re: #276 b_sharp

I’d love to be able to shape stone with my mill, but I have no idea what cutters would hold up.

I also have two old propane tanks to be cut down and made into mini foundries for sandcasting gold/silver and aluminum.

IIRC, when I used to get the catalogs from the jewelry supply houses they also sold tools for using machines.

As for the metals - I used to acquire silver in 10oz bars, years ago when it was cheap, with the idea that I would get into casting. Sold them a couple of years ago (and yes, they appreciated.)

I was always fascinated by exotic alloys - check out Beryllium for making alloys hard, or Indium for making them machinable. Unfortunately both are probably contraindicated for direct skin contact jewelry, but would be useful in artwork.