Ask the Experts Faceted Gems and Cabochons Q&A

What are your items that will hold Faceted Gems and Cabochons? Is it best to use glue? If so, what kind? 

- Debra

Faceted gems and cabochons work best with mountings and settings. The most common types are prong, bezel and glue-in.

With most prong mountings and settings, the prongs are pushed in place over a faceted stone with a prong pusher: "Using a Prong Lifter and Prong Pusher".

With a bezel setting, the bezel is pressed down against the stone using a bezel pusher or bezel roller and the metal is smoother over using the roller or using the pusher with a steel-tipped burnisher. 

With glue-in mountings and settings, the glue holds the stone in place. We recommend Devcon® 5 Minute® Epoxy if you are working with a small number of stones at once or Devcon® 2 Ton® Clear Epoxy that allows for 30 minutes of working time, if you are mass-producing set stones. If replacing rhinestones or crystal chatons, we recommend G-S Hypo Cement® for its durability and fine tip control.

In addition, there are tension settings such as Wrap-Tite® and Cab-Tite™. The cabochons and faceted stones in these settings are held in place by tension or pressure around the rim of the stone. These videos show how to add stones to Wrap-Tites and mount cabochons into Cab-Tites.