Crafting best practise

Do you know ways to improve the probability of crafting a good quality piece of equipment?
Mixing some materials maybe?
Or investing in some technology or buildings?
Or even something else?

Just had this issue yesterday.

When you want to be sure, to craft, for e.g. an uncommon item, all fragments must be uncommon.
Mixing fragments is pure lottery.
You could try crafting an cav artifact with 4x GL and 1x epic: The result could be an epic item. Regardless of the stage which smithing you're at.
It's just pure luck.

Even the reached smithing stage doesn't help anything.
You could have reached Master Smithing or even not reached Basic Smithing: For e.g.: The result of crafting an common item could both times lead to an +1 item.

Would it be ok for someone in the know to provide some additional information here:

What does the Smithing (Adept\Expert\Master) research actually do?
And what does it NOT do?

Does it increase the likelihood of a higher rarity (ie, Uncommon turning into a rare?)
Does it increase the +stats you get on the item? Does it increase the chance of getting the higher rarity when you mix rarity fragments?

I'm not overly clear on this, and would very much like to know the specifics.

Thanks very much.

- XViper

Yesterday, I crafted a uttermost disappointing "distance + 4 uncommon bow" out of 3 uncommon weap frag.
Maybe the skills would had helped me get a less crappy uncommon bow.

If people could share what they were able to craft with or without any smithing upgrade, it might help figure how it might get involved in the process.

Anyone?

Quick answer the research only increases the % to craft a higher lvl item when you mix frags. It has no effect on stats.

Dakota337 wrote:

Quick answer the research only increases the % to craft a higher lvl item when you mix frags.  It has no effect on stats.

suxx ass