From a picture to something you can saw

A drawing that looks good on paper does not always hold together in metal. A star inside a moon falls out when it is sawn free. A line thinner than the saw blade breaks. A hole smaller than a drill cannot be started.

Piercemaker turns a picture into metal and holes, and shows you all of that before you start: islands in orange, thin places in red, every hole with its drill point. It can bridge the islands for you, fill holes that are too small, frame the design and add a bail, and you can brush metal on or away by hand.

What it does

• The picture – three examples, or your own picture opened, dragged in or pasted, at the size you want the piece.
• Metal or not – a threshold for what counts as metal, the other way round for light drawings, smoothing and thicker lines.
• A frame – a circle, an oval or a rectangle round the design.
• Can it be sawn? – the narrowest bridge, bridges added to islands, tiny islands dropped, small holes filled.
• By hand – brush on metal, cut a hole, draw a bridge, and put the bail where you want it, with undo and redo.
• A bail – a drilled hole or a loop on top for a chain.
• The numbers – size, weight, how many holes and how far you will saw.
• Template, 1:1 – one piece or many, in pairs with a mirrored twin for earrings, with every drill point and a 50 mm ruler to check that the print is true.
• Files – SVG to print, DXF for a laser or waterjet, and STL for 3D printing.

Beta

Piercemaker is new. Check the first print against a ruler before you glue it to the sheet.

Made for makers

Piercemaker is part of Silversalen's tools for silversmiths and hobby makers, next to Filigreemaker, Kintsugimaker, Claspmaker, Bezelmaker, Linkmaker, Boxmaker, Conemaker, Signetmaker, Ringmaker, Chainmaker and Bench Mandrel.