Occupation: Jewelers and Precious Stone and Metal Workers

Jewelers and Precious Stone and Metal Workers

Design, fabricate, adjust, repair, or appraise jewelry, gold, silver, other precious metals, or gems.

51-9071.00 | 29 tasks | 10 job titles

Reported Job Titles

(10)
  • Artist
  • Bench Jeweler
  • Caster
  • Earrings Fabricator
  • Gemologist
  • Goldsmith
  • Jeweler
  • Platinum Smith
  • Restoration Silversmith
  • Silversmith

Core Tasks

(26)
  • Position stones and metal pieces, and set, mount, and secure items in place, using setting and hand tools.
  • Smooth soldered joints and rough spots, using hand files and emery paper, and polish smoothed areas with polishing wheels or buffing wire.
  • Create jewelry from materials such as gold, silver, platinum, and precious or semiprecious stones.
  • Make repairs, such as enlarging or reducing ring sizes, soldering pieces of jewelry together, and replacing broken clasps and mountings.
  • Clean and polish metal items and jewelry pieces, using jewelers' tools, polishing wheels, and chemical baths.
  • Cut and file pieces of jewelry such as rings, brooches, bracelets, and lockets.
  • Select and acquire metals and gems for designs.
  • Compute costs of labor and materials to determine production costs of products and articles.
  • Examine assembled or finished products to ensure conformance to specifications, using magnifying glasses or precision measuring instruments.
  • Pierce and cut open designs in ornamentation, using hand drills and scroll saws.
  • Construct preliminary models of wax, metal, clay, or plaster, and form sample castings in molds.
  • Pour molten metal alloys or other materials into molds to cast models of jewelry.
  • Shape and straighten damaged or twisted articles by hand or using pliers.
  • Soften metal to be used in designs by heating it with a gas torch and shape it, using hammers and dies.
  • Determine appraised values of diamonds and other gemstones based on price guides, market fluctuations, and stone grades and rarity.
  • Grade stones based on their color, perfection, and quality of cut.
  • Plate articles such as jewelry pieces and watch dials, using silver, gold, nickel, or other metals.
  • Write or modify design specifications such as the metal contents and weights of items.
  • Create new jewelry designs and modify existing designs, using computers as necessary.
  • Buy and sell jewelry, or serve as agents between buyers and sellers.
  • Record the weights and processing times of finished pieces.
  • Lay out designs on metal stock, and cut along markings to fabricate pieces used to cast metal molds.
  • Mark, engrave, or emboss designs on metal pieces such as castings, wire, or jewelry, following specifications.
  • Cut designs in molds or other materials to be used as models in the fabrication of metal and jewelry products.
  • Design and fabricate molds, models, and machine accessories, and modify hand tools used to cast metal and jewelry pieces.
  • Research and analyze reference materials, and consult with interested parties to develop new products or modify existing designs.

Supplemental Tasks

(3)
  • Weigh, mix, and melt metal alloys or materials needed for jewelry models.
  • Rotate molds to distribute alloys and to prevent formation of air pockets.
  • Rout out locations where parts are to be joined to items, using routing machines.