Making Chain Maille Rings Using
Different Cutting Methods

Ideas and tools for cutting chain maille rings for use as jump rings in chain maille jewelry.

A jewelers saw, flush cutting snips or a special electric saw can be used for cutting chain maille rings for use in chain maille jewelry.

Flush cutting snips leave a less noticeable burr on a cut jump ring than ordinary snips, but you will need to buy the best snips you can afford. Burrs are difficult to remove, you cannot expect a perfectly flush join with rings cut this way.

An adjustable jewelers saw will cut coils and leave a smaller gap in the ring. It can be difficult sometimes to hold the coil whilst you cut it.

There are now special pliers available that will hold short coils whilst being cut with the saw.

For ease of use and speed, purpose built power jump ring cutters are the best choice. These tools will produce an excellent quality and quantity of chain maille rings.

Power Cutters

This cutter can only be used with a jewellers flex shaft with a No. 30 handpiece. You need a motor that runs at approximately 20,000 RPM.

This saw can be powered by a Foredom flex shaft with a foot control.

A flex shaft is a very handy tool to have. You can cut, drill, grind, polish and power other tools with a flex shaft. A large range of accessories are available for this tool.

A tutorial on the use of the Jump Ringer cutting jump rings and coil winding can be found here.

Another power saw available is the KOIL KUTTER from Dave Arens at gemstonesetc@gainbroadband.com This cutter will fit a Dremel Moto tool or Proxxon hand tool.

Visit here for an excellent tutorial on how to use the Koil Kutter. to cut jump rings.

Both these cutters come with blade holder, blade, saw guide and jig to hold the coils. If you can purchase a coil winder it makes coil winding easy.

From my own experience I find that both the Jump Ringer and Koil Kutter work well, making ring production easy.

I use sterling silver wire to produce my rings. After the rings are cut they are tumbled in a small rock tumbler with stainless steel shot.

After the chain maille jewelry item is made it is again tumbled to give it a brilliant shiny finish.

The blades are not designed for hard metals and should only be used on sterling silver or gold. Before cutting coils place some tooth picks or small dowels inside the coil to support it.

Always wear appropriate safety goggles when working with power tools.

It is useful to cut extra rings to make your weave about 1 inch longer, keep the extra piece as a starter chain for the next time you make the same design.

If you wish to experiment with your own weaves or you see some weaves with an AR (Aspect Ratio) notation please visit the Articles section at CGMaille Tutorials for an explanation of aspect ratio (AR).

Aspect ratio is very important when determining what ring sizes to select for your own chain maille jewelry designs. Not all weaves use the same ring size. Using the wrong size will result in either a loose weave or a weave that is too tight and inflexible.

YouTube has a number of videos about cutting jump rings for chain maille jewelry using power saws, jewelers saws & snips. For those of you who wish to produce large quantities of rings look up the Ringinator on YouTube, not for the faint hearted.