**Construction Alert**
This page is partway through a major overhaul. Please pardon our dust…
Please Note!
Even though the sample chains are made of many metals, all the weight calculations on this page assume that you’re working with sterling silver. If you use another metal, you’ll get a bit more length from each ounce of rings (sterling silver is the most dense metal that I sell). Also, please remember that the calculations are only approximate. I highly recommend that you get a little extra if you’re unsure about having enough for your project (especially if you’re working in sterling).
BASIC 2-IN-1
This is the simplest of all possible chains. I’m including it both because it’s helpful to see the lower size limit for a particular gauge, and because sometimes you do want a really simple, chunky chain.
| size | 4:22 | 4:21 | 5:20 | 5:19 | 6:18 | 6:17 | 7:16 | 8:15 | 9:14 | 10:13 | 11:12 | 12:11 | 14:10 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| rings/inch | 15.25 | 15.25 | 12.5 | 12.5 | 10.25 | 10.25 | 8.75 | 7.75 | 7 | 6 | 5.5 | 5.25 | 4.5 |
| inches/ozt | 94 | 65.5 | 53.5 | 41 | 34 | 25 | 21.5 | 16 | 12 | 10 | 8 | 6 | 5 |
4-IN-1
More specifically, European 4-in-1. This weave is what most people think of when they think “chainmail.” It’s the weave used for armor in the olden days, and purses in the Victorian era. I like a fairly tight ring size for my 4-in-1 pieces. You may prefer slightly looser sizes (or even tighter!), but these are a good place to start. The ring counts listed here assume that you’re making a band five rows wide (as shown).
| size | 5:22 | 6:21 | 7:20 | 8:19 | 9:18 | 10:17 | 11:16 | 13:15 | 14:14 | 16:13 | 18:12 | 20:11 | 22:10 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| rings/inch | 55 | 45 | 38 | 33 | 31 | 28 | 23 | 21 | |||||
| inches/ozt | 13.8 | 11.3 | 9.4 | 7.5 | 5.5 | 4.25 | 3.7 | 2.9 |
6-IN-1
European 6-in-1 is a sleek weave that’s nice and dense, very good for bracelets.
Note to self: 8:21 promoted to 9:21, 9:20 promoted to 10:20
| size | 8:22 | 9:21 | 10:20 | 11:19 | 12:18 | 14:17 | 16:16 | 18:15 | 20:14 | 22:13 | 25:12 | 28:11 | 32:10 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| rings/inch | 45 | 42 | 35 | 30 | 27 | 25 | |||||||
| inches/ozt | 5.9 | 4.7 | 3.7 | 3 | 2.3 | 1.8 |
BIRDCAGE
Also known as Byzantine, this is one of the first jewelry weaves that most maillers learn. My favorite ring sizes for Birdcage are quite tight – large wire gauge when compared to the mandrel size. Ring sizes that do well for Birdcage will also make a nicely snug European 4-in-1.
All the sizes pictured make a lovely, tight Birdcage weave. However, 6:21 and 11:16 are the two that I end up using all the time. 6:21 is dainty enough for the smallest wrist, yet is plenty strong for everyday wear. 11:16 is seriously hefty, and has a perfect weave density.
Please note that there is no “great” 22ga Birdcage size in inch rings. Use the millimeter size 2.25M22 instead, which falls between 5:22 and 6:22.
| size | 6:21 | 7:20 | 8:19 | 9:18 | 10:17 | 11:16 | 13:15 | 14:14 | 16:13 | 18:12 | 20:11 | 22:10 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| rings/inch | 38 | 30 | 28 | 24 | 21 | 20 | 18 | 16 | ||||
| inches/ozt | 20 | 16.9 | 12.75 | 10.3 | 8.2 | 5.95 | 4.7 | 3.8 |
BOX
Closely related to Birdcage, this weave is especially well suited to necklaces.
