I have 14ky and 18ky scrap and filings (dust), and I was curious to
know if it is possible to fuse gold filings onto a silver surface,
and how to do it. It would be economical if I can use the filings
from previous fabricated pieces, but if not, I could file clean
metal. I use TruSilver Plus sterling silver from Hoover, as well as
traditional sterling silver, if that makes any difference.
I have seen on the internet, jewelry that looks like gold dust fused
onto silver and then the silver is oxidized. This is the look that I
am going for.
All suggestions and help is appreciated.
18kt gold filings fuse readily to Argentium, which might be what you
see most commonly out there. I’ve heard that 14kt doesn’t work the
same. The technique I’ve used is: clean the surface as you would for
soldering, flux only the area you want the fusing to happen on,
sprinkle filings, fuse down, let air cool for 1 minute, quench. If
you want a thicker layer at this point, reapply flux and repeat the
process from there; when you’re satisfied, pickle.
Good luck!
Matthew Klahn
I would think something like granulation. Eutectic welding. Heat,
pickle, heat, pickle, and so on till the surface is coppery. Put on
the shavings and heat with a brushy flame from under or in a kiln
(better) till surface glistens, then stop and see what happens. Look
up eutectic welding. SD