I know some of you might be appalled of the thought of destroying coins, but I had recently came across this: http://www.coinworld.com/news/032408/BW_0324.asp And I am interested in making one. Nevertheless, all of the guides online explain how to make a ring with all of the coin's writings on the inside. I was wondering if someone knows how to make rings that look like that: http://www.coinworld.com/news/032408/bw2_big.jpg with one coin side on the interior and one one the exterior of the ring. Thank you very much. Alon
I currently wear a liberty walking half dollar ring that I bought on ebay. It has the date (1946), Liberty and the sun on the inside, and Half Dollar and United States of America on the outside. The seller usually has a few listed. His sizes run a bit large. They usually sell for about $30, but I have seen them bid up over $2000.
I don't know, but it is amazing that the detail is not damaged at all in the process. Maybe I can post a pic, brb.
http://cgi.ebay.com/1998-10-Platinu...ameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem#ebayphotohosting http://cgi.ebay.com/1963-SILVER-Was...ryZ39462QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem http://cgi.ebay.com/1963-SILVER-Was...ryZ39462QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
actually this looks like fun, i'll have to try it. i have some cull standing liberty quarters i could use one to experiment with. i would keep all the filings and shavings though! lol
wow.. after sizing my finger... It is a heck of a lot bigger than I thought it was... barley fits into a half Dollar
the two sided ring requires a ring mandrel, like the one jewelers use to make rings round again, or slightly enlarge a ring, etc. http://www.cointalk.org/showthread.php?t=34810&highlight=coin+rings the first post has a link to a PDF file which explains how to make both types of rings. i imagine getting a ring mandrel is easy. and i was right, ebay has tons of ring madrels, though many of the cheapest are black plastic, not practical for hammering a coin into a ring. you need a steel one, without a groove. i also started on a no date standing liberty quarter...so far its turning out well. im using a 32 ounce ball peen hammer BUT, i know how to use such a hammer so its going VERY well, better than i thought it would. the edge is turning out nicely and doesnt show major hammer marks, only slight ones, most of the edge is nice and smooth. im use a flat piece of solid brass for an anvil and its turning out very well. maybe when i get a mandrel i'll make two sided rings.
Interesting. Maybe I'm lucky my finger knuckles are so enlarged that I can not wear a ring. so look what I'm missing, HUH?
well im almost done with the quarter i started with. im taking out the material in the middle and then i polish it and it'll be done. and it's my anniversary with the missus and its her present. the ring has turned out perfect thus far, even with using a 32 ounce ball peen hammer (using a spoon would take ages and im not patient enough for that nonsense) i'll take a pic when im done. i should have taken pics through the process but oh well. maybe next time.
i finished her ring, it has a mirror shine to it and fits perfectly. i learned a couple thing to make it a little faster next time. i also learned that a hammer makes it much faster than a spoon BUT you have no know how to use a hammer, this is thin metal and you can bend it or warp it if you hit it too hard. thankfully mine came out straight as an arrow. i'd say this was a success.
lol ok she's sleeping but ill get a pic of the ring later. all i did was hit the quarter on the edge with a hammer and kept turning it. no big deal. however its easy to start at first but you need harder hits as you make progress into flattening the edge out. i got her other ring and got the size, about the size of a dime. so i kept hitting it, making about 2 full turns and then i would check to make sure the edges were flat, made sure i was hitting the surface squarely, checked to ensure it was still round and then when it got small enough i put a dime in the center to determine how much further i needed to go. i could stand it up on its edge i was hitting it so well, it would roll straight and showed slight hammer marks through the process. once it was down to the right size i then used a long handled tea spoon and hammered the edges to round the outside of the ring. it was light but the longer handle gave the striking end more inertia so it did exactly what i wanted it to do. a heavier spoon might have rounded it too much. after that i drilled out the center and then using a nut driver bit i put tape on the side of it and cut strips of sand paper, i would put one end of the paper on the other end of the tape and then wrap the sandpaper around the bit and then turned the drill on. then it was a matter of turning the ring and slowly taking away what was left of the center. i used 150 grit for most of it and then 400 to smooth it out. after some testing fittings and making sure it was just the right size, i then went around the outside with 400 grit to remove all hammer marks. i also laid it down flat on more 400 and lightly sanded the sides to even them up, they were just a smidge uneven and a tad sharp also (next time im using a quarter with a rim, this cull had ZERO rim and would have been lucky to get an AG grade, a rim would have given me more material on the edge to work with) then i used an automotive metal polish and polished it by hand to a high mirror shine, it has more shine than her wedding band! for a first attempt it turned out very well. the down side is because of the coin being so worn it doesnt show many details, you can barely read quarter dollar on the inside, united states is almost gone also. ill try a slightly less worn coin and see how it turns out. i would imagine a half dollar would produce a much more substantial ring than a quarter but i'm loathe to take a hammer to one of my halves, even one of the lower grade ones. when i get a ring mandrel and learn to make the two sided ring i might start making them and selling them. if it works out for me i could be pursuaded to do custom orders, you send me your coin of choice and i'll turn it into a ring for you. for a nominal fee for my time. at least then i could make a few bucks and support my hobby! a win win. and i kept all the shavings! i didnt let it the "waste" go to waste! also BEFORE starting the hammering, locate the center and then use a punch to mark it so you can drill it later. much easier to do it first than to do it the way i did it which was to grab the hammer and start hitting the coin like a dodo bird.