Note to self: 8:21 promoted to 9:21, 9:20 promoted to 10:20
| size | 8:22 | 9:21 | 10:20 | 11:19 | 12:18 | 14:17 | 16:16 | 18:15 | 20:14 | 22:13 | 25:12 | 28:11 | 32:10 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| rings/inch | 26 | 23 | 20 | 17 | 15 | 14 | |||||||
| inches/ozt | 10.2 | 8.6 | 6.5 | 5.3 | 4.2 | 3.3 |
CELTIC VISIONS
Note to self: say something about this weave. Maybe link to Celtic Snowflake map & kit?
| sizes | 6:22 10:20 |
7:21 11:19 |
8:20 12:18 |
9:19 14:17 |
10:18 15:16 |
11:17 17:15 |
13:16 19:14 |
14:15 22:13 |
16:14 24:12 |
18:13 27:11 |
20:12 31:10 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| rings/inch – sm size | 17.5 | 17 | 14 | 10 | 6 | ||||||
| rings/inch – lg size | 10.5 | 10 | 8.5 | 6 | 3.5 | ||||||
| inches/ozt – sm size | 10+ | ||||||||||
| inches/ozt – lg size | 8 |
| amounts for one inch of Celtic Visions | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ___ozt of 6:22 ___ozt of 10:20 |
___ ozt of 7:21 ___ ozt of 11:19 |
___ozt of 8:20 ___ozt of 12:18 |
___ozt of 9:19 ___ozt of 14:17 |
___ozt of 10:18 ___ozt of 15:16 |
___ozt of 11:17 ___ozt of 17:15 |
| ___ozt of 13:16 ___ozt of 19:14 |
___ozt of 14:15 ___ozt of 22:13 |
___ozt of 16:14 ___ozt of 24:12 |
___ozt of 18:13 ___ozt of 27:11 |
___ozt of 20:12 ___ozt of 31:10 |
|
DOUBLE SPIRAL
The doubled rings add stability and keep the spiral from un-spiraling.
| size | 8:22 | 9:21 | 10:20 | 11:19 | 12:18 | 14:17 | 16:16 | 18:15 | 20:14 | 22:13 | 25:12 | 28:11 | 31:10 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| rings/inch | 31 | 28 | 25 | 23 | 21 | 18 | 16 | 13 | 12 | 11 | 10 | 9 | 8 |
| inches/ozt | 19.5 | 15 | 12 | 9.5 | 7 | 5.5 | 4.8 | 3.8 |
DRAGONSCALE
Definitely a fun weave! It takes two sizes of rings and is what I consider to be an “advanced” weave. If you’re not familiar with Dragonscale, I recommend a copy of my second DVD.
| sizes | 6:22? 9:22? |
7:21? 10:21? |
8:20 12:20 |
9:19 13:19 |
10:18 15:18 |
11:17 17:17 |
12:16 19:16 |
14:15 21:15 |
16:14 24:14 |
18:13 27:13 |
20:12 30:12 |
22:11 34:11 |
25:10 38:10 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| rings/inch – sm size | 37 | 35 | 30 | 28 | 26 | 22 | 20 | ||||||
| rings/inch – lg size | 37 | 35 | 30 | 28 | 26 | 22 | 20 | ||||||
| inches/ozt – sm size | 12.25 | 9 | 7.6 | 5.8 | 4.5 | 3.6 | 2.75 | ||||||
| inches/ozt – lg size | 8.6 | 6.6 | 5.3 | 3.9 | 3 | 2.6 | 2 |
| amounts for one inch of Dragonscale | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ___ozt of 6:22? ___ozt of 9:22? |
___ ozt of 7:21? ___ ozt of 10:21? |
___ozt of 8:20 ___ozt of 12:20 |
___ozt of 9:19 ___ozt of 13:19 |
___ozt of 10:18 ___ozt of 15:18 |
___ozt of 11:17 ___ozt of 17:17 |
___ozt of 12:16 ___ozt of 19:16 |
| ___ozt of 14:15 ___ozt of 21:15 |
___ozt of 16:14 ___ozt of 24:14 |
___ozt of 18:13 ___ozt of 27:13 |
___ozt of 20:12 ___ozt of 30:12 |
___ozt of 22:11 ___ozt of 34:11 |
___ozt of 25:10 ___ozt of 38:10 |
|
FULL PERSIAN
One of the very best round weaves. My favorite full persian size in the whole world is 12:19. It’s just perfect. 18:16 is my favorite for large scale persian. On the right you can see a length of chain made with all the recommended sizes from 21ga through 14ga.
