Heat hardening [was: Hardening a tube catch]

Jewelry Discussion
1

Hi Chris,

You wrote: Place the annealed item in a furnace at 600F for 30-45
minutes.

I did this recently to a sterling olive fork I forged. It worked
reasonably well, as the piece is “bar ware”, rather than for every
day use. As you point out, it wasn’t completely hard, but much
better than the annealed state left from soldering a tube setting
in the handle.20

I coated the piece liberally with boric acid before heat hardening
it. Do you think this step was necessary, or is 600 degrees (F)
not hot enough to cause rapid oxidation? Any thoughts? Anyone?

Dave

Dave Sebaste
Sebaste Studio
Charlotte, NC (USA)
dave@sebaste.com
http://www.sebaste.com

2

You get the best results from age hardening when you start with a
fully annealed piece of sterling. The surface, if left
unprotected, will discolor but not oxidize. It is a simple matter
to buff it when complete. I should have mentioned that when the
time cycle is complete it should be removed from the furnce and
allowed to cool on the bench.

It works great when making money clips too.

Chris
Maugham
JA-CMBJ