Setting stones into earrings with posts can be a very challenging task.

Earrings with posts are usually small and tricky to hold. If you have ever tried to hold them by hand, you know that it is easy to slip and over-bur the prongs, or bur into your fingers. It is also difficult to hold the earrings steady enough and level enough to bur a proper seat.

Another common problem that can occur while burring the seats on post earrings is the twisting and bending of the posts. This usually happens when only the post of the earring is held in a pin vise, ring clamp, or other devise, and the pressure on the head caused by the bur puts stress on the solder joint and twists the head off.

We’ve invited industry experts from Texas Institute Jewelry Training on how best to fixture post stud earrings during stone setting. The result is a series of methods that can be applied to improve stud fixturing and reduce damage to stud settings.