Silver Soldering for Jewelry Making
Instructor: Dwight H. Bennett
Saturday, July 18th
9 am-4 pm with one hour for lunch
 
   This is perhaps the most fundamental class amongst all the classes in jewelry making and metalsmithing.
It all revolves around the “hard silver solders,” that is, solders that flow between 1325°F and 1490°F which is just barely lower than the melting point of sterling silver’s 1640°F.
In this six-hour class, you will learn seven basic necessities to achieve a good, high-quality solder seam or joint:
That the surfaces to be soldered together must fit well with the least bit of a gap;
That the metal surfaces to be joined must be clean of all oxidation and contaminants;
That the surfaces are adequately fluxed while under the torch’s flame. Heated flux turns into an impenetrable “glass” barrier that keeps oxygen from contacting the metal surfaces while the solder flows through the flux and fuses to the metal;
That heating the metal too quickly makes all your solder chips pop all over the place!
As flux is heated, it boils and expands, pushing the joints apart slightly. But continuing to heat the joint will allow the flux to “relax,” which allows the joint to come together again; 
That solder will instantly fuse to the metal that has obtained the temperature above the melting point of the solder;
And that all surfaces to be soldered must arrive to the temperature above the melting point of the solder simultaneously, or the solder will “jump” to the surface that has arrived to that temperature first.
 
We will learn to use a variety of soldering torches, and how to use appropriate flames from those torches for soldering, brazing and annealing metal.
PLEASE NOTE: This class is for Beginners or the more advanced students wishing to improve their soldering skills.