"Tim" wrote in message
om...
Heather Coleman wrote in message
...
I am mainly working with gold at the moment and wondered if there's a
way I can create my own solder's using the filings I get rather than
spending money buying fresh material.?

I wouldn't know but I'm going to guess it starts with copper and zinc
additions... I'd look up the compositions of some typical alloys. And
wait to see if Abrasha or Harold have anything on the subject...

The same dealer that sells you the gold and the gold solder should also be
willing to buy your filings. Your recovery should be about 90-95% (Harold
please correct this estimate). Unless you have your own reprocessing
facilities for gold filings, this is your best bet. So now that the value
of the gold is out of the equation, here are some reasons for NOT making
your own solder.

1. Commercial solders have known karat ratings. Typical is 10, 14, and 18
kt --
2. Commercial solders with known karat ratings have known melting
temperatures. Important when soldering several joints near each other.

3. And this is the most important -- color. There's yellow, pink, white,
and green gold and various shades between. If yo make your own solders
you're unlikely to get the color right. A yellow gold piece with green,
pink, and white solder joints isn't going to look right.

4. Save some money and trouble and don't buy precut solder. You buy solder
in a small sheet -- e.g., 1cm x 2cm and cut off tiny pieces as you need
them. That way, you can afford to have several different melting
temperatures on hand. However, to take advantage of this you will have to
buy some really good, jeweler's tin snips. Expect to pay about $50 last
time I looked.

Boris

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