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Glossary Like any other specialized field, pewter work has its jargon and technical terms that may be unfamiliar to the layman. A few of these are explained below. alloy - a mixture of metals. Metals can be alloyed for a variety of reasons, such as changing the casting properties of the metal, or its strength. Britannia metal - Modern pewter (i.e. pewter without lead) is also known as Britannia metal. In Britannia metal, antimony has replaced lead in the alloy, making a brighter, harder metal, without the toxic hazards of a lead alloy. bronze - an alloy, primarily made of copper and tin. As pewter is made from the same ingredients in a different ratio, the two can be considered related alloys, though they have very different qualities. casting - the process of creating an object in metal by filling a mould with molten metal. There are several different techniques of casting; the types I use are "drop casting" (or "gravity casting") and centrifugal casting. centrifuge - a machine that spins a mould so that, when molten metal is poured in the center of the machine, the metal is propelled outwards into the mould cavities by centrifugal force. eutectic alloy - an alloy having a lower melting point than any of its component parts. fettling - the process of trimming, cleaning and otherwise preparing the cast piece for finishing. While the word 'fettle' is not in common use as a verb, it is used in a variety of crafts to describe simular processes. As a noun, it means 'condition' or 'trim', and may be familiar from the phrase, "in fine fettle". flash - thin pieces of pewter formed when the metal forces its way into the seam-lines of a mould during casting. Flash has to be removed manually, in a process called "fettling". guild - an association of craftsmen. Pewter guilds were formed throughout Europe in the middle ages, to regulate the quality of work produced by pewterers and pewtersmiths. melting pot - an electric or gas-powered container in which metal is melted and heated to the correct temperature for casting. model - the three-dimensional piece of artwork from which a mould is made. As a verb, modelling describes the process of creating an original model by adding and shaping material (as one does with clay). This is as opposed to "sculpting", which is a subtractive process. molten - liquified by heat. mould - a three-dimensional negative form of a model, into which molten metal can be poured to form a positive duplicate of the original piece. Moulds have been made using a variety of techniques. I make mine out of rubber, but you can also make moulds from plaster, sand, soapstone, and even other metals such as bronze. patina - the surface colouration of a metal object, usually caused by a chemical process. pewter - an alloy of tin, antimony and copper. Modern pewter does not contain lead; lead was replaced in the alloy about 200 years ago by antimony. This lead-free alloy, called Britannia metal, is the metal we call pewter today. pewterer - one who makes objects in pewter, particularly by casting or spinning. pewtersmith - a smith 'smites', so the term pewtersmith properly refers to someone who makes objects in pewter using a hammer or mallet, by such techniques as raising or planishing. sculpture - the art of creating a model by carving or removing material, as opposed to modelling, which is an additive process. smelting - the process of heating and melting ore in order to obtain metal. This is, of course, done before the metal is alloyed. smith - generally used to refer to any person who makes things in metal, it is more specifically correct to use it to describe one who 'smites' (with a hammer) in the process. spinning - the technique of shaping sheet pewter over a wooden form, while spinning it on a lathe. This process requires a great deal of skill, and is used by craftsmen like my colleague Colin Hamer to make beautiful objects such as bowls, lamps, and tankards. sprue - pieces of metal formed in the casting process when molten metal fills and freezes in the channels in the mould that allow pewter to enter the mould and air to escape. Sprues, like flash, are removed in the fettling process. Back to the top of this page Copyright © Michael J. Gilbert. All rights reserved.