(Newswire.net — August 13, 2019) — Brass is mainly made from combining copper and zinc. It’s malleable and ductile, which makes it as popular. There are well over 60 different brass alloys but the two most popular types used especially in jewelry are red brass and yellow brass. Brass is fun to work with and is beautiful in its own right. Here are a few tips on how to brass metal.
How to Brass Metal
Soldering brass can be a challenge. Brass is commonly used for fabricating mixed metal pieces and you’ll typically find It in pendants, earrings, and cuffs. You’ll rarely find a metal that will polish as easily as brass, which explains why it’s popularly used in making jewelry. It is inexpensive and easy to work with especially when you’re learning new techniques and tools.
Planning Your Design
Once you understand the qualities of the material you’re dealing with, the next phase would be to plan your design. Here are some of the tips to blend the different metal colors in your joins.
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Implement the solder joins into your design.
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You can wrap some wire around the joints to hide them
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Sweat solder your jewelry pieces so that the solder is hidden underneath, away from view.
Prepping Your Brass Metals
One of the most crucial parts of soldering jewelry is to prepare your metals. Neglecting this simple step may eventually be the difference between success and failure as you attempt to solder. Start by checking your joins to ensure the ends fit perfectly together. If you’re having trouble seeing the join, consider holding them up to a light source and check whether any light shines through the join. If light shines through the join, use files, a saw blade, files and anything else that works to ensure the join is tight.
Once you’ve completed the first part of the prep work, you can move on to the next step which is to clean the piece. Base metals such as brass are dirty and all the dirt, oil and grime needs to come off to prevent them from interfering with the solder. You can use a 600 to 800 grit sandpaper and rub it on the joins where the solder will flow. Once you’re done, don’t touch the solder until you’ve sanded it because that will recontaminate it, forcing you to sand it again.
Soldering
Brass melts at between 1,650- and 1,724-degrees F. However, it’s important to note that it’s not the flame that melts the solder but the metal. So, it doesn’t matter how long you hold the flame over the solder as it simply won’t flow on cold metal. Focus on heating the metal so that the solder will flow when the metal gets hot. The idea is to get the metal hot enough to reach the solder’s flow point.
Bottom Line
These are some of the tips on how to brass metal whether you’re making a brand new piece of jewelry or sizing a ring down, etc. Common issues to check when the solder is not flowing and when there’s not enough heat. Once you’ve completed your piece, be sure to care for it properly or learn how to market them to sell them.