Soldering with diamonds in place

Baking soda works better then Lye and is not dangerous. Boil rapidly
for 10 min. or so. I work for three stores and have been using this
method for years. It works.

Johneric

You are absolutely correct, but original question had a
presumption of correctly preparing diamonds for soldering. 

I have heard of sodium cyanide being used to clean up the burnt on
junk from soldering, have any of you used cyanide for this purpose? I
know this is ā€œold schoolā€ technique but was wondering what you think
of this for practical and safety reasons.

Thanks, Tara

used cyanide for this purpose? I know this is "old school"
technique but was wondering what you think of this for practical
and safety reasons. 

This likely refers to bombing, which no responsible person will post
the details of, I hope. Itā€™s very effective, yes, but to use the word
safety in the same sentence is humorous. They call it bombing for a
reason. But yes, itā€™s a very effective stripping procedure. Anything
Iā€™ve ever seen relating to diamonds will come off in pickle, though,
or else the stone is truly damaged, in which case bombing wonā€™t help
either.

I have heard of sodium cyanide being used to clean up the burnt on
junk from soldering, have any of you used cyanide for this
purpose? I know this is "old school" technique but was wondering
what you think of this for practical and safety reasons. 

Please, Tara, do not even consider using cyanide. It works great but
the side effects are deadly.

When I was young and stupid, we used to do a process called
ā€œbombingā€ in which cyanide was dissolved in water in an old cooking
pot, rough castings were put in the solution, a small amount of
hydrogen peroxide was added, and the top was then put on the pot. You
waited about thirty seconds or so and the cyanide would start to
fizz, and finally would pop when the reaction with the peroxide
peaked. The castings would come out clean and slick as a whistle.

This is EXTREMELY HAZARDOUS! I firmly do not recommend even
contemplating this procedure. I found this out when a jeweler in the
area I lived in (Dallas, TX) died of cyanide poisoning after placing
a small container of chocolate milk on the counter where he mixed the
cyanide solution. It had been wiped off and dried, but there was
still enough cyanide there to make itā€™s way through the paper
container and into the milk. He died on the floor of his shop before
the paramedics even got there. Very scary stuff.

There is also the environmental concern of disposing of your used
cyanide solutions. You canā€™t just dump this stuff into the street. It
will cost you a fortune to get rid of it. This I know from experience
as well. It is extremely hazardous and can contaminate our drinking
water, or just about anything else.

Please, please, please, donā€™t mess around with cyanide!

Dave

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Hi Helen, I meant to respond right away about your diamond, but
goofed. Has It been resolved? Quite often, a stone is not burned at
all; dirt is just burned onto it. A burned diamond is very white with
a frosted surface. It must be pulled and given to a diamond cutter
for repolishing. This actually removes very little weight. It isnā€™t
ruined by any means. If the diamond has a brownish burned look to it,
it is not burned at all. Clean the piece the best you can. Dry any
water off it.Dip the ring in boric acid, borax and alcohol and then
burn the alcohol off. Now, heat the diamond as hot as you can without
getting it hot enough for the retipping solder to flow. As you watch,
the anti- oxidising material will cause the brown stain to magically
disappear. Let it cool slowly and then pickle it out and your diamond
will be as good as new. Iā€™ve been repairing jewellery for so many
years now that Iā€™ve had to do this many times and it has never gone
wrong. It usually happens from trying to rush a job thru the shop
without getting it good and clean first. Anyway, be of good cheer and
let me know how everything works out.

Tom Arnold

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I've seen a lot of posts on this forum pertaining to safety, some
of which I just shake my head...But to ask about sodium cyanide and
its safety in the same sentence says that you need a warning. 

If cleaning burnt dirt and crud is what you want then ā€œcaustic sodaā€
otherwise known as ā€œlyeā€ works great by boiling the item in a steel
pot. This process should be done with caution for chemical burns and
fumes but not nearly as deadly as cyanide.

(Never add lye to hot waterā€¦mix it cold and heat it from there and
watch it closely.

It will blow up in your face if you add lye to boiling water.)

Cyanide on the other hand will brighten the gold by chemically
stripping it. I donā€™t know if it will clean dirt off or not even if
you bomb with itā€¦Iā€™ve only used it on castings myself.

It WILL kill you if inhaled and is also very easily absorbed by your
body through your skin.

It effects your nervous system and will mess you up. Disposal is
another issueā€¦What to do with the spent/wasted material. Iā€™ve found
it is not worth using.

I havenā€™t used it for 17yearsā€¦Since my daughter was born because I
didnā€™t want it in my house. (I used to work in the basement). Back
then you could by large containers 5 & 10 lb cannisters like it was
candy. But to get rid of it was the same as getting rid of toxic
waste
and costly. I found a manufacturer in NY who was able to use it in
their factory and took it off my hands.

Good luck and be careful,
Mark

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