orangish-brown base metal that is inexpensive, great to practice with, easy to work with and can be polished for a bright look as well as oxidized to a greenish or blackish patina.
Gold Filled - Base metal that has a thin layer of 12k or 14k gold which makes it resistant to tarnishing.
Gold Plate - Gold plate is achieved with a thin electroplating of gold over a brass base metal.
Memory Wire - Is made of permanetly coiled steel. It is extremely hard so heavy duty cutters are needed to cut it.
Sterling Silver - Considered a precious metal. It is made up of 92.5% silver and 7.5% copper alloy. This is the metal of choice for most when wire working.
Vermeil - It is pronounced in several ways. Regardless, it is sterling silver that has a gold coating of at least 10K gold.
Shapes: Round wire is circular in diameter. Half-round wire is flat on one side and domed on the other. The cross section looks like a half circle. Square wire has four equal flat sides and the cross section looks like a square. Triangular wire has three equal flat sides and the cross section looks like a triangle.
Sizes: Wire is available in a variety of thicknesses. The thickness or size of wire is referred to as the gauge of the wire. It is important to know what thickness is appropriate to use. In general, the smaller the number gauge, the thicker the wire.
14 gauge = 1.65mm diameter
16 gauge = 1.3mm in diameter (Both 14 and 16 gauges are useful to make headpins or eye pins for beads with large holes, hook style clasps & thick heavy duty jump rings, great sizes to add texture with a chasing hammer and bench block.)
18 gauge = 1mm diameter
20 gauge = 0.8mm diameter (Both 18 and 20 gauges can be used from more delicate headpins or eye pins for beads with average sized holes & thinner jump rings, split rings & earring wires)
22 gauge = 0.65mm diameter (Great for substantial wire wrapping & fits most beads. This seems to be the perfect gauge to work with many gemstone beads. This is my favorite gauge for headpins & eye pins.)
24 gauge = 0.5mm diameter (This wire is commonly used for head pins and wire wrapping beads with smaller holes, especially freshwater pearl beads or gemstone beads that have been cut in India. Most beads made in India have smaller holes.)
26 gauge = 0.4mm diameter
28 gauge = 0.32mm diameter (26 and 28 gauge are perfect to work with small beads as well as crochet work and cage work also known as screen work. This thin wire is perfect to attach small seed beads and rose montees to filigree and screen stampings.)
Hardness of wire: The hardness of wire is also referred to as the temper.
The hardness is important to note as the harder the wire, the harder to bend.
Hard – Extremely hard and rigid. Will not bend easily & often will snap and break when bent. Not recommended for jewelry making.
Dead Soft – has been annealed by heat to make it soft and malleable. Dead soft wire is the wire of choice in jewelry making as it is flexible to work with. It can also be hardened by simply working with it. Tapping the wire with a rawhide hammer, bending it or simply working with it using your hand tools such as pliers will harden it. The more you work with your wire, the harder it will become. Our favorite wire temper!
Half Hard – is between hard and dead soft. It is stronger than dead soft, but can become hard when working with it very quickly. As wire becomes hard, it can snap and break easily. Half hard wire has the quality of resistance which can be ideal for making sharp angles in some wireworking projects.
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