I need two halves (front and back) of a 3 inch cast bronze medallion
welded together around the edge (like on the edge of a coin). This is
a commission for two (2) medallions being presented to two senior US
Senators in Was hington DC on February 20 (but 3 weeks away).
The spot welds must be raised above the edge surface so that I can
grind the edge surface flat, which I suspect means using fill rod.
Just about species of metal fill rod that can be finished with
gold-plating is OK (but NOT brass please).
A laser welder, a Puk II or III welder, or similar, or even a small
TIG welder using a micro-torch might do the trick.
Anybody near me in the Bay Area of California willing to take this
on?
Not near you (Olympic Penn in WA) but can do it fast. Do you want
"spot welds" of to weld the 2 half’s totally?
Let me know off line if you want me to do so. Alternative, look
under ART Foundries in your area and call them. There are a couple in
the Berkeley area, just don’t know how fast they would/could get this
small bit of work into their cycle…
If you have a stick welder on hand, you can get bronze welding rods
from any local welding supply house. I use my TIG with bronze wire.
They are a bit pricey, but worth it.
I missed the original question on this, so I’ll just mention that if
its small parts, we can lazer weld the bronze togeter if the 2 halves
fit very well. Contact us at sales@racecarjewelry.com
-Just as a sidenote and a bit of good PR work for all involved- If
you are looking to enrich and grow your partnership potentials and
educate others- try finding a college or vocational school that have
an “Industrial Welding” or “Ship and Pipefitting” school. Most
industrial areas and major commerce cities have them. These teach all
manner of brazing soldering and welding functions- from the micro
torch application to the truly large and cumbersome “No-load” Inert
gas alloy welds.
-Most programs have advanced students or professors that love to
showcase how lessons are applied to “real world” problems. I think
the work to find the program can be and is worth it. I have used this
approach several times and loved the results! The school supplied the
brazing rods AT COST and all I had to do was show up and watch the
work! (It took about 3 phone calls to the department and then 2
meetings- about 5 hours total time, and one week to set up.)
-DONT FORGET- what we do is create- and by building this partnership
I have enjoied the opportunity to get several things "custom-made"
usually at cost for a students project. (certain braces or
mountings, and in one instance a tempered handmade stake for a
vessel I was working on) with some control over specifications!
Several of the students from my first foray into the use of
academics have begun creating jewelry as well- and I have friends in
the department to use or call on for reference or technical skills!
-Noted items for looking into as well are other vocational arts! I
found several great tax-deductions by allowing students of said
welding program into the shop for a bit, and the supplies (scrap)
donated to the school have provided me with excellent return when it
comes to tax-time!
-On that note- if youre looking to educate yourself as well- the
HOBART welding company has several great tools and tutorials well
worth the look! As for the TAX info- I find the NOLO "DEDUCT IT"
small business books are unfathomably worth the read!