10/22/05 | Poll: Beading Wire Usage
I have to apologize for how long this Beading Wire Usage poll took to come to completion. Awhile back, I discovered that the polling software that I had been running had completely gone kaput. It wasn’t crashing, but it wasn’t recording any votes just the same. And I wasn’t actually aware it was malfunctioning. So I had to dig around and find another polling plugin that would work, and lost most of the votes for this one.
Anyhow, the results were pretty much similar to what I remember the original polling software recording before it crashed:
It was no surprise that Softflex Beading Wire ran away with the votes. This is one of the most popular and respected jewelry wire makers, and it’s our wire of choice when stringing most necklaces and bracelets.
By the way, for those who don’t know what jewelry beading wire is (I didn’t when I started), it is basically tightly woven strands of stainless steel that have been coated in nylon. I think there are some variations in the materials used, but that is pretty much the formula. It is very strong stuff and when used correctly (i.e. it is crimped properly) can stand up to the hardest tugging or pulling.
Also, I should mention that it comes in different sizes, but the one we use most frequently is made up of from 14-21 strands of wire and is from 0.012 to 0.014 inches in diameter. What I like about Softflex is that it has very little “kink” and “memory” in the wire. Nearly everyone I know starts off using “Tigertail” or some similar type of jewelry beading wire, most often bought at a chain like Joanne’s or Michael’s. I don’t know if they’ve improved it, but I remember Tigertail was extremely difficult to work with and cut. It kept the curves from being wound on the spool so that necklaces (especially those using smaller beads) had noticeable kinks in them.
I have actually used the other two makers, Beadalon and Accuflex, several times. Accuflex actually seemed to be pretty good quality beading wire, although when compared to Softflex I think it is less “limp” and pliable. When you take the Softflex off the spool, it’s like there’s no memory curves at all in it.
Beadalon is usable as well, though again it’s not as easy to work with as Softflex. Interestingly, I keep a spool of Beadalon around just because I’ve found that the wire is slightly thinner (0.012″ vs 0.014″) than the Softflex. It also seems to cut pretty easily. Why is this important? Well, for your smallest seed beads, the tiny holes can prove to be a problem when finishing off your crimp. This is because you have to run your jewelry beading wire TWICE through the bead at the end. And this can be a problem with those smaller seed beads.
I’ve found that the 0.014 in Soft Flex is actually extremely difficult to thread twice through a tiny seed bead. As such, if I know the last bead on the chain is going to be one of those, then I break out the Beadalon spool instead. It also sometimes helps to cut the wire at an 45 degree angle with your sharp nosed cutters. That way the end is thinner and pointed so it can be threaded through easier.
As for the new poll, I was sort of curious to see what jewelry designers are using for metal these days. I guess it’s not too interesting to just have gold, silver and base metal as choices so if you have some other comments on your metal of choice when designing, go ahead and send me an email about it…
December 11th, 2005 at 9:53 am
I’ve used Beadalon and Accuflex and find that my customers will come back in 3 to 6 months because the wire broke. Is there anything stronger available?
December 11th, 2005 at 10:56 pm
Billie - I think that we originally had breakage problems with Tigertail, but so far Accuflex and Beadalon have been OK. Softflex seems to be well trusted and I think a lot of jewelry makers use it. It is definitely more expensive.
I know that there is some cases where the wire will just break no matter WHAT type of wire is used. We have found that most often the problem is not in the actual strength itself but somewhere in either the attachment point or the crimp bead. Sometimes, if the crimp bead is squeezed on so that the clasp or toggle rubs against the wire end, it can stress it to the point where it will break. This can happen especially if the piece of jewelry is something the customer wears on a daily basis.
I have had other customers who said they yanked on it by accident extremely hard and it came loose. I think that for the most part, there’s nothing that can be done about that… I mean jewelry isn’t MEANT to be yanked on like that anyhow.
You might also want to check the diameter of the jewelry cable you’re using (the thicker ones will of course be stronger). I’m also not sure how much of a difference that the “number” of strands makes. This ranges anywhere from 7 to like 49 or something. We use 0.014″ Softflex very often and this seems extremely sturdy. The only problem is when you use tiny seed beads… that necessitates thinner wire like 0.010-0.012″.
May 26th, 2007 at 1:30 am
I make lanyards for companies that require ID’s to be a permanent fixture on their employee’s necks and the beading wire I use is 7- strand Beadalon. They’ve been a little lax with their quality control lately because I’d get a spool with almost a foot of super kinked wire that isn’t coated in nylon completely. I’ve also had breakages which was pretty embarassing - I’ve had people I’ve sold a lanyard to walk up to me with a handful of precious beads asking if I could repair their lanyard. I’ve noticed that the breakage occurs in the same spot EVERY TIME - where the end rubs against the beading wire, usually hidden inside a bead. I’ve tried coating the the ends with nailpolish just to soften up the friction, and I haven’t had any breakages - yet. If anyone else has any other good suggestions I’d appreciate it!