LASER REPAIR FOR JEWELRY
ST. LOUIS – Many jewelry repairs have been near impossible or too expensive until now. Curt Parker Jewelers is the first in St. Louis to offer a miracle cure for broken jewelry with the new StarWeld laser welder for jewelry.
Recent advances in laser technology have enabled Curt Parker Jewelers to restore and repair vintage jewelry, create new modern jewelry and safely work on heat sensitive pieces with the new StarWeld laser welder. The laser welder uses amplified light instead of heat and fire to safely repair jewelry. Common laser welding applications include the assembly of complex, multi-colored jewelry pieces, replacing prongs, sizing rings, assembling diamond tennis bracelets, repair stone settings, and attaching settings to ring shanks. Gold, platinum, silver, and titanium alloys all produce excellent welds. The resulting weld is considerably stronger than a traditional solder joint. Laser-welded connections are 260% stronger than solder and 95% as strong as the original metal.
THE CONDITION
The condition of ring when we received for repair was broken with missing pieces and missing diamonds. As you can see from a previous repair, someone tried to repair this ring with gold. This ring could not have been repaired with platinum using a torch.
After removing the gold from the ring and carefully cleaning, we welded the ring with the Starweld laser using platinum. We replaced the missing section and two missing diamonds.
THE REPAIR
The repair cost was about 1/10th of the cost it would have been without the Starweld laser. This repair would have been impossible to do using platinum therefore another metal would have been used. The platinum Starweld repair is 260 times stronger than any traditional method used to repair jewelry.
You can see from the finished pictures below the ring has been restored and looks like new. Now the memories and history of this special ring are preserved.
There are many benefits of working with the StarWeld laser including lower labor costs, no discoloration of metal, and invisible seams. Because laser welding uses amplified light instead of heat, it is unnecessary to remove precious stones. Laser welding eliminates the common bending or thinning of ring shanks after soldering.
Many of the repairs made with the laser welder can be completed within 24 hours. "We’re not your grandfather’s jeweler," said Curt Parker. "We are up-to-date in design and technology."
THE CONDITION
The condition the bracelet was shortened and did not have a even number of links on each side of the center. We don't know what happen to the removed links.
THIS SIDE IS SHORTER
THE SOLUTION
The solution was to come up with a way to lengthen the bracelet while keeping within the guides of the original design. We first made wax models for the pieces needed then cast them in platinum.
We used the laser welder to re assemble the bracelet. The cost was much less because of the Starweld laser. This repair would have been impossible to do using platinum. The small diamonds already set in the bracelet could not have withstood the necessary heat needed to use platinum therefore another metal would have been used. The platinum Starweld repair is 260 times stronger than any traditional method used to repair jewelry.
You can see in the finished picture below the bracelet has been lengthened and looks like new. Now another generation can wear this bracelet while the memories and history are preserved.
EXAMPLE 1
EXAMPLE 2
THE HISTORY
This ring belonged to one of our client's ancestors. From the information we have we estimate this ring was made about 1910.
THE HISTORY
Little is known about this bracelet. It was made in the twenties or thirties. The bracelet was re-sold in the seventies to a woman who has very small wrist, links were removed. The bracelet was again sold and given as a gift to her mother. When the daughter received the bracelet back in her inheritance she wanted to wear it but it was too short.