After making a pin from sterling silver I often find that the
purchased catch (the kind with a little rotor inside the catch) seems
too loose after it has been soldered. I have lost pins before because
the catch did not have enough friction to stay closed. I have tried
pinching the catch just a tad more closed with jewelry pliers and
sometimes this works but often I pinch too hard and the catch gets
distorted and then the rotor does not work properly. Does anyone have
a method for tightening up a catch to create more friction so that it
does not accidently come open. Thanks…Shane
Put ever so slight a bend overall in the pin. The leading edge of
the pin contacting the exit from the catch on the bottom and the
entrance on the top of the catch.
I have had the same problem and after making thousands of pins I
tried soft solder, the kind that comes from the hardware store-on
sterling. A tiny bit to keep it from soldering the rotor and not too
much so it doesn’t show under the pin parts. It turns out neat and
clean and have never had one break off the piece. The lower temp
keeps the parts from distorting. Try it on a few practice pieces.