How to Bright Cut an Edge With a Flat Graver

I took a few days off to rest up, enjoy the last few days of summer with my family, and finish up my other hobby, dirt car racing. Well, I got that all out of my system for a bit, it is time to get back to the bench and share some more tidbits with the JewelryMonk community. Last week I had a question about bright cutting on a bezel, so I thought I would share a little about Bright Cutting today.

There are a couple of ways of getting a “bright cut” look on an edge, from using a bur and polishing it, to rotary diamond wheels, to engraving. Today I will show how to get the bright cut with a Flat Graver.

I started with the braided copper-silver band I made last week. I finished it off a little differently though, I polished the copper center a bit and brush-finished the silver, to give it a little contrast from the shiny bright cut edge.

I am using a #45 Flat Graver Blade on this project, but you can use smaller gravers if you like. I like a wider blade for bright cutting. As I have shown before, I polish the flat part of the blade with Yellow Rouge on a piece of paper. For more on polishing gravers, see https://jewelrymonk.com/gravers

I start at one point of the edge and cut a small piece off of the edge of the ring or bezel. I start by cutting into the silver and drop the handle angle as I am cutting so it lifts the cutting edge in a “flicking” motion. I overlap the next cut on the first and do the same motion, so the starting edge of the second cut starts on the ending portion of the first cut. (hope that is not too confusing)

Continue this action all the way around the ring or bezel. If you notice the cut getting a little dull as you are cutting, polish the flat part of the graver again. I also continued bright cutting on the opposite side of the ring. I like the slight brush finish on the silver before the bright cutting so the contrast of the cut shows up better against the backdrop of the satin finish.

There you have it, it is a great way to accent a piece or stone setting, and add a little more “pizzazz” to your piece.

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Now go highlight your world.

Doug