Hi Mike and Cecile,
I was having the same problem and found some good suggestions with an
Orchid archive search. Look at this thread:
I read all of the threads at the link you sent and I didn’t find the
way I do it. Now I only use Argentium wire when I want to ball a wire
as it looks like a little pearl on the end but when I was using
regular sterling wire I would use my Oxy-propane Little torch and
hold the wire in the third hand pointing down. As soon as the ball
would begin to form, I would turn off the oxygen and hold the
propane flame on it for another second or two and I was always able
to get a nice smooth ball that way. Several of the people who posted
were mainly doing the same thing but just in a little different way
by cooling the flame. By the way I read that somewhere but did put it
to good use.
Lona