Part 1 - Silver Clay
You Will Need: A bench peg, a flat file, a steel block, a rawhide mallet, sanding sticks, emery paper, blu tack, and fresh water
Once you have fired all six silver clay coins bring them back to your Bench Peg and you can begin to tidy them up. Use a Flat File to true up the edges and shape the coins. Follow the curve as you go to ensure nicely rounded sides. Work around each coin in turn until you have shapes that you’re happy with. They don’t have to be perfectly round or oval - freeform shapes work well too, but you will find it easier when creating the frames if they are uniform shapes.
If you notice that any of your coins are sitting unevenly after firing, simply pop it onto a steel block, hold it firmly with one hand and give it a tap with a rawhide mallet until it sits flat.
Once they’re all filed and sitting flat, remove the file marks from the sides using sanding sticks, working your way from the coarsest grit to the finest grit until the edges are beginning to shine. You won’t be able to reach the edges once you have created the frames but you will still be able to see them so it’s important to achieve a finish that you’re happy with at this stage.
The last, and most important step in preparing the silver clay coins is sanding the back. Place a few drops of water onto some coarse emery paper on a flat surface and, securing the coin in a blob of blu tack, move it in circular motions over the paper to remove any bumps or dents in the back of the coin. Don’t be tempted to cut corners here; the coins will be soldered to the back plate of the frame and it is extremely important that they are sanded completely flat so that there are no air bubbles trapped between the coin and the back plate. Trapped air expands when heated and can cause your piece to explode!
They don’t need to be polished, but sanding with a coarse and medium sandpaper or emery paper is essential.