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The Bead's Knees
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Crimp Beads and Tubes

A crimp bead is just a small metal bead or tube used to either hold two pieces of beading wire together or to hold a bead in place on a single strand of wire.

The way to use a crimp bead is to ‘squash’ it onto the beading wire so that it clamps the wire securely. The squashing can be done with either crimping pliers or chain nose pliers.

The description below describes crimping a bead using crimping pliers. If you want to use chain nose pliers instead simply place the bead on your beading wire, place it between the jaws of the pliers and press the jaws together. It will work just as well but may not give such a neat finish.

How to use a Crimp Bead

diagram of a crimp beads in the jaws of a pair of crimping pliers.
Place the bead on the beading wire and then place it between the jaws of the crimping pliers in the first notch, the one nearest the handles.
cross-section of two strands of beading wire passing through a crimp bead.

Try to make sure the two lengths of wire go either side of the small point in this notch of the pliers (see the cross-section diagram on the right).

Press the jaws of the pliers together to form a small indent in the top of the crimp bead.

diagram of a crimp beads in the jaws of a pair of crimping pliers.

Rotate the crimp bead 90 degrees and move it to the notch near the end of the pliers to shape it. Press the pliers together again to fold the ‘U’ shaped bead in half and to give a neater finish.

You can continue to rotate and re-crimp to try and achieve a nice round crimp bead.

Note: Placing the crimp bead or tube in the outer notch first to turn it into a slight oval can make it easier to keep it in position when you place it in the inner notch.

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