I am trying to solder a bezel of 14ky gold 30g x 1/4" closed with medium silver solder. The solder just balls up and won’t flow in spite of the gold getting red hot. What could be going wrong?
Helen
Why are you using silver-solder on gold? I’ll let the “membership” reply
on this topic! …Gerry!
*Gerry Lewy *
Toronto.
- (905) 886-5961 *
Thank you Gerry for your quick reply. You are very generous with your knowledge. This is the first time I have worked with gold. I used silver solder on the inside of the bezel seam to close the bezel because that is what I had on hand. As I mentioned, the silver seemed not to flow but the seam now is closed without the silver flowing through to the outside (visible) side.
I have much to learn.
Helene
Why not use gold solder appropriate for 14 K yellow gold. That being said, I mix gold and silver in some of my bracelets, but I usually use gold solder to join the two metals as it seems to blend better into the silver than silver solder into the gold. What you describe is probably a heat or dirt or flux related problem. I have to relearn how to solder from time to time and it usually is fixed by cleaning my bench, a new batch of flux, new solder, making sure that my torch is adjusted well and occasionally just stepping back, taking a break and starting over.
Melting Point
14kt yellow 1615 F
18kt 1700 F
Sterling silver 1640 F
Solders melt below 200-300
degrees below melt temp.
I think this shows that trying
to use 18 kt solder to solder 18kt
gold to Sterling poses a risk,
if not disaster.
14kt to sterling should be safe. Hard
silver solder melt temp is 1370 F
Metal °F °C Specific Gravity Weight in Troy OZ per CU IN
Aluminum 1220 660 2.70 1.423
Antinomy 1167 630 6.62 3.488
Beryllium 2340 1282 1.82 0.959
Bismuth 520 271 9.80 5.163
Cadmium 610 321 8.65 4.557
Carbon 2.22 1.170
Chromium 3430 1888 7.19 3.788
Cobalt 2723 1495 8.90 8.900
Copper 1981 1083 8.96 4.719
Gold 1950 1065 19.32 10.180
18K Green 1810 988 15.90 8.375
18K Yellow 1700 927 15.58 8.211
18K White 1730 943 14.64 7.712
18K Red 1655 902 15.18 7.998
14K Green 1765 963 14.20 7.482
14K Yellow 1615 879 13.07 6.885
14K White 1825 996 12.61 6.642
14K Red 1715 935 13.26 6.986
10K Green 1580 860 11.03 5.810
10K Yellow 1665 907 11.57 6.096
10K White 1975 1079 11.07 5.832
10K Red 1760 960 11.59 6.106
Iridium 4449 2454 22.50 11.849
Iron (Pure) 2802 1539 7.87 4.145
Lead 621 328 11.34 5.973
Magnesium 1202 650 1.74 0.917
Manganese 2273 1245 7.43 3.914
Molybdenum 4760 2625 10.20 5.347
Nickel 2651 1455 8.90 4.691
Osmium 4892 2700 22.50 11.854
Palladium 2831 1555 12.00 6.322
Phosphorus 111 44 1.82 0.959
Platinum 3224 1773 21.45 11.301
15% Iridium Plat. 3310 1821 21.59 11.373
10% Iridium Plat. 3250 1788 21.54 11.349
5% Iridium Plat. 3235 1779 21.50 11.325
Rhodium 3571 1967 12.44 6.533
Ruthenium 4500 2500 12.20 6.428
Silicon 2605 1430 2.33 1.247
Silver 1761 961 10.49 5.525
Sterling Silver 1640 893 10.36 5.457
Coin Silver 1615 879 10.31 5.430
Tin 450 232 7.30 3.846
Zinc 787 419 7.13 3.758
Well this proves to be an interesting topic for me. I just completed a larger (for me) order of 14 k gold bracelets, twists, with silver ropes. And to join the silver to the gold I used H 4-45 Silver Solder, 1235f flow 1260f, for flux a Batterns type of generic flux. This is what I have done since my father showed me what to do 30+ years ago. When asked why silver solder and not gold he felt that the silver would polish off the gold easier than the gold would polish off the silver. Also since I was attaching 20ga silver ropes the concern was the gold migrating up the the rope twist and just not looking right. And the gold solder was more expensive which could very well have been there entire reason and the rest was smoke.
Dad was mostly self taught but he was given the basics from a Cherokee Smith on the Chilocco Reservation in Oklahoma during WWll. I learned the basics from Dad as I guess Rob did too. Mostly polishing I think. I probably do a lot of procedures that would make Jo, Ted, or Jim absolutely cringe but the end result is perfect for my purposes.
Experimentation is where I learn the most useful techniques. And every now and then I have to teach myself to solder all over again too.
Don Meixner.
Sent from my Verizon 4G LTE Droid
1 Like
If your solder balls up and won’t flow:
- Not only the piece must be clean–the solder itself must also be totally clean and grease-free!
- The piece of solder itself must be fully covered with flux.
- The type of flux used must be suitable for the job. Liquid flux is often not strong enough for a large piece or extensive heating.
- Torch might not be hot/bushy enough. Needs to be able to bring the entire piece up to the melting point of the solder relatively quickly.
Janet in Jerusalem