Hi, I’ve got an order for a sterling setting of a free form
shaped tiger eye (translation?). The customer is providing the
stone and the setting requires soldering close to the stone and
all has to go into the pickle - (I know it might be dumb - but
it looks nice…)
Is there anybody with more experience of stones than me (that’s
easy) knowing if the stone will be at risk. I’ve told the
customer that I was uncertain about this but I said I would seek
advice.
Thanks for any help.
Lars Dahlberg - Gotland/Sweden
Not knowing what others will say, I’m going to say, TAKE THE
STONE OUT OF THE SETTING while soldering and pickling . . . then
replace it once the repairs are made!
In MY OPINION, no stone should encounter the wrath of pickle! or
heat from the torch!
Lars, you do face some risk of cracking the tigereye during
soldering. Also, you might change the color to a bit more of a
red hue (pretty for what it is). It’s not impossible - but the
cooler you can keep the stone, the better off you’ll be. -Pete-
i have looked in the :Gem Reference Guide:
Enhancements:
Methode : heat treatment
Effect:produces a reddish brown color in tiger’s-eye
Prevalence: common
Detection : undetectable
Stability : excellent.
Special Care Instructions :none
Care and Durability Factors
Reaction to heat:may fracture when subjected to abrupt
temperature changes
Reaction to Chemicals: soluble in hydrofluoric acid and ammonium
fluoride; very slightly soluble in alkalis
Gem Reference Guide
Published by the Gemological Institute of America
ISBN 0-87311-019-6
I think it’s a very intresting book, sorry the knowledge of
english is bad (i am going to school in september )
tigereye is a quartz material, so it, in itself, won’t be harmed
by the pickle. But it’s colored by iron compounds, and the yellow
color is due to a certain oxidation state. heating changes that.
If you get the stone too warm it will turn reddish. This is
irreversable. Also, if you heat the stone too unevenly or too
much (like if the torch flame hits it at all) you’ll crack the
stone. In short, your procedure sounds pretty risky. You’ll
need to carefully heat sink the stone in some manner to keep it
pretty cool, or you risk either breakage or a change in the
color. You would be well advised to design the setting such that
the stone only goes in after all soldering is completed.
Dont do it !! For one thing silver absorbs lots of heat- gold
would be a little safer, but tiger eye will definitly change
color or shatter with intense heat.
Gold Tiger Eye will turn red when exposed to temperatures over
approx. 500 F. The stone may shatter unless you air cool it.
Tiger Eye is agate so you should use heat sparingly.
++ Everyone has a right to be stupid. Some just abuse the privilege…++
If at all possible, remove the stone until all soldering is
complete. I think there is a distinct possibility of burning the
stone. I also think the pickle would have an adverse effect on
the stone.20
If I’m not mistaken, golden tigereye is heat treated to develop
other colors, so at a minimum, you might see color changes. I
also think tigereye is somewhat porous, and may absorb pickle.
The optical effect in tigereye is caused by fibers of asbestos,
and the pickle may be absorbed along the fiber strands (layman’s
description). There is always the possibility the stone may
break if not completely cooled before immersion in the pickle.20
Heat shield products may help if you can’t remove the stone, but
there is always a risk. Especially since silver is such an
excellent heat conductor.