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Step By Step Process of Making Black Hills Gold Every major Black Hills Gold manufacturer's process is not identical to the one shown here. Some Black Hills Gold companies use additional steps, others have fewer steps with more automation, but the basic description would apply to all of the top Black Hills Gold brands below. To view this brief tour, use the horizontal scroll bar at the bottom of your browser window. |
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| The process of making Black Hills Gold jewelry begins with pure 24 Karat gold. It is alloyed with exact percentages of other metals to achieve a more durable karat quality of 10K, 12K or 14K. The traditional pink and green color gold used for leaves and other details is made when copper or silver is combined with the pure gold. The resulting gold bars are then readied for rolling. | The alloyed gold bars are rolled by presses to different thicknesses for different types of jewlery. Component parts are carefully stamped, one at a time, out of the rolled gold sheets using patterns and dies. The solid gold leaves and other patterns are now ready to be added to a cast jewelry base, created using a method called "lost wax casting." Lost wax casting begins with an original metal model of a jewelry item. A vulcanized rubber mold is made from the metal model. A wax model is then made from the mold when hot wax is injected into the mold. | The wax model is removed from the mold and mounted to a wax stem called a sprue, which creates an airway for casting. Investment compound (casting plaster) is poured around the wax patterns in a steel cylinder. After it hardens, the cylinder is baked in an oven for several hours, melting the wax away. The cavity inside provides an exact duplicate to be cast and is filled with molten gold. The cylinder is quenched in cold water, shattering the plaster and exposing the gold jewelry. After grinding and polishing, these cast pieces are ready for the stamped components. | The stamped components are individually hand-soldered to the cast gold frame using torches and karat-gold solder. The jewelry is cleaned in a mild acid bath, then inspected for quality. Pieces that meet the high quality standards are then electro-plated with 24 Karat yellow gold. A finishing method known as wriggling removes the plating from the pink and green leaves, creating a textured or frosty effect. Each leaf vein is then hand-engraved for a brilliant, light-catching finish. | Each
piece is polished in several different steps to bring out its brilliant
luster. If the item has gemstones in its design, it is sent to the
stone setting department. Finally, a careful inspection completes
the process that began with pure 24 Karat gold and finished with a
truly unique and beautiful, handcrafted jewelry item -- Black Hills
Gold. <----Back to Black Hills Gold Outlet Home Page |