Setting Up A Jewellery Workshop In A Secondary School

I have been asked if to setup a Jewellery workshop in a secondary school. Making things like rings, necklaces and raise vessels. I did a sub major in Gold & Silver Smithing at uni but I have never setup a workshop or purchased tools for the craft. I have taught the subject at another school as a CRT but again I did not setup or run that workshop either. I was wondering if anyone could recommend a reputable on stop shop were I could purchase most of the following in Australia. It cannot be eBay or international as the school needs invoices and ABN's.

I have found a few online shops but the all have only some tools but not everything.

Also were do people get their sheet material from?

If anyone can recommend other tools that I might find useful.

Heat Resistant Soldering Fire Bricks (enough to cover just over 1 meter square of space)
Jewellers Piercings saws frames (x15)
Saw blades set of 12 Size 1/0 (x5)
Round Nose Pliers (x4)
Chain Nose Pliers (x4)
Soldering Tweezers - Curved (x2)
Soldering Tweezers - Straight (x2)
Third Hand with Round base (x2)
Chasing Hammer (x4)
Small Rectangular Raising Hammer (x4)
100mm Dividers (x4)
Wooden handled three sided scraper (x2)
Vernier (x1)
Ring Mandrel (x2)
Ring Sizer (x1)
Flint Lighter (x3)
Solder Picks (x3)

NOT STRICTLY JEWELLERY RELATED

Compresser hose nozzle (x1)
Metal Dust Pans & Brushes (x6)
Hoses and fittings for three LPG gas torches (We have the torches)
Selection of different torch nozzles for annealing and soldering (3)
45kg LPG tank & regulator
Linisher attachment for the bench grinder with suitable selection of very fine grit belts
Bench grinder stand
Rust Inhibitor

MATERIALS

• 0.8mm copper sheet
• 0.8mm brass sheet
• 0.8mm nickel silver
• Silver solder (Can anyone recommend an easy solder general purpose solder brand)
• Flux (Can anyone recommend an easy solder general purpose flux brand)

Re jewellery tools---- Gemcuts Lapidary & Jewellery Making Tools in my experience the best supplier in Australia and very nice people although i am not familiar with " wooden handled three sided scraper"
Copper sheet, Brass sheet, nickel Silver--- https://www.aemetal.com.au/Webstore/default.aspx
LPG fittings and tanks etc any of the major gas/ welding suppliers
linisher etc----https://www.machineryhouse.com.au/.

Don't buy the cheap Chinese knock offs they are a false economy you will also need polishing motors+ buffs + polishing compound, flex shafts, hand shears for cutting sheet, files,safety glasses, ear protection, aprons, dust extraction, 1 square meter seems way overkill for a soldering station, a linisher would be way down on my list for a jewellery studio
There are most likely many more things I can't think of right now,you list 15 saw frames that does not seem to add up with the small number of other items listed? How many students? you are going to need to buy you saw blades buy the hundreds new students will break the more often than they take breaths
For raising vessels you will also need various raising hammers leather raising pads depending on the type of vessel raising stakes

Hi

The three sided scraper is just a deburing tool.

We already have these - "hand shears for cutting sheet, files, safety glasses, ear protection, aprons, dust extraction"

Okay 0.5 meters of Fire Bricks

We have some tools, hammers, files, anvils, Dollys, a guillotine, bench grinder, an old buffing machine and vices left over when they taught sheet metal/boiler making.

The numbers are based on what I have experienced when I have taught at other schools. While you may have 25 students in a class you will only have a small number at exactly the same point in their projects. So you will never need 25 planishing hammers all at the same time. However saws/files these are tools that can be in high demand.

How do you spot the Chinese made stuff?

Well it can be hard, buy from reputable dealer, you get what you pay for, one example a chasing hammer for $20 it has a round hole it head for the handle use twice and the head starts spinning around ( been there done that) basically a bin job
and you have wasted you $20
another example Foredom pendant motor $4-600 in Australia you will see them on the net for a $150 don't expect it to be genuine, blatant counterfeit

PM
China would George White be a good metal supplier.

I ask because A&E meta only sells small pieces 300 x 300 and in thin 0.8mm stock.

I need like 2 meters x 2 meters worth of copper, brass and aluminium at ~ 1.1mm.

Unless you can recommend another supplier.

George White would be my go-to on anything non ferrous but i only buy big stuff from them. I have seen plenty of thin sheet in the racks though.

Also this company, Brass and Copper | Australia's leading stockist & distributor of non-ferrous metals
they don't have precious metal