Jewelry Tech--The Lost Ring and Lost Wax Tradition — Bikernet Blog

You can order our wheel ring in the Bikernet Black Market.

We've just hooked up with a craftsman biker jeweler, Frank Zubieta, of Nino925. Actually Mr. KnockOut Motorcycles, Ralph Randolph, asked Frank to create his Knockout Motorcycle ring recently. So a business triad began. Ah, but when it comes to jewels and diamonds, there's always intrigue, women, romance and deceit.

The KnockOut Motorcycle Ring. See more Nino rings at the end of the article.

Maybe it's the summer heat, or ever-shrinking bikinis spinning my feeble brain into a confused migraine headache. What started as a history of Nino925, an advice tech on having Frank design and create individual works of treasured countenance, reached into the historic archives of Bikernetdom and then to the shores of China. My head spun like a colorful whirling top radiates varying hues in all directions. Where's the Whiskey? I need to make some sense of this story, or jump on my chopper and hit it to Mexico, never to return.

Here's the silver version.

Let's cut to the chase. As soon as we met Frank in a dank coffee shop in Seal Beach, California, wearing dark glasses and sipping espresso, Sin Wu nudged me. “Remember your wheel ring?”

I hadn't thought about that ring since, in a jealous rage, she tossed it into the clear Pacific waters off the coast of the North Shore in Hawaii. That ring represented my hand-made belt buckles, motorcycles, and my third wedding ring, hand-made by a strange couple who made Hells Angel deathhead rings in the '70s. I believe the name was Zumatti, or something close. Long after the third wife escaped, my fourth wife, in a fit of romantic nirvana, had a diamond installed into the center.

It represented a plethora of romantic aspects of this Bandit's life, including motorcycles, my buckle craft and several luscious women. Then suddenly it was gone. It was one of a kind, and an exceedingly difficult ring to reconfigure due to the thin, narrow spokes. In fact, for years, I attempted to have my buckles mass produced, but never successfully due to the delicate spokes.

For years, anytime I encountered a jeweler, I inquired. Each time, I was met with a sorrowful expression of doom. I was fucked, but I never gave up, although all the wives did. I don't blame them. Hell, even the late David Mann created a painting for me that included my simple buckles and the one and only ring.

So when we met Frank in the shadows while the smell of old coffee grounds wafted in the cold seaside night air, we held little confidence that the wheel ring could be reborn. But Frank said, “No problem,” and went to work.

“I like to be flexible,” Frank said. “Generally, there's a way to make any design come to life.”

The lovely Sin Wu, in a touching jesture, offered her only wedding diamond (from her first husband) for my new wheel ring.

Frank Zubieta, 43, grew up on the south side of Chicago. Brought up in a working class family, he could never see himself working for anyone else as his parents did. He came from a family of iron workers.

“I knew I had to pursue a career that was meaningful to me and also afforded enough freedom to inspire creativity,” said Frank.

“In my early twenties, I started importing jewelry from Italy, Mexico and Thailand, and this opened my eyes to the world of jewelry. I always appreciated unique designs and realized that I could create jewelry that reflected lifestyles that I associated with freedom. It was a slow process that took years to polish, but that’s how Nino925 was developed. I love what I do and I appreciate it when my customers write to me or call me to express their delight for jewelry I make to fit their lifestyles. Customers also appreciate the unsurpassed level of service. That’s my rush and I get to experience it every day. What more can I ask for?”

He started with a rubber mold of an original pendant from the '80s.

Here's the tech aspect to this saga. Frank sketched the ring, and usually between 24-48 hours later he has a rendering developed for the customer's review. In this computer era, a CAD or 3-D design can be rendered, then a rubber mold created and wax version cast overnight.

Then Frank created a ring base.

Then using the lost wax tradition of casting Frank can manufacturer from 1 to 500 versions. The NINO925 crew will archive the mold or turn it over to the customer.

With the two wax elements melted together, he sized it before casting.

There you have it. Check the Nino banner to see his entire line of existing flash. He is capable of building anything in gold, silver, white gold and we're working on stainless. We are investigating the wheel design as earrings, bracelets and pendants. Watch for our Black Market product line to expand, and if you need something special, don't hesitate to reach out to the man.