TUTORIAL:

Thanks for this article-I read through it and had a huge "Duh!" moment. I made a whole pile of jump rings for a project that now have 1 wedge side that I'll have to fix-sure wish I'd seen this before I started.
Jeni

my studio:http://jsmaz.artfire.com
my gallery:http://gallery.mac.com/jsmaz

Great Article - I too had a "Duh!!!" moment.... Thanks for sharing.

This evening, I planned on showing a friend how to make jump rings. I could never have explained it clearer than this -- and will have her join the site. Thanks so much!

Thanks so much for such a clear concise tutorial. I had been making my own jump rings and doing a lot of unecessary filing to make them work - thanks for the help! BTW, I had a good laugh over the "wonky" description, but it described it very well.

another with a DUHHH moment. thank you

Very good tutorial! I learned this early on, but this was a lovely reminder.

Hi, I can't wait to try making the rings. Quick question tho, if I need a 3.5 ID ring, what size mandrel should I use? Thanks

Answering dpierce364, the inside diameter of 3.5 mm jump ring would need a mandrel a little smaller than 3.5 mm. I'm no expert so someone else will probably add more but the size mandrel needed would vary a little (am I right, experts?) depending on the hardness of the metal & what type is used.
When I've wrapped & cut wire to make jump rings, I've found a variation depending on what metal the wire is. The more hardened the metal is, the less it opens after being wrapped & then cut so remains closer to the mandrel size.
Make a few & test them first.

Thanks for the tutorial. good trainning

dpierce364 - Use a mandrel that is the size of the ID that you want. What you are trying to account for in your thinking is "springback". This is a result of tension being put on the wire when it is coiled, and then released when the ring is cut off the coil. The amoung of springback is variable depending on the hardness of the wire but for your purposes it's not measurable to the extent that you can't really make an adjustment in the mandrel size to compensate for it.

For making most jewelry it won't matter. When lessons call for a specific size ring, it's because that will look good in that application. For chainmaille, it's more important which is why many of the mass producers of rings for chain maille measure in 1/64th inch increments. They are being more precise because of the best aspect ratios for various chain maille weaves. If you want to be that precise you could get a set of mandrels in those dimensions but honestly it might not be worth it for you.

So bottom line, relax. Use your 3.5 mandrel for 3.5 rings. Even for chain maille, you'll be in good shape.

good tutorial. clear. thanks

You're welcome!

JKay Jewelry
http://www.jkollmann.etsy.com

Thank you so much for sharing your tutorial on making decent jump rings. The tutorial is well written and the photos are great.

Thanks Corinne. I'm glad it was helpful for you.

JKay Jewelry
http://www.jkollmann.etsy.com

My thanks also for the tutorial. After seeing your pics, I now realize that I don't have flush cutters. I thought I did and the packaging said I did, but I have a "scoop" for lack of a better word, on one side of mine, yours looks flat; are they? Also, I went to your site and could not scroll down or across to see your pieces. Just thought I would tell you. Someone told me today that mine was blank. We've got gremlins!!!
Happy 4th Everybody!!!!!!!!!
http://www.jewelrycreationsbymimi.com
(when it's working) I would love comments!!

Great tutorial! I, too, had a "Duh!" moment. It made sense to lob off the chiseled edge with the flat side, but I never tried it. Oh, well, now I have a bunch of necklaces that scratch my neck. Ha ha.

Michele

Great tutorial. I have used small metal crochet hooks also, I heard some people use knitting needles which I haven't tried yet.

Excellent tutorial. I also do my jumprings this way, but you explained it better than I would have done!

Simple and useful. Well done! :)