Magnetic clasps: Do you or Don't you?

[cadia]

I was looking at a website with very high scale jewelry and they pointed out their use of magnetic clasps.
Even with $450+ bracelets.
I've only have had one bracelet with one and it wouldn't stay closed.
•Do you use them ?
•Which ones are the "good" ones.
( Sterling only)
•Where do you buy them?
TIA!

[Cabanlet]

You may want to put this in the jewelry section. I think more people that make jewelry would see it. I only put magnetic clasps on as a special request.

Amy

[Sue in Maine]

I don't cuz they don't stay stuck for me either. I put too much into my "stuff" to have it lost.

Hey Sally- I found another lampworker in Brooklin! I haven't sent her an email yet but she has a studio in town. Do you know her? One of my classmates in the business class I'm taking gave me her card.

Sue

[cadia]

Thanks Amy,
I debated about where to put it here or in Jewelry and I thought this area gets more traffic and might be better, Can't delete this and repost there and I don't want to add clutter.
Yes Sue, I do know Sihaya!
Shes been in Brooklin a few years and before that in Deer Isle.
Brooklin is small everyone knows everyone!

[BeadMaven]

I use them almost exclusively.

My older customers like how easy they are to put on and off, the younger ones like the streamline look at the back of the neck since they tend to wear their hair up or have short hair.

IMHO they aren't as accepted in the artistic/appearance circles but for me, I am going for functionality in my pieces so while I don't get so many kudos from certain eyes, my customers love them and they sell over and over.

[KEW]

I love them and I, too, use them more than any other clasp. My necklaces are HEAVY. I also add a thin safety chain with a tiny lobster clasp on necklaces that are NOT for me for two reasons: in case the necklace gets snagged, there is backup and the additional inches give you room to just pull it over your head if you want (it is easily removed if unwanted or annoying on the back of the neck).

I generally use Mag-Locks and if you look hard enough, you can find them in a variety of sterling styles. You really need to make sure the magnets are strong enough if you are buying a 'no name' type.

[laurel991]

I've used the sterling Mag-Lok ones before on bracelets, and added a safety chain like KEW mentioned. With the safety chains, I've had no problems with people losing bracelets. One thing about them, people with pacemakers aren't supposed to wear them.

Laurie

[evolvingBeau]

I have a bead crochet necklace that I made with one and it's awesome, the magnets are so strong that it puts itself on. This is the only one i've used so I'm sure there are good ones and bad ones.

[Elizabeth Beads]

I love them and my customers love them. I bought mine from Beadstuff:

http://www.beadstuff.com/store/econ_magnetic.html

They are silver tone but not sterling. The magnets are nice and strong. :)

[deirdreschaneman]

I use them on some of my pieces -- but everything I make that I put a magnetic clasp on comes with a written disclaimer about the fact that there is a magnetic clasp so that people who should not wear magnetic clasps have fair warning. There are certain medical devices (such as pacemakers, as mentioned above) which make wearing magnetic clasps dangerous.

[lunamoonshadow]

Hate them.
Only use them if they're requested & then only under duress.
Freakin' things stick to EVERYTHING (and I do mean EVERYTHING)
I've lost 2 lovely bracelets of my own that way :(. even WITH safety chains.
I tell people there is NO warrantee, they WILL lose the jewelry, it WILL get stuck to something & dissappear & I WILL NOT REPLACE IT! (because yes, the very first person who ever bought one, was pissed when they lost the piece...despite the safety clasp....it of course got stuck to something somewhere :roll:)

The only piece i still have of my own gets stuck to faucets, cash registers, shopping carts, my car door, you name it, it's stuck there!
~luna

[margriet@stainedglass.nl]

I sell my own bracelets called Margrieten®-armband. It has a very strong magnet clasp. The bracelet is silver and it is a changeble system, like Pandora etc.
It is very strong, I wear my bracelet everyday and I have never lost it.

http://www.margrieten.com/images/margrietenarmband.gif

[cadia]

Thanks for all the helpful info!

[BeadStak]

I use them on kids jewellery and reaction is usually "what a good idea". Used to use them for adult jewellery, but if I put the same two necklaces on my stall (one with toggle and bail clasp and one with magnetic clasp), customer will pick toggle and bail.

Lisa

[one hot beader]

Only on necklaces

They're a pain on a bracelet, too hard to find one that is strong enough and then they stick to eveything! And there is still a risk of losing the bracelet.

[WeeMary]

OK for necklaces in the summer, but in the winter my MIL kept dropping necklaces when she took off her coat and scarf. On bracelets, I use only with a safety chain, the ones I've had stick to car doors, supermarket trolleys, everything. Oh, and don't use them on watches, your watch will stop!

[blong2001]

I have used lots of them. I have people that request them and ask me to change out other clasps to put them on. I hate them. While you are trying to put a crimp bead on they have a mind of their own and try to get to the pliers. I can not recall who I purchased them from. I bought a ton of them at one time. Good luck!
Beth

[Venbead]

I hate them but all my older customers love them(including my mother) i only use sterling and the strongest I can find (I have bought from jewelrysupply.com and artbeads.com) and only when requested but i have a warning written up about pacemakers that I put in with the bracelet.
shopping carts are a prime suspect in where these things go missing. i even had one taken off my display booth at a craft show because it stuck to the underside of someone's purse. thank god i noticed it hanging from the bottom of her pocketbook while she was shopping at the next booth.
hate them!

[StellaBlue]

I hate 'em, don't use 'em, don't buy jewelry that uses 'em, and don't bring 'em into my house. If you work on any computer equipment that contains magnetic media, magnets (including those on jewelry clasps and purse clasps) can corrupt data. Several years ago (pre-USB drive) I had a number of teachers who came to me with corrupted and irrecoverable gradebooks on floppy disks. They had - to a one - put the diskettes in handbags with magnetic clasps, or in handbags where they also tossed their magnetic-close jewelery. Most of the equipment we are using now is better-shielded against casual magnetic loss, but I still just have a thing about these...

[tokmik]

I also have many unwanted pieces, most are pearls and metals. I send the pearls as gifts to friends or relatives or just melting the metal and shape into a new style! I only pay the cost of craft works and get a totally new pieces! I suggest you do so. Gold Buyer. (http://goldstashforcash.com)

[Hels]

I don't get this.... sterling silver is supposed to be 92.5% pure silver right? Silver cannot be magnetized and will not attract magnets (try on your bead making fine silver or sterling). As a test for real silver, you bring a magnet to it...

HOW do they call something 'sterling silver' and it possibly be magnetic? I tried to do a search to verify my info, and all I could find were 'magnetic sterling silver' stuff... omg.

[KEW]

The magnet in 'set' into the silver.

[Hels]

Ohhh... so there's a tiny magnet glued into it?? That makes sense, thanks:).