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-----Q&A's about 'Memory Wire' in Jewelry
Q. I am interested in finding information and a reliable source for Memory Wire for beading bracelets. I would like to find reliable information regarding Cadmium. Safety is a major concern. [I design and fabricate jewelry for adult/child]. Thank you for your assistance.
Julia Kilguss- HOPE Rhode Island
December 13, 2020
A. 'Memory wire' to jewelry makers apparently means a stainless wire or a plated steel wire which struggles to remain in its original shape (straight or, more commonly, a circle a bit bigger than a wrist) -- pretty much the opposite of baling wire which, when you bend it, wants to remain bent.
Memory wire is apparently quite high in carbon, quite hard, and pretty similar in behavior to 'music wire', 'piano wire', or 'spring steel'.
As for cadmium, it's a bio-cumulative poison very similar in effect to lead or mercury, and it should have absolutely no presence at all in jewelry neither as a plating nor as a substrate.
Luck & Regards,
Ted Mooney, P.E. RET
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