Hi everyone, I have just bought a rather nice pocket watch which is
chromium plated, and I would like to solder silver ornamentation onto
the case. None of my refence books tell me if this is possible, and
if so what I need to do to make this work. Is there any advice fellow
Orchidians have to offer? best wishes Stevie
Hi Stevie; Here’s my opinion. Don’t try to solder anything onto the
watch case. It probably isn’t going to want to stick, and if you get
things too hot (and who knows what that will be), you’ll damage or
discolor the plating or warp the article or otherwise destroy it. If
you’re bent on attaching something to it, consider designing an
element that can be rivited on.
David L. Huffman
Hello Stevie, I would not solder on chrome. By heating the case you
can get discolouration of the chrome. This is difficult to remove if
the layer is thin. or bladdering of the chromium layer can occur. I
suggest to solder on the ornament small pins. Drill in the casing
holes and glue the ornament and pins in.
Martin Niemeijer
Years ago when I did such work, I would grind an appropriate amount
of chrome off to expose the brass. This can be tin soldered easily.
Silver solder will damage the chrome beyond repair and soft solders
will bead up and not flow onto chrome. Good luck.
BDH