Solder and sterling silver?

As a beader and glass fuser, what I wish to do right now is a bit out
of my league... but I'm willing to learn! =-)

I purchased a pair of post-style earrings that are the most adorable
little pieces -- I intend to turn them into two pendants.

So I've snipped the posts from the back, and what I want to do is
solder a sterling jump ring onto the back, in the area where I just cut
the post. Then, I'll attach another jump ring to that, and then solder
that shut to insure it doesn't come apart.

I found my husband's old soldering iron in the tool box -- unused since
high school, I think -- but that's about all I know. I've been reading
online about what you can and can't do with sterling and a soldering
iron... but it's all still sort of unclear to me as I've never done
this before.

Do I need a torch instead?

Help!?

On Tue, 02 Jan 2007 14:44:29 +0000, lavachickie wrote:

As a beader and glass fuser, what I wish to do right now is a bit out
of my league... but I'm willing to learn! =-)

I purchased a pair of post-style earrings that are the most adorable
little pieces -- I intend to turn them into two pendants.

So I've snipped the posts from the back, and what I want to do is
solder a sterling jump ring onto the back, in the area where I just cut
the post. Then, I'll attach another jump ring to that, and then solder
that shut to insure it doesn't come apart.

I found my husband's old soldering iron in the tool box -- unused since
high school, I think -- but that's about all I know. I've been reading
online about what you can and can't do with sterling and a soldering
iron... but it's all still sort of unclear to me as I've never done
this before.

Do I need a torch instead?

Help!?



Generally, soft solder (the kind you can use a soldering iron on) is not
good to use for jewelry, although you occasionally see it used when
heating a stone or enamel is undesirable.

What you really want is a brazing alloy and a torch. Brazing alloys for
jewelry are confusingly called "hard solder," and hard solder confusingly
comes in grades, some of which may suggest softness, although they
actually refer to the melting points.

Instead of posting a long explanation of how to braze, have a look
at these articles (with a tip of the hat to ganoksin's excellent site):

http://www.ganoksin.com/borisat/nenam/consol.htm
http://www.ganoksin.com/borisat/nena...sing-torch.htm

....to which I would add that you should try to file off all traces of the
solder that was used for the posts before you do your soldering, since
you don't know what grade was used. If you are unable to get it all off,
go with 'easy' solder, which has the lowest melting point.

Caution:
If there are stones involved, they will (probably) have to be unset, and
If the metal is not solid sterling, or made by some
kind of short-cut construction, you may ruin them.
--
mbstevens
http://www.mbstevens.com/

lavachickie wrote:
As a beader and glass fuser, what I wish to do right now is a bit out
of my league... but I'm willing to learn! =-)

I purchased a pair of post-style earrings that are the most adorable
little pieces -- I intend to turn them into two pendants.

So I've snipped the posts from the back, and what I want to do is
solder a sterling jump ring onto the back, in the area where I just cut
the post. Then, I'll attach another jump ring to that, and then solder
that shut to insure it doesn't come apart.

I found my husband's old soldering iron in the tool box -- unused since
high school, I think -- but that's about all I know. I've been reading
online about what you can and can't do with sterling and a soldering
iron... but it's all still sort of unclear to me as I've never done
this before.

Do I need a torch instead?


Yes, if you want to use silver solder. If you want to use lead solder,
you can use a soldering iron.

--
Abrasha
http://www.abrasha.com

"lavachickie" wrote in message
news

So I've snipped the posts from the back, and what I want to do is
solder a sterling jump ring onto the back, in the area where I just cut
the post. Then, I'll attach another jump ring to that, and then solder
that shut to insure it doesn't come apart.

It may be easier if you solder the second jump ring (the one you mentioned
second) first, then loop it into the other jump ring and solder that to the
pendant.

This can be a tricky procedure. You'll need a lot of practice on less
important stuff first. It might also be easier if you made a bail out of a
single length of wire with the loop at rightangles to the back of the
pendant then you only have one soldering task to worry about.

