April 19, 2022

How to fix a bent ring

Rings can be bent due to regular wear and tear, or your ring size has changed. To prevent bent rings, keep your rings sized. Avoid wearing them while working with your hands. You can fix a bent ring at home using jewellery repair tools, including a tapered cylinder called a mandrel and a soft mallet. If your home repair attempt fails to fix stubborn dents, consider having your ring serviced. Below are steps to follow.

  1. Check your warranty before beginning repairs or investing in tools since jewellers offer free repair services, such as reshaping dents, resizing, and cleaning. See what it covers, and determine whether its coverage is lifetime or has a time limit. Consider having it resized if your warranty covers it.
  2. Take your materials into account. If your shank has gem settings, consider having it repaired rather than attempting to fix it yourself. A home repair risk damaging the settings or knocking out small precious stones. Think about the hardness of its metal before attempting a home repair. Metals like copper, brass, nickel, silver, and gold are malleable, while titanium, tungsten, and tungsten carbide are more difficult or impossible to reshape. If not sure what your ring is made out of, consult a jeweller for assistance before attempting to reshape it.
  3. Choose a mandrel. A mandrel is a tapered dowel used for resizing and repairing rings. They are of wood or metal in various sizes (Aboutmechanics.com) .
  4. When choosing a mandrel, consider one made of sturdy wood, such as maple. Using a metal mandrel can damage your ring if the tool is of a harder material than your jewellery. Most mandrels are marked with ring sizes. Check the productโ€™s description to see if it is the right fit for your ring size. Get a jewellery mallet. Mallets are for shaping metal. One that works without damage, is made out of rawhide, wood, or rubber. You can find a proper mallet by searching online for a jewellery tool store or running a search on any online marketplace, such as (eBay) or Amazon.
  5. Consider purchasing a buffing wheel or polishing lathe. If you have experience with jewellery, invest in a buffer or lathe to make manipulating and polishing rings much easier. Stubborn dents are easier to repair using a buffer since the friction makes the metal more malleable.

How to fix a bent ring without a mandrel

  1. Place two small sizing beads on the inside bottom of your ring. The beads are called sizing balls or gold balls.ย 
  2. Dab epoxy on the balls and let them sit for 24 hours.ย 
  3. Wrap dental floss around the bottom of your ring until it fits.

How to fix a bent ring at home

  1. Get yourself work tools. These include a mallet and a steel mandrel.
  2. Put as much of the ring on the mandrel as you can.ย 
  3. Slide it down and apply force to push it down to help round the ring out slightly.ย 
  4. When you get it down as far as you can, start using the Hammer.

How to fix a bent silver ring

  1. Place the silver ring on a ring mandrel. Slide it down as far as it will go comfortably. As you move the ring farther down the mandrel, it becomes less bent just from being on the mandrel. When it comes to the mandrel, use either an inexpensive plastic one or a sturdy steel mandrel.
  2. Hold it on the mandrel with one hand and hit it gently with the rawhide mallet using your other hand. Rotate the ring slightly on the mandrel between each whack with the mallet. That makes it even all the way around. If it is not straightening, increase the force of the hits with the mallet.
  3. Remove it from the mandrel and spin it a few times to be straightened. If there are still slight bends, put it back on the mandrel and repeat the process. When satisfied with the results, polish the ring with a polishing cloth.

How to reshape a ring at home

  1. Before a bent ring is fixed, consider the construction. Bands and rings without stones are easier to straighten and more affordable. Fixing a ring with stones is risky because the stones could become loose in the setting. Take extra care with pave set, or channel set diamonds. These rings are hard to resize and re-shank because any change in the shape will compromise the diamondโ€™s setting.
  2. Sometimes a ring can be unbent by placing the ring on a mandrel, tapping it with a jewellerโ€™s hammer. You can also put it into place. Repeat the process till it takes its original shape. Apply heat to soften the metal and make the ring easier to reshape.
  3. If your ring is badly thin, you may have to re-shank the ring, although the process is less affordable and involves cutting off the bottom of the ring and replacing it. Match the metal colour and thickness, then solder the newly formed shank to the ring. The cost will depend on labour and current precious metal prices.

Ring straightening tool

  1. Jewellers also use it for sizing, holding, straightening rings, and repairing work. The tools are convenient for jewellery making.ย 
  2. How to fix a bent gold ring
  3. Put the bent ring on a Mandrel and push it down and around. That reshapes the ring back into roundness.
  4. Make a couple of hits using a hammer on any bumps. Give it a little polish, and your Ring is as good as new.
  5. If your ring is thin, you may need to put on a heavier shank.

How to reshape a gold ring at home

  1. If the ring is intact but just out of shape, round it out by placing the ring onto a sizing mandrel. The mandrel is round and made out of metal.ย 
  2. Take a mallet and lightly hammer the ring, moulding the metal around the mandrel to a round shape.
  3. Take it to the polishing machine, where any scratches from the repair process are buffed out. After a quick dip in the ultrasonic or steam cleaner to remove any polishing residue, the ring is rounded out and ready for wear.
David D. Hughes

Leave a Reply