Note to self: 15:17 promoted to 16:17
| size | 9:22 | 10:21 | 11:20 | 12:19 | 14:18 | 16:17 | 18:16 | 20:15 | 22:14 | 25:13 | 28:12 | 31:11 | 34:10 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| rings/inch | 30 | 28 | 26 | 24 | 20 | 18 | 16 | 14 | 13 | 11.5 | 10 | 9.3 | 8.6 |
| inches/ozt | 16.9 | 13.1 | 10.3 | 8.75 | 4.9 | 4.1 | 3.25 |
HALF PERSIAN 3-IN-1
I like very dense Half Persian chains. But even for me, that 11:17 size might be too dense. You should consider these size recommendations to be a lower limit – Half Persian chains work nicely for a fairly large range of sizes.
| size | 7:22 | 7:21 | 8:20 | 9:19 | 10:18 | 11:17 | 13:16 | 14:15 | 16:14 | 18:13 | 20:12 | 23:11 | 26:10 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| rings/inch | |||||||||||||
| inches/ozt |
HALF PERSIAN 4-IN-1
I prefer a very snug Half Persian 4-in-1. Your aesthetic may vary.
Note to self: 15:16 promoted to 16:16, 19:14 promoted to 20:14. Update text to talk about that, and include links to pics of snug versions.
| size | 8:22 | 9:21 | 10:20 | 11:19 | 12:18 | 14:17 | 16:16 | 18:15 | 20:14 | 22:13 | 25:12 | 28:11 | 32:10 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| rings/inch | 20 | 18 | 16.5 | ||||||||||
| inches/ozt | 18.8 | 14.8 |
JAPANESE
This weave is one of my personal favorites because it’s so structural. You can do wonderful things with angles and curves. I almost always make a fully doubled japanese 6-in-1, also called japanese 12-in-2.
| sizes | ??:22 9:20 |
6:21 10:19 |
7:20 11:18 |
8:19 12:17 |
9:18 14:16 |
10:17 15:15 |
11:16 17:14 |
13:15 19:13 |
14:14 22:12 |
16:13 24:11 |
18:12 27:10 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| rings/inch – sm size | 56 | 50 | 44 | 42 | 40 | 33 | 26 | 21 | |||
| rings/inch – lg size | 25 | 21 | 19 | 17 | 16 | 14 | 11 | 9 | |||
| inches/ozt – sm size | 13.4 | 10.5 | 5.9 | ||||||||
| inches/ozt – lg size | 11.75 | 6.2 |
| amounts for one inch of Japanese 12-in-2 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ___ozt of ??:22 ___ozt of 9:20 |
0.075 ozt of 6:21 0.085 ozt of 10:19 |
___ozt of 7:20 ___ozt of 11:18 |
___ozt of 8:19 ___ozt of 12:17 |
0.17 ozt of 9:18 0.16 ozt of 14:16 |
___ozt of 10:17 ___ozt of 15:15 |
| ___ozt of 11:16 ___ozt of 17:14 |
___ozt of x:15 ___ozt of x:13 |
___ozt of 14:14 ___ozt of 22:12 |
___ozt of x:13 ___ozt of x:11 |
___ozt of 18:12 ___ozt of 27:10 |
|
It is worth noting that there are actually two ring combinations that will work well for a 16/18ga japanese. The 9:18 & 14:16 combination (which I usually recommend) is a little bit cleaner looking, but a tad on the loose side. The other combination uses 9:18 & 13:16 rings – just a smidge tighter. The small rings get a little bit squashed (which is why I don’t usually recommend it) but the overall weave is stiffer. So if you need a 16/18ga japanese piece to hold its shape and make very crisp angles, you’ll be better off with the 13:16 rings.
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|
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JENS PIND
An extremely cool spiral chain. The rings are so tight that it locks the spiral in place. Very important to get the right ring size for this weave! Too loose and it doesn’t lock, too tight and it’s impossible to make.
Sizes 6:20, 10:16, and 12:14 are fantastic. Sizes 8:18 and 9:17 work well enough once the whole chain is made, but newly added rings have enough room that they try to hop over to the wrong place. Sizes 7:19 and 11:15 are in between – not quite as snug as the “fantastic” sizes, but not as frustrating as the others.
