Custom Jewelers are only as strong as their imaginations and the tools they use. At our custom jewelry business, Shmukler Design, imagination fuels us, while one of our favorite work instruments is the Orion LZR 100 Benchtop Laser.

Laser technology has found its way into many industries, both new — solar, electronics, aerospace — and some of the oldest, including jewelry making. A laser welder can help bench jewelers like our founder and creative director, Boris Shmukler, work quickly and efficiently to deliver custom designs or conduct restoration and repair work on heirloom jewelry.

And while laser welding tools are perfect for working with metals such as silver, gold, platinum, and more, they also have the ability to assist in repairing jewelry containing gemstones without having to remove the mounting. Laser welders create strong welds and can even weld in the direct vicinity of heat-sensitive stones such as emerald, peridot, aquamarine, opal, pearl, and others.

Meet the Orion LZR 100 Benchtop Laser

The Orion LZR 100 Benchtop Laser is a small but powerful and efficient machine. It has a user-friendly touchscreen, enabling jewelers like us to set weld parameters quickly and input customized settings. In addition, we can switch between these settings seamlessly. The LZR 100 also has an advanced cooling system that reduces wear and tear on critical parts of the machine and creates less maintenance down the line.

As for the laser welder itself, it possesses a Leica 10x stereo microscope to keep a close eye on the piece that is being worked on, in addition to a camera that transports sharp footage directly to the touch screen. (If you’re unfamiliar with Leica, it’s an award-winning German manufacturer of cameras, lenses, binoculars, microscopes, and ophthalmic lenses.)

This LZR 100 laser welder is practically maintenance free. In addition to the amazing capabilities of the advanced cooling system, LED lights are used to illuminate the welding chamber without adding extra heat. In addition, there’s no water filter that needs to be replaced. And the entire laser system weighs less than 80 pounds, so it can be moved with ease.

Microscopic weld joints allow us to weld small workpieces easily, and the pulse- shape settings on the machine make it possible to weld on any metal with multiple configuration options. There is also a larger-than-normal opening in the weld chamber that offers easier access and enables Boris to work more freely on any size project.

Marrying the Old with the New

Even though we believe a professionally-run custom jewelry shop can’t be without a traditional soldering torch, we appreciate the ability to advance the trade of jewelry making with new technology. At Shmukler Design, we take on challenging projects of any level of difficulty, and it’s our Orion LZR 100 Benchtop Laser that often offers the best advantage. The Orion LZR 100 allows us to fabricate and assemble complicated design elements. The precision that a laser welder creates is unparalleled. We truly believe this tool was developed with custom jewelers like us in mind.

From crafting new pieces to repairing our customers’ favorite possessions, we pride ourselves on creating the best work in our profession, and that requires having the best equipment in our workshop. If you have pieces that need repairing or a vision of something new and spectacular, give us a call.