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Basic metalworking operations: cutting, filing, bending, annealing…

· 2 min read · Jeweler's dictionary

Basic jewelry metalworking operations defined one by one, with the Spanish term: cutting, piercing, filing, bending, annealing, forging, doming and riveting.

Hammer, tongs and file on the bench

Beginners need to know what annealing or piercing mean before opening a tutorial. These are the operations that repeat on any bench, with the Spanish term.

Removing material #

  • Cutting (cortar): separating metal with shears or a saw.
  • Piercing / sawing (calar): cutting shapes, including interior ones, with the jeweler's saw. See sawing. In English pierce means sawing, not punching a hole.
  • Filing (limar): removing metal with a file to shape and smooth.
  • Sanding (lijar): refining the surface with abrasive paper of ever finer grit. See filing and sanding.
  • Drilling (taladrar): making a hole with a drill bit, by hand or with a flex shaft.
  • Punching (perforar): making a hole with a punch; also, more generally, going through the metal.

Shaping without removing material #

  • Bending (doblar): forming an angle. Curving (curvar): forming a curve. See bending, curving and twisting.
  • Straightening (enderezar): returning a deformed piece to flat or straight, with a mallet or pliers.
  • Hammering (martillar): striking the metal to harden, lengthen or texture it. See hammers and mallets.
  • Planishing (aplanar): smoothing and hardening a surface with polished hammers over a stake.
  • Drawing (estirar): lengthening a wire by pulling it through a draw plate. See rolling and wire drawing.
  • Forging (forjar): shaping metal with blows, sometimes hot. See forging.
  • Doming / dapping (embutir): forming a sheet into a dome or cup. See doming.
  • Repoussé (repujar): pushing the metal from the back to form relief. See chasing and repoussé.

Changing the state of the metal #

  • Annealing (recocer): heating the metal to a controlled temperature and cooling it to restore the malleability it lost with working. See annealing.
  • Texturing (texturizar): giving the surface a texture. See texturing.

Joining #

  • Riveting (remachar): joining pieces with a rivet, without solder. See cold connections.

How they fit together #

A common order: cut → pierce → file → bend → anneal → solder → sand → polish. Metal hardens when hammered, bent or drawn, and has to be annealed so you can keep working without cracks. See basic metallurgy.

This entry was drafted with the help of AI and is pending review by the author.