I will be experimenting with millimeter mandrels to find “fantastic” ring sizes for all wire gauges.
Update! Instead of 8:18, use 3M18. 8:18 will make the weave, but it’s a bit too loose, so it doesn’t hold the weave. 3M18 is a bit tighter and makes a really nice 18ga Jens Pind.
Update #2! Instead of 10:16, use 3.75M16. I used 10:16 for years, and it’s (usually) perfectly fine. But 3.75M16 is even better!
| size | rings/inch |
|---|---|
| 6:20 | 22 |
| 7:19 | |
| 8:18 | use 3M18 instead! |
| 9:17 | 15 |
| 10:16 | use 3.75M16 instead! |
| 11:15 | |
| 12:14 | 11 |
PARALLEL
Also known as Helm’s Chain or Helm Weave. It’s closely related to Dragonscale – if you make the first row of Dragonscale very long and double the small rings, you end up with Parallel.
Please note that I originally recommended 13:15 and 20:15 for a 15ga Parallel chain. I’ve changed that recommendation to 13:15 and 21:15 because the other combination was just a bit too snug.
| sizes | 5:22? 9:22? |
6:21 10:21 |
7:20 12:20 |
8:19 13:19 |
9:18 15:18 |
10:17 16:17 |
11:16 18:16 |
13:15 21:15 |
14:14 23:14 |
16:13 26:13 |
18:12 29:12 |
20:11 32:11 |
22:10 36:10 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| rings/inch – sm size | 8 | 7 | 6.3 | 5.5 | 5.3 | 4.75 | 4.5 | 3.5 | |||||
| rings/inch – lg size | 12 | 10.5 | 6.9 | 8.5 | 7.6 | 6.75 | 6 | 5.25 | |||||
| inches/ozt – sm size | 95 | 72 | 56.5 | 45 | 32.5 | 25 | 18.75 | 17.5 | |||||
| inches/ozt – lg size | 39 | 30 | 24 | 18.5 | 15.5 | 11.5 | 9.5 | 7.5 |
| amounts for one inch of Parallel | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ___ozt of 6:22? ___ozt of 9:22? |
___ ozt of 7:21? ___ ozt of 10:21? |
___ozt of 8:20 ___ozt of 12:20 |
___ozt of 9:19 ___ozt of 13:19 |
___ozt of 10:18 ___ozt of 15:18 |
___ozt of 11:17 ___ozt of 17:17 |
___ozt of 12:16 ___ozt of 19:16 |
| ___ozt of 14:15 ___ozt of 21:15 |
___ozt of 16:14 ___ozt of 24:14 |
___ozt of 18:13 ___ozt of 27:13 |
___ozt of 20:12 ___ozt of 30:12 |
___ozt of 22:11 ___ozt of 34:11 |
___ozt of 25:10 ___ozt of 38:10 |
|
SNAKE
Also known as Roundmaille, Hexagon, and Star.
| size | 6:22 | 7:21 | 8:20 | 9:19 | 10:18 | 11:17 | 13:16 | 14:15 | 16:14 | 18:13 | 20:12 | 23:11 | 26:10 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| rings/inch | 57 | 45 | 36 | 30 | 27 | 24 | |||||||
| inches/ozt | 11.5 | 7 | 4.5 | 3.6 | 3 | 2.3 |
TRYZANTINE
I was never happy with this weave, until I went on a fine-tuning quest and found a combination of three sizes to use. I now love the weave. I’ve only found sizes for 18ga, but I’ll experiment to find other good combinations as I have the time. The second image shows you a “map” for which size goes where.
Ring counts are a bit interesting for this one. Here are a couple ways to look at it:
1) 64 rings will give you four units of the weave. Four units of the weave is three inches long. So with 32 rings of size 12:18, and 16 rings each of sizes 13:18 and 14:18 you can make 3 inches of the weave as pictured.
2) I normally try to round to the nearest ring for my rings/inch counts, but that isn’t appropriate here. So the ugly fractional ring counts are…
| size | rings/inch |
|---|---|
| 12:18 | 10.66 |
| 13:18 | 5.33 |
| 14:18 | 5.33 |