Tumble Burnishing Gold-Fill Wire
by Katie
(Newport Beach, CA)
Hi-
Is there a way to tumble polish - burnish gold fill wire to a satin/brushed/ or matte finish before I wrap gems or incorporate it into a final piece?
Stacy's Answer:
Hi Katie!
Tumbling would not be the right method to achieve a textured or satin finish on wire. While tumbling with the proper medium can produce a satin or 'aged' finish on lampwork beads, it won't produce the same results for wire. The tumbling action actually slightly hardens metal which would not be good if you're going to then try to wrap with it and also, your wire would probably get tangled. Even if you spooled the wire before adding it to the tumbler barrel, the tumbling medium would not be able to reach all sides of the wire.
The simplest solution would be to use a texturing wheel with your flex shaft or Dremel. There are many available depending upon the texture you wish to get. They come in different grits from fine to coarse. The synthetic fiber ones are used dry and then there are many wire wheels too.