Take about 40mm of 1.0mm silver wire (I don't know the size of your
earring/pendants so you may have to choose a different size) and make a loop
the size you need with a round nosed pliers. Hammer the bit left over and
cut it to a length that will suit the pendant. Finish it off with a small
file and you have a simple bail that should do the job nicely. The finished
bail will look a bit like a letter 'p' (or a 'd' or 'b' depending which way
you look at it.) You'll need to make the flat part wide enough so that the
bail will sit nicely while you solder it to the pendant. You'll probably
need a few tries before you get it right I did. (This is also the best time
to prepare a long list of suitable swear words ready for each time the bail
falls over while you are soldering it.)

This is just one of many, many bail designs, any of which will do the job
well

There's nothing wrong with the method you suggested but it will require more
skill. It depends how important the job is to you. If its very important
then work within your skill level or build your skill level until you're
confident.

Best of luck - Kendall

On Tue, 02 Jan 2007 19:44:39 +0000, Kendall Davies wrote:

As this is indeed new territory for me, the less skill required, the
better! *laugh* The use of wire to make a bail to then attach is a
great one! I've gathered up some scrap that will serve as suitable
"guinea pigs" and I'll set out to do some tests.

Thanks so much for your note -- I had a response or two in e-mail, and
they've helped to not only show me how to do this simple little "to do"
task, but also got me thinking about what OTHER sort of trouble I could
get myself into! =-)

I've taken a number of metal classes before, but didn't actively USE a
lot of the info after classes, for lack of a lot of the tools. But a
little of it sticks so that I can tinker somewhere down the road!

Thanks again, Kendall and others!

Amy

On Tue, 02 Jan 2007 14:44:29 GMT, lavachickie
wrote:

As a beader and glass fuser, what I wish to do right now is a bit out
of my league... but I'm willing to learn! =-)

I purchased a pair of post-style earrings that are the most adorable
little pieces -- I intend to turn them into two pendants.

So I've snipped the posts from the back, and what I want to do is
solder a sterling jump ring onto the back, in the area where I just cut
the post. Then, I'll attach another jump ring to that, and then solder
that shut to insure it doesn't come apart.

The problem with this is that the pendant will dangle from the joining
place, so it will face downward. You need to make the joining place
on the top edge.

I found my husband's old soldering iron in the tool box -- unused since
high school, I think -- but that's about all I know. I've been reading
online about what you can and can't do with sterling and a soldering
iron... but it's all still sort of unclear to me as I've never done
this before.

Do I need a torch instead?

Help!?
--
Marilee J. Layman
http://mjlayman.livejournal.com/

"Abrasha" wrote in message
news | lavachickie wrote:
| As a beader and glass fuser, what I wish to do right now is a bit out
| of my league... but I'm willing to learn! =-)
|
| I purchased a pair of post-style earrings that are the most adorable
| little pieces -- I intend to turn them into two pendants.
|
| So I've snipped the posts from the back, and what I want to do is
| solder a sterling jump ring onto the back, in the area where I just cut
| the post. Then, I'll attach another jump ring to that, and then solder
| that shut to insure it doesn't come apart.
|
| I found my husband's old soldering iron in the tool box -- unused since
| high school, I think -- but that's about all I know. I've been reading
| online about what you can and can't do with sterling and a soldering
| iron... but it's all still sort of unclear to me as I've never done
| this before.
|
| Do I need a torch instead?
|
|
| Yes, if you want to use silver solder. If you want to use lead solder,
| you can use a soldering iron.

There are many versions of lead-free low-temperature soft solder safe for
jewelry (and food too).

Norm

lavachickie wrote:
As a beader and glass fuser, what I wish to do right now is a bit out
of my league... but I'm willing to learn! =-)

I purchased a pair of post-style earrings that are the most adorable
little pieces -- I intend to turn them into two pendants.

So I've snipped the posts from the back, and what I want to do is
solder a sterling jump ring onto the back, in the area where I just cut
the post. Then, I'll attach another jump ring to that, and then solder
that shut to insure it doesn't come apart.

I found my husband's old soldering iron in the tool box -- unused since
high school, I think -- but that's about all I know. I've been reading
online about what you can and can't do with sterling and a soldering
iron... but it's all still sort of unclear to me as I've never done
this before.

Do I need a torch instead?

Help!?
For sure. clean the joints clean! A soft flame and borax! But in this
case but i've got 40 years experience and i Use Tenacity 4 x flux and a
very sharp flame! High concentration heat in a small area! Then there is
the wet insulation around the front item, pearl, whatever is just a trade!