Description
These sterling silver jump rings are saw cut and polished to a high gleam. Spiderchain specializes in precious metal jump rings, and we take pride in the quality of our products. These rings are cleanly cut, consistently sized, and free of partial or mangled rings.
18ga Jump Rings – mm
| Inner Diameter | Rings per Troy Ounce (approx.) | Aspect Ratio |
|---|---|---|
| 2.25 mm | 350 | 2.21 |
| 2.5 mm | 334 | 2.45 |
| 2.75 mm | 300 | 2.70 |
| 3 mm | 280 | 2.94 |
| 3.25 mm | 268 | 3.19 |
| 3.5 mm | 249 | 3.43 |
| 3.75 mm | 240 | 3.68 |
| 4 mm | 222 | 3.92 |
| 4.25 mm | 216 | 4.17 |
| 4.5 mm | 205 | 4.41 |
| 4.75 mm | 193 | 4.66 |
| 5 mm | 183 | 4.90 |
| 5.25 mm | 177 | 5.15 |
| 5.5 mm | 172 | 5.39 |
| 5.75 mm | 160 | 5.64 |
| 6 mm | 157 | 5.88 |
| 6.25 mm | 150 | 6.13 |
| 6.5 mm | 143 | 6.37 |
| 6.75 mm | 140 | 6.62 |
| 7 mm | 137 | 6.86 |
Please note that the inner diameter listed is the size of the steel rod that we use to wind that ring size. The finished size will be a tiny bit larger (especially for big/thin rings) because the wire springs back a bit after being wrapped around the rod. And if you want rings with even larger inner diameters than are listed here, please visit the Large Aspect Ratio section of the site.
The rings/ozt numbers in this chart will be closest for sterling silver jump rings. The other metals that we use are slightly less dense than sterling silver. If you’re buying gold filled, brass or copper rings you will get a few more rings in an ounce than you see in the chart.
General Info About Sterling Silver
Pure silver is fairly soft, so it’s usually alloyed with other metals to make it more practical for everyday use. For sterling silver, 92.5% of the weight is silver, with the remaining 7.5% made up by other metal, usually copper. The sterling silver I sell is 92.5% silver and 7.5% copper. You’ll sometimes see sterling silver hallmarked with a “.925” stamp – that refers to the 92.5% silver content. And sometimes it’s simply referred to as 925 silver or 925 sterling. All of these terms are interchangeable, and they all refer to this most common silver alloy – just enough alloying metal added to make it tough enough for everyday use. Wikipedia has a great article on the history of sterling silver.
Working with 18 Gauge Jump Rings
For the beginning chainmailler, 18 gauge is the Goldilocks of ring sizes. The rings are large enough to manipulate into place, yet thin enough to bend without too much struggle. The resulting jewelry is also a nice medium size: big enough to be substantial, yet small enough to look “intricate” rather than “bulky.” The student kits that accompany my first and second DVDs are based around 18 ga rings for just this reason. Once you get comfortable with chainmaille techniques, you may find that you prefer smaller or larger gauges, but this is a great place to start!
I am most comfortable using mismatched pliers for 18 gauge: flat-nose in my dominant hand and chain-nose in my off hand. Your technique may vary!
