Peg size

[concun]

Hi,
I am attempting to set my loose pearls (9.8mm with 0.7mm drilled hole) into simple studs. Ideally I think I would need 0.6mm post thickness with 6mm cúp. My search is unsuccessful as the available peg is 0.7mm and 4mm cúp. I guess I can dơ 4mm cúp but 0.7mm peg will not do. Can you please share the vendor who may have this? Or would you recommend to drill a bigger hole? If drilling is required, I think I would rather send to jeweler as I am a beginner.
TIA

 

[newtojewels]

I drilled a bigger hole myself with a tiny hand drill. Was it a great idea to do that with Takahashi Akoyas when I had never done it before? Probably not! But it did work. Here's the drill I used: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B098CF3VMM

I think you would want a much bigger cup for almost 10mm pearls. Tagging @katbran who said that 6mm cups are for 8mm pearls and you typically want a cup ~2-3mm less than the pearl size.

@yssie has some specific heavyweight findings she likes from Bella Findings, if I recall correctly. I think these are the ones but I could be wrong:

6mm, only in yellow gold: https://www.bellafindings.com/48197/14ky-6mm-cup-heavy-weight-pearl-stud-earring.html

7mm or 8mm in white or yellow: https://www.bellafindings.com/3721/c-14k-heavy-weight-pearl-earrings-26302-14k.html

You would want some kind of jumbo back to keep them supported. I'm hoping the people I tagged can help you out more! Bella Findings has also been helpful when I called them.

 

[yssie]

Ditto @newtojewels

0.6mm post diameter is extremely thin. Much thinner than a standard stud that you buy from any jeweller would have. I wouldn't recommend this as it'll be commensurately delicate (read: High risk of breaking). I personally target 0.8-0.9mm - this is Mikimoto's standard post diameter.

Expanding the hole a little is easy and a hand drill is exactly what I use as well. Do it under water (like in a bowl, or run your kitchen faucet). For future reference - a 0.8mm drill hole is "standard" for mounting or stringing sub-10mm pearls. You could certainly have someone do it for you if that's your preference, but it's really not a big/risky operation - it sounds scarier than it is!

My only deviation from newtojewels' preferences - I like a 6mm cup on a 10mm pearl. For two reasons:
1. A larger cup tends to be more visible face-forward
2. If you're buying stock findings, 6mm and under tend to be manufactured properly round, but 8mm+ cups tend to be out of round and you end up having to hammer them into shape. Custom findings wouldn't have this problem of course.

 

[newtojewels]

Ditto @newtojewels

0.6mm post diameter is extremely thin. Much thinner than a standard stud that you buy from any jeweller would have. I wouldn't recommend this as it'll be commensurately delicate (read: High risk of breaking). I personally target 0.8-0.9mm - this is Mikimoto's standard post diameter.

Expanding the hole a little is easy and a hand drill is exactly what I use as well. Do it under water (like in a bowl, or run your kitchen faucet). For future reference - a 0.8mm drill hole is "standard" for mounting or stringing sub-10mm pearls. You could certainly have someone do it for you if that's your preference, but it's really not a big/risky operation - it sounds scarier than it is!

My only deviation from newtojewels' preferences - I like a 6mm cup on a 10mm pearl. For two reasons:
1. A larger cup tends to be more visible face-forward
2. If you're buying stock findings, 6mm and under tend to be manufactured properly round, but 8mm+ cups tend to be out of round and you end up having to hammer them into shape. Custom findings wouldn't have this problem of course.

Thank you so much for weighing in!

And to be clear, I just saw those size suggestions quoted in a previous thread. I don't have any pearl studs so I don't have any stud findings preferences Your thoughts make so much sense!